KEY POINTS:
New Zealander Matt Halliday has been confirmed as a driver in this year's Champ Car World Series. Halliday has been signed by Conquest Racing with which he contested the 2001 Indy Lights Championship.
His signing follows a test with Conquest Racing at the Laguna Seca circuit in California,
where he set the eighth-fastest time.
The Champ Car series will be contested over 16 races scheduled to be held in the US, Canada, Mexico, China, Holland, Belgium and Australia.
Racing starts with the Vegas Grand Prix, around the streets of Las Vegas, and travels to Zolder, Long Beach, Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez and Surfers Paradise on Australia's Gold Coast.
An all-new car design incorporating a DP-01 chassis powered by a 2.65-litre, turbocharged V8 Cosworth engine will be introduced for this year's series.
Power is transmitted to the rear wheels through a sequential seven-speed gearbox. About 750 horsepower provide a top speed of 385km/h.
Halliday's first race is tomorrow. The series then moves to the historic Long Beach Grand Prix followed by the first oval race at Houston Speedway in Texas.
"I have always had my sights set on Champ Car racing as it is one of the highest profile championships using the fastest single-seater racing cars in the world," he said.
"I am also very happy to be doing the series with Eric Bachelart and his Conquest Racing team."
Bachelart said he was extremely pleased to have Halliday on board for the start of the season.
"We've worked well together in the past and I look forward to working with him again," he said.
"When we tested him last month in Laguna Seca, his on-track performance definitely demonstrated that he deserves his place in the Champ Car World Series."
Super V8 fans can rest easy, as Halliday will be back to contest the two endurance rounds of the series.
He drove the No 5 Ford Performance Racing Falcon during last year's endurance race season.
This year, he will again race with the Prodrive team at the Sandown 500 from September 14 to 16 and the Bathurst 1000, from October 4 to 7.
After his seven victories from nine starts in the GT3 Challenge Cup, and his showing in last year's endurance rounds, FPR is happy to have him back in the team. Halliday's speed and versatility make him a strong addition to FPR's endurance driver lineup for this year.
Halliday is looking forward to re-joining FPR with the goal of achieving success in V8 Supercars.
"It's great to be rejoining FPR, which is one of the most professional teams I have driven with.
"After two good races and getting to know the team well last year, I'm looking forward to contributing to major results in the endurance races this year."