Conquest to run Junqueira in 500

Bruno Junqueira

Conquest Racing and All Sport, Inc. are pleased to announce that they will be fielding an entry for 2002 Indy 500 pole sitter Bruno Junqueira at this year’s Indianapolis 500.

“We are very excited to have Bruno join the team" shared team owner Eric Bachelart. “Bruno is a proven winner and I am fully confident in his abilities to come out and do well despite the limited practice time. Bruno also brings with him a wealth of experience racing here at Indianapolis and we look forward to working with him. We are also very happy to have this partnership with ALL SPORT®, BIG RED® and Gary Smith."

Bruno Junqueira, who made 15 starts in the IndyCar Series in 2008, sat on pole at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 2002 with an average speed of 231.342 mph. The Brazilian will be attempting to qualify for his sixth Indy 500 this weekend and despite coming in at the last minute, he is confident he can do well and make the field.

“I’m quite happy with the opportunity to race for Conquest Racing and Big Red, Inc.," expressed Junqueira. “We’ve talked in the past and I’m looking forward to working with them as they are a very well organized team. The Indy 500 is a special race for me and having the chance to do this race again will be very nice. For sure we do not have much time to prepare but I have good experience at this track and I think we can put the car in the race and have a good showing. I want to thank Eric (Bachelart) and Gary (Smith) for giving me this opportunity as well as ALL SPORT® and BIG RED® for their support. I can’t wait to sit aboard the ALL SPORT®/BIG RED® car today for the first time."

Junqueira has led a total of 52 laps and has a best finish of fifth at the Indy 500. The former Champ Car driver, who drove for teams such as Ganassi Racing and Newman/Haas Racing, has a total of 102 starts in the defunct series with eight wins and 47 top five finishes. Last season, the veteran open-wheel driver competed for Dale Coyne Racing in the newly unified IndyCar Series. Junqueira has 19 IndyCar Series starts with two top five finishes.

Conquest Racing is also thrilled to have ALL SPORT back as a partner, this time in a bigger capacity. The sports drink, which provides an optimal balance of fluids to help rehydrate during physical exertion, will be acting as title sponsor on the #36 Conquest car.

“We are excited to continue and expand our ALL SPORT® partnership with Conquest Racing," said Gary Smith, Chairman and CEO of Big Red, Inc. “We had a great experience last season with Conquest and we’re very pleased to be partnered with them once again. ALL SPORT® has been a key partner in many auto racing sponsorships in the past and as a result, our plan is to capture the thrill of racing through in-store programs designed to get consumers excited about our connection to motorsports."

“Gary and his Big Red® product were partners on our Rubicon effort last May and it’s extremely gratifying to have his ALL SPORT® brand as a partner on this Conquest effort," stated Jim Freudenberg of Rubicon Sports Agency. “This is the culmination of lots of hard work between Gary and I to put a great deal together for all parties involved."

Practice for the third day of qualifying resumes today at 10:15 a.m. with qualifying for positions 23 to 33 getting underway at noon. The 2009 Indianapolis 500 takes place May 24th and will be broadcast live on ABC starting at noon eastern time.