Hornish could begin testing Penske Dodge
By Mark Ashenfelter
Sunday, September 03, 2006
FONTANA, Calif. - Sam Hornish Jr. could begin testing a Penske Racing South Dodge sometime this fall in preparation for what could be a limited Busch Series and ARCA schedule in 2007, team president Don Miller said Saturday.
Hornish, winner of this year's Indianapolis 500, drives for Roger Penske in the Indy Racing League and has long been considered a candidate to try his hand in stock cars. Hornish trails teammate Helio Castroneves by one point heading into the IRL season finale at Chicagoland Speedway on Sept. 10.
"They're just looking at that possibility [for next season]," Miller said. "He'll probably do some testing a little bit later on."
Whether Hornish begins testing this year or not until next season will depend, in part, on how Penske Racing South's preparations are going for next season. The team has struggled with its intermediate-track program this year and is also busy working to gear up for the introduction of the "car of tomorrow" next season.
Hornish, who will run the full IRL schedule next year, would ease into stock cars. If Hornish were to make the move to NASCAR full time in 2008 or beyond, it would likely mean Penske Racing South would resurrect the No. 77 team it shut down after last season.
