VERSUS announces on-air talent for IndyCar Series race telecasts.

INDIANAPOLIS, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2009 - VERSUS, the network that celebrates real competition and the exclusive cable television home of the IndyCar Series®, today announced its talent line-up for the 2009 race season. Bob Jenkins, Jon Beekhuis and Robbie Buhl will serve as the in-booth announce team, while Robbie Floyd, Jack Arute and Lindy Thackston will provide trackside updates and reports during each telecast. VERSUS will air 12 races in 2009 and will open the season April 5 live from St. Petersburg, Fla. All race telecasts will be produced and available in HD.

"VERSUS is very excited about the stellar line-up of on-air talent assembled for our IndyCar Series telecasts," said Marc Fein, Executive Vice President of Programming, Production and Business Operation for VERSUS. "We feel these individuals, who are great personalities and authorities in the sport, will provide viewers with a unique insider's perspective along with engaging in-depth analysis during our race-day coverage."
Jenkins, a veteran motorsports television and radio announcer, will serve as VERSUS' lead announcer for the network's IndyCar Series telecasts. Jenkins served as ESPN's lead motorsports anchor for its stock car and open-wheel racing coverage from 1979-2003 and has worked for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network in various capacities, including chief announcer. For the last two seasons, Jenkins has anchored Firestone Indy Lights broadcasts.

Beekhuis and Buhl will join Jenkins in the booth as the network's lead analysts. Beekhuis, a former driver in CART (1989-92) and the 1988 Indy Lights champion, worked as a pit reporter during ESPN, SPEED, CBS and NBC CART/Champ Car broadcasts before moving to the lead-analyst role in 2007. Buhl, who became an announcer for the Firestone Indy Lights in 2007, had 78 starts in the IndyCar Series and is a former teammate to Tony Stewart. He started his own race team in 2000 and stunned the establishment with a win from 22nd on the grid at the season-opener at Walt Disney World Speedway. Buhl, the 1992 Indy Lights champion, is the co-owner of Dreyer & Reinbold Racing.

Arute, Floyd and Thackston will join VERSUS' telecasts to provide analysis from pit lane.
Arute is a 25-year sports broadcasting veteran who has worked as a pit reporter for ESPN and ABC's IndyCar Series, NASCAR and Formula One broadcasts. In addition to his motorsports duties at ESPN, he serves as a sideline reporter for the network's college football broadcasts and is a host for Sirius Satellite Radio's college football talk show.

Floyd is an experienced television reporter who covered the 2004 and 2006 Olympic Games for NBC and has also worked for ESPN, Fox Sports and SPEED on various live sporting events.
Thackston anchors and reports for First Coast News in Jacksonville and is an experienced motorsports reporter who has worked for XM Satellite Radio and SpeedTV.com, providing trackside updates during American Le Mans Series race coverage. She grew up near Indianapolis, serving as an Indianapolis 500 Princess, before graduating from Purdue University.

"We couldn't be happier with the broadcast team VERSUS has put together," said Charlie Morgan, president and chief operating officer for IMS Productions. "Jenkins, Beekhuis, Buhl and Arute bring an incredible amount of on- and off-track experience to the broadcast, while Floyd and Thackston will offer a fresh perspective to viewers."

VERSUS, which announced its multi-year partnership with the IndyCar Series in August 2008, will air races for the next 10 years beginning with the 2009 season. Each of VERSUS' race telecasts will last a minimum of three hours and will include extended pre-race coverage. The network will also air a one-hour preview show the day before each race which will feature qualification highlights and all of the relevant IndyCar Series stories of that weekend. Additionally, the network will feature extensive coverage of all the qualification days at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway leading up to the Indianapolis 500.

IRL Cuts Track Time for Indy 500

Two fewer practice days for 500; Other races likely to trim schedule

Curt Cavin/Indystar.com - IndyCar Series teams will have less time to practice for the 93rd Indianapolis 500 and other races on the 2009 schedule, the Indy Racing League confirmed Friday. Two practice days have been trimmed form the 500’s May schedule and most of the other series races will be reduced to two days of track activity.

“It’s clearly a response to the economic times we’re facing,“ league spokesman John Griffin said. Full practice at Indianapolis Motor Speedway has been pushed back to Wednesday, May 6, and the Wednesday (May 13) practice in the event’s second week will be eliminated. Team officials said it to early to predict how much the savings will be, but reducing the frequency of accidents is significant. Even minimal contact with a wall at the Speedway can cost a team $100,000 to repair the damage.” The only drawback is possible rain,” Craig Baranouski, team manager of A.J. Foyt Racing, said of the shorter 500 schedule. “I think (officials) need to have flexibility, especially in the second week. The teams are going to be there anyway.”

The IRL has not said what days the series will be on the track at its 16 other races, but many are likely to be two-day shows. The 500’s four-day, two-weekend qualifying format will remain. Pole day, which sets the race’s first 11 starting spots, will be Saturday, May 9. The annual rookie program begins Tuesday, May 5.

The Speedway’s three-year Centennial Era, which includes the 100 year anniversary of the first 500 in 1911, begins May 1 with the first of three days of balloon activities. Two balloon races will commemorate the first competition in the Speedway’s history – in June of 1909. The races May 2-3 will be know as the Founders Race and the 100 Years Race, respectively.

New 2009 IndyCar Series Testing Policy

IndyCar Series teams will be permitted six private test days in 2009, with limitations on the numbers of miles and sets of tires allowed based on the number of full-time cars the team fields. Teams can earn additional test days by providing opportunities to Firestone Indy Lights drivers. Teams are not permitted to test at any track within seven days of a race.

Dreyer & Reinbold Racing Add Conway

Dreyer & Reinbold Racing came to an agreement with British racer Mike Conway to become the team’s first confirmed driver for the 2009 IndyCar Series campaign. The 25 year old rookie has spent the majority of his career in the European formula car ladder. Most recently, he completed his second season driving in the GP2 Series with Trident Racing in 2008. He was also a Honda F1 Racing test driver for the past two seasons.

Homestead-Miami Speedway and Barber Motorsports Park will host pre-season Open Tests

IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights teams will participate in Open Tests at Homestead-Miami Speedway and Barber Motorsports Park to prepare for the 2009 season.

The first Spring Training dates are scheduled for Feb. 23-25 on the 1.5-mile, variable-banked oval at Homestead-Miami Speedway. IndyCar Series teams will test under the lights from 4-10 p.m. Feb. 24-25 in preparation for the 17-race schedule that includes 10 ovals. Firestone Indy Lights rookies will practice Feb. 23 from 9 a.m.-5 p.m., and all Firestone Indy Lights drivers will be allowed to test Feb. 24 from 9 a.m.-3:45 p.m.
The two series will prepare for the road and street courses on the 2009 schedule with an Open Test March 21-23 at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Ala. IndyCar Series teams will test from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. March 22 and 9 a.m.-4 p.m. March 23 on the 16-turn, 2.38-mile course, while Firestone Indy Lights teams will test from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. March 21.

This will mark the second time the IndyCar Series will hold an Open Test at Barber Motorsports Park. Seven drivers tested at the facility in October 2007.

"Everyone is ready to get back to the racetrack, and there are no better places to prepare for the 2009 season than Homestead-Miami Speedway and Barber Motorsports Park," said Brian Barnhart, president of competition for the Indy Racing League, sanctioning body of the IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights. "This will be our third consecutive season to test under the lights at Homestead-Miami. It's a fantastic venue that gives everyone the opportunity to measure the progress they've made over the winter and prepare for the season.

"We're excited to bring both the IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights to Barber Motorsports Park. The facility is first class, and we know the fans in that part of the country are excited to have us there."

"The 2009 Indy Racing League season brings some pretty exciting new changes, and moving championship weekend to Homestead-Miami Speedway Oct. 9-10 is at the top of that list," said Homestead-Miami president Curtis Gray. "Seeing as how we'll be providing the South Florida finish line for both the IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights championships this fall, it's fitting that we'll also host Spring Training 2009. Book-ending the Indy Racing League season in Miami is as good as it gets for race fans."

"It's no secret we've been courting the Indy Racing League for a while now," said Gene Hallman, president of ZOOM Motorsports, the exclusive promoter and management team for the Barber Motorsports Park. "We're very happy they've selected the finest motorsports facility in the U.S. for their sole pre-season road course test, and we feel that open wheel fans across the Southeast will extend some of our famous Southern hospitality to the drivers and teams during their stay here in Birmingham."