Simona, HVM Go Nuclear

As I had briefly mentioned in a prior story, HVM Racing announced that they had made a deal to retain the driving services of Simona de Silvestro for 2011. The full details of the arraingement were made public this past Monday, and they are far better than expected.   

Entergy Nuclear, a division of the multi-facited (nuclear, hydro-electric, natural gas) US utility giant Entergy, will use Simona's car as a platform to promote their "Nuclear Clean Air Energy" education program in 2011 as the start of a three year sponsorship deal with HVM. This kind of long-term stability will hopefully give both HVM and de Silvestro time to sharpen their skills and make inroads on the sharp end of the IndyCar grid.

“It’s a really special feeling, and I’m excited for 2011,” the Swiss driver told reporters. “It’s the first time in my career that I know I will be able to race not only this year, but for the next couple of years. We have a great partnership with Entergy and I'm glad they are coming aboard."

This is not Entergy's first sponsorship deal with de Silvestro: They supported her in 2008 when she competed in the Atlantics Series, and were an associate sponsor for her last May at Indianapolis.

In other driver news...

James Hincliffe, a resident of Toronto who finished second in the 2010 Firestone Indy Lights Series championship, notching three victories and three second place results along the way, was chosen as the Canadian Racer of the Year by readers of Inside Track Motorsports News. “It’s obviously a huge honor and if I’m being honest also a little bit of a shock as you don’t tend to think of yourself in that light,” said Hinchcliffe. “At the same time, knowing that Canada’s got some of the best, most passionate open-wheel racing fans, to be recognized by them is quite the honor."

Hinchcliffe recently conculded a second multi-day test session with the Newman-Haas IndyCar squad, and is actively persuing a full time seat with them for the 2011 season.