Meira Signs With Foyt

Vitor Meira, a fan favorite who many consider to be the best IndyCar driver who has yet to win a race, has landed on his feet just three weeks after losing his seat at Panther Racing. It was announced on Thursday that the 31 year-old Brazilian has inked a deal to replace Darren Manning at A.J. Foyt Enterprises.

"I am definitely going into 2009 with extra motivation," said Meira, who will drive the #14 car starting next month in Surfers Paradise. "Everybody talks about A.J. and the team. To have him recognize what I can bring to the team is really flattering, as it would be for every professional race car driver."

While this move currently leaves Darren Manning out in the cold, he states that there are no hard feelings towards owner A.J. Foyt or his son & the team manager, Larry. "We had a good couple of years of improvements. Getting me on board was part of making his team better and I think we did that. I wish him well. We had a good relationship and I expect that to continue no matter what I end up doing."

There was no update from the team regarding their hopes/plans for adding a second car full time in '09, something that they expressed an interest in doing prior to the Chicagoland race & the reason why they "tested" Franck Perera at that event.