Scheckter joins Conquest for Chicago

Indianapolis, August 26, 2010: Conquest Racing will welcome a seasoned IZOD IndyCar Series veteran to its team this weekend as Tomas Scheckter will drive the No. 36 car at Chicagoland Speedway in the PEAK Antifreeze & Motor Oil Indy 300.

The South African brings a wealth of experience gained over the course of his 100-plus starts in the open-wheel racing series. Since his first IZOD IndyCar Series start in 2002, he has gone on to claim 43 top-10s including a pair of wins and has led more than 1,300 laps.

"I'm very happy to be joining Conquest Racing," said Scheckter, who has made four starts this season with Dreyer & Reinbold Racing. "Eric (Bachelart) and I have been talking for quite a while and when this opportunity to drive for them came up, I immediately took advantage of it.

"I know some of the guys on the team for having worked with them in the past and I am really looking forward to working with them again as well as with everyone else. We're coming together a little bit at the last minute but I am confident that we can come out with a good result, there are a lot of good people on this team."

The 29-year-old driver has seven starts at Chicagoland Speedway with a best finish of fourth and has led 118 laps on the 1.5-mile tri-oval.

"I'm pretty excited to be getting back into an Indy car at Chicagoland," Scheckter said. "I really like that track. I've led laps there and last season I had the quickest lap of the race. There's a lot of side-by-side racing and it's always fun to be racing at night. I can't wait."

Team owner Eric Bachelart said he is thrilled to add Scheckter to his Indianapolis-based team's lineup alongside rookie Bertrand Baguette.

"Tomas and I have been in contact for quite some time and it is great to finally be able to put a deal together," Bachelart said. "He brings so much experience to the team. We're really excited to have the chance to work with him. He will also be a good pairing for Bertrand and will be able to help him develop his oval racing skills."I'm looking forward to a good weekend from both drivers."