Paul Dana, who finished second in the IRL Menards Infiniti Pro SeriesT in 2004, tested an IRL IndyCar® Series car Nov. 29 at Phoenix International Raceway with Hemelgarn Racing.

Dana, a native of St. Louis who now lives in Indianapolis, completed approximately 80 laps in the team's 2002-spec Dallara on the 1-mile oval. He also practiced pit stops.

"Paul did a good job," said team manager Lee Kunzman. "He took his time getting comfortable at first, but then was right on race pace. He got into the high 20- second range. For the track conditions and how we had the car set, those were the lap times we expected."

In 12 races this season in the Menards Infiniti Pro Series, Dana recorded seven top-five finishes, including four seconds and his first career victory. He was thrilled with his first experience driving an IndyCar Series car.

"It was awesome to finally get a chance to drive an IndyCar Series car," he said. "To have been chasing this for so long, it's a dream come true. The amount of grip the thing has is unreal. It makes great power. It sounds awesome. It handled well and was really predictable, which made my job easier. I had a blast and can't wait to do it again."

Hemelgarn Racing was a founding team in the IndyCar Series in 1996 and, in partnership with USAC team owner Roger Johnson, in the Menards Infiniti Pro Series in 2002. Dana, who raced in the Menards Infiniti Pro Series with Hemelgarn in 2004, hopes to remain with the team.

"It's no secret that we've been working hard to put a program together to step up," Dana said. "Today was just the first step. I'd like to thank Ron Hemelgarn for giving me the opportunity to drive his car. Hopefully we'll have something to announce about our 2005 plans soon."

Press release
IRL