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IndyCar
INDYCAR: Shank Sells DW12 Chassis To Schmidt
Michael Shank's MSR Indy program has taken a change in direction with news that the Ohio-based team has sold its lone chassis to Schmidt Peterson Motorsports.
Michael Shank's dream of running a car in the Indy 500 is still alive, but it will take partnering with another team to make it happen. (Photo: LAT)
Michael Shank Racing's MSR Indy program has taken a step backwards after the team recently revealed it has sold its Dallara DW12 chassis.
The Ohio-based GRAND-AM Rolex Series team came close to fielding Jay Howard at the 2012 Indianapolis 500, but the program unraveled when it was unable to secure an engine lease from Chevy or Honda.
The recent expansion to two cars by Schmidt Peterson Motorsports provided Shank with the perfect opportunity to sell his zero-mile DW12 without completely abandoning his dream of competing at Indy.
"There's all kinds of possibilities," he told SPEED.com. "It was the strangest thing. The day I sold my car, I had three different teams come to me to inquire about running cars for Indy. We don't have any sports car races in May, so we're clear to run a car for someone and all my crew guys have open-wheel backgrounds and can't wait to get back to Indy."
Shank, who's no stranger to driving and fielding open-wheel cars, says he's accepted the need to shift his focus from competing at Indy with his own DW12 to looking for a partner team.
"You simply can’t be in my position and not be completely driven to want to compete in the Indianapolis 500, so we will just have to keep working and exploring all the options and see what happens," he said.
The MSR Rolex Series team has been a popular destination for current and recent Firestone Indy Lights drivers, which could provide one of those drivers a chance to race at Indy with Shank running a satellite effort for a current entrant.
Marshall Pruett is SPEED.com's Auto Racing Editor, covering IndyCar and sports cars. Now in his 27th year in the sport, Pruett was an open-wheel mechanic, engineer and manager before joining SPEED. He also contributes to RACER, Road & Track and Racecar Engineering. Follow him @MarshallPruett.
The Ohio-based GRAND-AM Rolex Series team came close to fielding Jay Howard at the 2012 Indianapolis 500, but the program unraveled when it was unable to secure an engine lease from Chevy or Honda.
The recent expansion to two cars by Schmidt Peterson Motorsports provided Shank with the perfect opportunity to sell his zero-mile DW12 without completely abandoning his dream of competing at Indy.
"There's all kinds of possibilities," he told SPEED.com. "It was the strangest thing. The day I sold my car, I had three different teams come to me to inquire about running cars for Indy. We don't have any sports car races in May, so we're clear to run a car for someone and all my crew guys have open-wheel backgrounds and can't wait to get back to Indy."
Shank, who's no stranger to driving and fielding open-wheel cars, says he's accepted the need to shift his focus from competing at Indy with his own DW12 to looking for a partner team.
"You simply can’t be in my position and not be completely driven to want to compete in the Indianapolis 500, so we will just have to keep working and exploring all the options and see what happens," he said.
The MSR Rolex Series team has been a popular destination for current and recent Firestone Indy Lights drivers, which could provide one of those drivers a chance to race at Indy with Shank running a satellite effort for a current entrant.
Marshall Pruett is SPEED.com's Auto Racing Editor, covering IndyCar and sports cars. Now in his 27th year in the sport, Pruett was an open-wheel mechanic, engineer and manager before joining SPEED. He also contributes to RACER, Road & Track and Racecar Engineering. Follow him @MarshallPruett.
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