Oriol Servis Has Found a Ride............................

by AntmanB Tue Jan 17, 2012 2:28 pm

"Oriol Servia, who finished fourth in the 2011 IZOD IndyCar Series championship after a year's absence, will join Dreyer & Reinbold Racing for the 2012 season.

Servia, a native of Catalonia, Spain, posted 11 top-10 finishes with a high of second at New Hampshire and Baltimore for Newman/Haas Racing. He also started seven races in the top 10, highlighted by a front-row start in the 100th anniversary Indianapolis 500.

Servia led all drivers in laps completed (2,103 of 2,011) and was the only driver to finish in the top 10 in the first five races of the season. He was among three drivers to be running at the finish in all 17 races.

"With a new engine, new chassis and a revamped engineering department, we believe it is crucial to have a highly talented veteran driver to be able to develop these new components," Dreyer & Reinbold co-owner Dennis Reinbold said. "Oriol has always been a smart driver and has always put himself and his team in a position to win races. We are going to have to be well-prepared to take advantage of his abilities and we look forward to the challenge."

Servia, 37, was runner-up in the 2005 Champ Car World Series standings and was the 1999 Indy Lights champion (finished second in five races and earned three pole positions).

"I couldn't be more excited, for many reasons," he said. "DRR is a team that I raced against since 2008 and they've always shown to be very professional at the racetrack. Although I knew the owners, I didn't know them very well, to be honest. Before signing with the team, like everybody else, I did my research and I couldn't find one individual that didn't speak highly of Dennis or Robbie (Buhl), which gave me a lot of confidence.

"I went to the team's sponsor summit last week (in Florida) and met all of their partners that they have been involved with for many, many years, which was another clear sign that they are good people."

Dreyer & Reinbold Racing is a Lotus partner team. Servia is eager to begin testing iin the new Dallara DW12 chassis. The season-opening Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg in March 25. Last year, he gained six positions relative to his starting spot of 15th in the street course race.

"I'm at the best point in my career and it was very important to partner with the right team," he said. "When I visited the DRR facility in Indianapolis, I couldn't have been more impressed. We are starting with a new engine and chassis, and I have confidence in Lotus and our ability to develop a quality product in 2012. When you have everyone pulling in the same direction like we are now is when we can accomplish our goals."

Dreyer & Reinbold Racing continues to work toward a second full-time entry for the 2012 season."

from indycar.com