INDIANAPOLIS — IndyCar Series team HVM Racing is planning a multitude of changes for the 2010 season, including finding a replacement for former driver E.J. Viso.
The team plans to return to the series as a two-car operation next year. Robert Doornbos, who joined the team midway through the 2009 season, will drive one of the team’s entries. The team is currently exploring its options for the second entry, which was driven by Viso before his contract expired at the end of the season.
HVM Racing earned seven top-10 finishes in its first IndyCar season in 2008, but 2009 results were below expectations.
“We have a historically successful team, and the core members of the team are still the same,” said Team Principal and owner Keith Wiggins. “But we could benefit a great deal by adding a few people who have been in this particular series a little longer than we have, people who have more experience with the nuances of an IndyCar program. We are also focusing on putting more resources into further technical development during the off-season.”
Wiggins is busy looking for the right talent that he feels is needed to get team performance back to past levels. In seven years in the CART and Champ Car series, the team was a regular race winner and championship contender.
Wiggins’ hunt for experienced talent applies to the driver’s seat vacancy as well as engineering and other team roles.
“2009 has not been typical of HVM’s performance, but everyone is committed to turning things around,” Wiggins said. “But I don’t think we need to reinvent the wheel. We need to add a few key pieces that will make us more complete and, as a result, return us to being a truly competitive team.”