Davey Hamilton and Sam Schmidt will join forces again in 2013 to field the No. 77 Schmidt Hamilton HP Motorsports car for Simon Pagenaud.
As a one-car team in 2012, the No. 77 Honda-powered entry yielded strong results with Pagenaud winning Sunoco Rookie of the Year honors after finishing fifth in the IZOD IndyCar Series standings with four podium finishes. The alliance between Schmidt and Hamilton had been called into question following the announcement last month that Schmidt and entered into a new partnership with Canadian businessman Ric Peterson to field a second car for Tristan Vautier, but Hamilton confirmed on Thursday that their association would continue.
"I'm happy that Sam and I are going to continue our partnership with Simon driving the No. 77 car," Hamilton said. "We had a great season last year and Ric Peterson joining Sam should make the entire team even stronger. Without Ric there would have been no way to sign Tristan [Vautier] and provide Simon with a teammate."
"After seeing Simon run neck and neck with some of the strongest cars in the IZOD IndyCar Series last year, we are hungrier than ever to start winning races," Schmidt said. "With Davey and HP on board again in 2013, we're one step closer to accomplishing our goals. Being aligned with a technology giant like HP is an honor and truly elevates our team."
Pagenaud's car will continue to sport the light blue and white Hewlett-Packard colors this year.
"HP has been a great partner for me over the years and I'm looking forward to new and exciting accomplishments on track with them," Hamilton said.