Stefan Wilson will attempt to make his fifth Indianapolis 500 next year in a combined entry fielded by Dreyer & Reinbold Racing and Cusick Motorsports.
The British driver will pilot the No. 24 Chevrolet-powered car. Dreyer & Reinbold, which fielded two cars in last year’s Indy 500, still plans on a second entry that was not part of Thursday’s announcement.
Dreyer & Reinbold has entered and qualified 45 cars in the Indy 500, dating back to 2000, with a best finish of fourth by Oriol Servia in 2012. Cusick Motorsports was created as a marketing and business-to-business partner and chose Dreyer & Reinbold as a partner for its third attempt at “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.”
Wilson has a career-best finish of 15th in the 2018 Indy 500, when he was the leader with four laps remaining until he had to pit for fuel. He spends most of the year trying to put together the funding for an Indy 500 ride, but this last season also ran three IMSA sports car races, including the Rolex 24 at Daytona.
“I’ve been very impressed with how hard DRR has worked at and focused on the 500,” Wilson said. “It’s such an honor for me to join them in partnership with Cusick Motorsports and work with them on our collective goal of trying to win the Indy 500. There’s a great opportunity here for us to all grow together. I hope this leads to more 500s and maybe even more races together.”
Wilson, the younger brother of the late Justin Wilson, ran the Indy 500 last year in a Cusick entry partnered with DragonSpeed Racing. Justin Wilson spent the 2010 and 2011 seasons driving for DRR and scored a pair of podium finishes.
“There’s history here with this team,” Wilson said. “It feels great to be rejoining them in a sense.”
Cusick Motorsports was founded in 2021 by Don Cusick, and the team is headquartered at The Thermal Club in California. The facility will host IndyCar preseason testing in February for its first series activity at the site, which has four asphalt motorsport tracks at the east end of the Coachella Valley.
“As soon as the checkered flag fell on the Indy 500 this year, we set out to find the best possible partner for the future,” Cusick said. “We have immense respect for what Dreyer & Reinbold Racing have done both on and off track over the years and quickly identified them as our ideal partner for this endeavor.”
Source: www.espn.com