MOORESVILLE, N.C. (AP) - Team Penske will field its current three-car lineup in IndyCar next season.
The team said Thursday it will field cars in 2012 for Ryan Briscoe, Helio Castroneves and Will Power _ the same lineup Penske has fielded since 2009.
That three-driver lineup has racked up 21 wins and 28 poles over the last three years. Power has gone down to the wire with Dario Franchitti in the championship battle the last two seasons.
“The combination of Helio, Ryan and Will has been a formidable one on the track and they work very well together as teammates,” said Tim Cindric, President of Penske. “Our goal all along has been to continue running three cars and thanks to our terrific partners, we have been able to make everything work from the business side.
“Now, all of our focus will be on developing the new Chevrolet IndyCar and getting ready for a strong return to the track in 2012.”
The team said sponsorship announcements will be made in the coming months.
Briscoe had been the uncertain part of the driver lineup. There had been speculation the last week he would move to Andretti Autosport to fill the hole created when Dan Wheldon was killed in the Oct. 16 season finale. Wheldon had agreed to replace Danica Patrick at Andretti the morning he was killed.
Briscoe posted on his Twitter page he was excited to return to Penske.
“It’s official! I don’t have to host Wheel of Fortune next year,” he wrote.
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