Mike Conway will switch from Andretti Autosport to A.J. Foyt Enterprises for the 2012 IZOD IndyCar Series season, remaining in a Honda-powered ride but now driving Foyt's iconic No. 14 ABC Supply entry.
Conway's 2011 featured an under-the-radar-to-comeback victory at the Long Beach Grand Prix, but he was otherwise all too often a victim of mechanical failures to finish. Conway only had three additional top-10 finishes besides his Long Beach win, but he qualified in the top-10 seven times, six on road or street courses.
Team owner Foyt noted Conway's road and street course prowess, with most of the schedule set to feature those over ovals, in choosing the Englishman for his third full, and fourth overall IndyCar season.
“With the Series having twice as many road courses as ovals, we looked for a driver who is fast on those tracks and Mike has certainly proven himself in that area,” Foyt said. “I'm looking forward to working with him,” adding with a chuckle, “I may even be able to give him a little advice when it comes to the ovals.”
Whether this means Andretti Autosport will now scale back from four cars to three remains to be seen, as Conway's No. 27 car in 2011 ran often without full primary sponsorship and a variety of one-off deals. Andretti still has to fill its GoDaddy-sponsored entry and also had James Davison and Gustavo Yacaman test in November.