AGR to run 5th car for Montagny
Montagny, who made seven starts for Andretti Green's American Le Mans Series program in 2008, will pilot the #25 AFS Dallara/Honda/Firestone alongside Andretti Green's existing four-driver lineup that includes Marco Andretti, Tony Kanaan, Hideki Mutoh and Danica Patrick.
AFS is one of the nation's largest multi-family automatic fire sprinkler contractors and is familiar to Firestone Indy Lights fans through AFS Racing, which teamed with Andretti Green Racing to win the 2008 series title. AFS/Andretti Green currently holds down the top two spots in the 2009 Firestone Indy Lights championship standings with drivers J.R. Hildebrand and Sebastian Saavedra.
During his stint with Andretti Green last year, Montagny teamed with a variety of co-drivers and piloted the team's LMP2-class Acura to an overall ALMS victory at Belle Isle and an additional LMP2 win at Laguna Seca. Montagny's racing resume also features seven Formula 1 starts, all in 2006 with Super Aguri, and stints as a Formula 1 test driver and third driver.
The 31-year old Frenchman owns four top-five finishes in his last four starts in the 24 Hours of Le Mans including a runner-up finish earlier this summer.
FRANCK MONTAGNY, #25 AFS DALLARA/HONDA/FIRESTONE:
"I am certainly looking forward to my IndyCar debut in Sonoma with AFS and Andretti Green Racing. I was able to test one of the team's Indy cars last year and very much enjoyed driving it. Being able to test the track this week will be very helpful for me to learn the circuit and prepare for the race. We have a lot of work to do to get ready, but I believe we are up to the challenge."
GARY PETERSON, PRESIDENT, AUTOMATIC FIRE SPRINKLERS, INC.:
"This is an exciting announcement for AFS/Automatic Fire Sprinklers, Inc. California is an important market for our company and we believe Franck will give us a good shot at competing for a win.
"In the midst of this economic downturn, it's important for AFS/Automatic Fire Sprinklers, Inc., to keep our name out there to attract new customers and the Indy Racing League also provides an excellent venue for entertaining current customers.
"We're proud of our Firestone Indy Lights program and this is a great opportunity to be a primary sponsor in the IndyCar Series. It will be exciting to see our traditional red-and-yellow color scheme out there competing with the best."
MICHAEL ANDRETTI, CHAIRMAN, ANDRETTI GREEN RACING:
"We're very excited to see this come together for Sonoma. This is a good opportunity for Gary to showcase AFS at the IndyCar level and we think Franck will do a great job in the car that weekend."