INDYCAR: Panther Racing Hires J.R. Hildebrand

IndyCar

INDYCAR: Panther Racing Hires J.R. Hildebrand

“You cannot believe how exciting this is for me,” Hildebrand tells SPEED.com's Robin Miller. “To come up through the ladder system and get to this point is huge."

Robin Miller | Posted December 13, 2010 Indianapolis, IN

After spending most of 2010 trying to find a way to join the IZOD IndyCar Series, the 2009 Indy Lights champ earned his shot on merit, rather than sponsorship dollars. (Panther Racing)

The full-time American driver in the IZOD IndyCar series was a limited edition in 2010 with only Ryan Hunter-Reay, Danica Patrick and Marco Andretti competing in all 17 races.

But that’s going to change in 2011.

It will be announced Tuesday afternoon that California’s J.R. Hildebrand has secured the National Guard seat at Panther Racing, while Chip Ganassi has called a Thursday press conference to confirm Ohio’s Graham Rahal and California’s Charlie Kimball will be teammates on a new team owned by the reigning IndyCar title owner.

SPEED first reported the story on Rahal and Kimball several weeks ago.

Hildebrand, who captured the US F200 title in 2006 and the Indy Lights championship in 2009, will replace England’s Dan Wheldon in one of the top seats in IndyCar and didn’t have to bring a penny.

Hildebrand's technical feedback was one of the many things that reportedly impressed the Panther Racing team during his test at Phoenix last week. (Panther Racing)

In what has become a rarity these days, the young American was hired.

“You cannot believe how exciting this is for me,” said the 22-year-old native of Sausalito, CA, who grew up in the shadows of Infineon Raceway. “To get one of the premier rides in IndyCar is something I always dreamed about.

“To come up through the ladder system and get to this point is huge.

“And, to not have to bring any sponsorship, well I don’t take that for granted because I’ve grown up in an era where drivers were forced to find sponsorship.”

Hildebrand said he finally realized last week, following a two-day test on the oval at Phoenix International Raceway, he was headed for the team that won two titles with Sam Hornish Jr.

“Things started to heat up in August and September but, honestly, it wasn’t until last week that I really felt like it was going to be my ride,” he said. “The test at Phoenix wasn’t the easiest and my heart rate was a lot higher than I’d hoped it would be.

“But it gave them a chance to see how I would react, gauge my feedback and see how I interacted with the team. I came away feeling good about it.”

Because he had no money, J.R. spent this past season pounding the pavement, except for his first two IndyCar starts at Mid-Ohio and Infineon with Dreyer & Reinbold.

“It makes you really think that if you sit on the sidelines for another season, maybe you have to start thinking about going back to school.”

Sarah Fisher had approached Hildebrand about driving for her team.

“I love her organization but I had this carrot dangled out in front of me and I’d gone this far,” continued. “I’d out-lasted Justin Wilson, so I just decided to hang in there with Panther.”

As to whether there’s an unspoken prejudice against American drivers in IndyCar, Hildebrand responded: “It’s hard to say there’s a stigma. It just seems to be a much broader group of foreign drivers.

“But, hopefully, with a couple of us getting rides in good seats maybe that perception will change.”

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