OCTOBER 17, 2002

McNish to test for Penske

Allan McNish has flown to the United States of America and is due to test for the Penske IRL team early next week at the California Speedway at Fontana. McNish might be in the running for a Penske drive if Helio Castroneves gets the chance to race in Formula 1 although there have been rumors in recent days that Penske was keen to sign up double IRL champion Sam Hornish Jr. if Castroneves does depart. At the moment however there is no sign of any F1 deal for Castroneves despite his name having been linked with Jaguar and his having tested successfully with Toyota.

"I've never had the chance to experience driving on an oval," McNish said. "And it's not only an oval, it's probably the fastest race track in the world. I'm very grateful to Toyota and Penske Racing for giving me this chance. Racing at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway earlier this year heightened my desire to experience an oval, as the F1 course only uses one of the turns."

McNish would like to add victory in the Indianapolis 500 to his win in the classic Le Mans 24 Hours in 1998.