Luczo Dragon Racing has signed Firestone Indy Lights champion Raphael Matos to a multi-year deal to drive for the team as it expands to a full-time entrant in the IndyCar Series in 2009.
The deal includes a drive for Matos in the 93rd Indianapolis 500 on Sunday, May 24, 2009.
Matos, from Belo Horizonte, Brazil, won five poles and three races and led 190 laps in 2008 en route to winning the Firestone Firehawk Cup. It was his fourth championship in a development series in the last six years. He will take the wheel of the No. 12 Symantec car that contested six IndyCar Series races in 2008.
"This is an exciting day for our race team because not only are we taking that step to full-time status, we are adding a young driver who has proven to be a champion at every level he has raced," Luczo Dragon Racing co-owner Jay Penske said. "Any time you can win four championships in six years like Rafa has done, you have some special qualities. He is ready for the IndyCar Series, and we are so thrilled to have him."
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