A new team in the Infiniti Pro Series

J.L. West Motorsports will field a two-car team in the Menards Infiniti Pro SeriesT in 2005, team and league officials announced.

The team, which is co-owned by Jeff and Laura West, expects to announce its drivers in the near future.

"We're very pleased to welcome the Wests into the Menards Infiniti Pro Series as team owners," said Roger Bailey, executive director of the Menards Infiniti Pro Series. "They've been around racing for a long time and have a solid plan in place to compete in this series."

Jeff West grew up in upstate New York and spent 15 years driving a variety of race cars, including supermodifieds, midgets and Busch Grand National series cars. West started a fabricating business in New York in 1986.

"Basically, I've been in the racing business my whole life - driving, fabricating, building cars," West said.

West's association with the IRL began in 2001 when he relocated to Indianapolis. West worked for Heritage Motorsports and Cheever Racing. He also founded Indy Performance Composites with partner Greg Strydesky, a company which builds all of the camera pods for the IRL and performs carbon work for various IRL teams and manufacturers.

"Our business grew from 2,500 square feet to 10,000 square feet last year," West said. "We went from two employees to 10 employees. Things are moving in the right direction.

"I've missed racing after being away from it the past few years. Working for a team is not the same as owning a team. I've always wanted to own a big-league team, so this is a big deal to me. For 15 years, I spent every penny, and pennies I probably didn't have to spend. Now I want to do it as a professional. I think we've got it set up right. We're going to have some fun."

Formed in July 2002, the Menards Infiniti Pro Series is an essential stepping stone for drivers and teams striving to reach the pinnacle of open-wheel racing in America, the IRL IndyCar® Series. Two previous champions, A.J. Foyt IV (2002) and Mark Taylor (2003), along with 2002 Futaba Freedom 100 winner Ed Carpenter, are full-time drivers in the IndyCar Series.

Infiniti Q45 engines power Dallara Automobili chassis built for the series, with Firestone Firehawk tires used exclusively on all cars. The V8 engines produce approximately 450 horsepower for the single- seat winged chassis, providing an ideal training ground for the 650- horsepower, single-seat winged cars of the IndyCar Series.

Press release
IRL