Milka Duno, the first woman in history to win a major international sportscar race in North America, and CITGO Racing, announced today at Homestead-Miami Speedway that they will compete in the 2007 IndyCar Series with SAMAX Motorsport.

Duno will drive in ten IndyCar Series events this season, including the 91st Indianapolis 500. She also plans to compete at Kansas, Texas, Iowa, Watkins Glen, Nashville, Mid Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky and Chicago.

Duno joined Felix Rodriguez, president and CEO of CITGO Petroleum Corp., Peter Baron, team principal of SAMAX Motorsport, and Tony George, founder and CEO of the Indy Racing League, in announcing the sponsor and team plans to field an entry in the 2007 IndyCar Series season.

Although the team is new to the series, SAMAX Motorsport's IndyCar crew members are an experienced group with most having been part of an Indianapolis 500 win.

Veteran campaigners Steve Challis and John Cummiskey have been named as lead engineer and team manager, respectively. Cummiskey has three Indy 500 wins next to his name and shared a 2nd place with Challis in 2002. The team will be based out of Gasoline Alley and members will be comprised of a mix of Indy specialists and a few familiar faces from Duno's Grand-Am team.

Milka Duno
“This is a dream come true for me. I've always wanted to race in the Indianapolis 500 and in the IndyCar Series, and I can't begin to thank CITGO for continuing to support my racing, as well as everybody at SAMAX Motorsport. The SAMAX team brings a lot of open-wheel experience to the IndyCar Series and I'm hopeful that will make my transition into the series a bit smoother. To make this announcement in my hometown of Miami with my family and friends and fans around me is terrific.”

Félix Rodríguez, CITGO President and CEO
“I am very proud of Milka's accomplishments as a member of the great CITGO family and as a fellow Venezuelan. We certainly look forward to her continued success in this new phase of her career."

Peter Baron
“I would like to personally thank CITGO and Milka for their continued support and faith in our program. We know this effort, with a new sponsor, driver and team will not be easy, but we are thrilled to have this opportunity and will work our hardest to give Milka the necessary tools to succeed on track. I feel we have done a tremendous job creating a team with the perfect mix of "Indy talent" and team members that have worked with Milka from the beginning. Milka is already at home with the team which is the foundation from where all the growth and success begins.”

E.A.
Source SAMAX Motorsport