Sarah Fisher will retire as a driver in 2011, handing the seat of her IZOD IndyCar Series entry to Ed Carpenter. (Jim Haines/IRL IndyCar Photo)
INDIANAPOLIS — Sarah Fisher will move from the drivers seat to the owner’s chair permanently in 2011, handing the reigns of her No. 67 Dollar General Dallara Honda over to Ed Carpenter for nine races next season.
“Being both an owner and a driver is both time consuming on both sides,” said Fisher, who recently turned 30. “I really want to see this team move forward and to have one driver who does all the races — ovals and road courses. It’s just very hard to do both.”
Fisher’s 25-year driving career includes 11 years as a competitor in the IZOD IndyCar Series with Walker Racing, Dreyer & Reinbold Racing, Kelley Racing and Sarah Fisher Racing, which she started in 2008.
Fisher, who was voted the IZOD IndyCar Series’s most popular driver three times, has driven a part-time schedule the past three seasons. She had seven starts this year, increasing her career total to 74 since her debut in 1999 at Texas Motor Speedway.
A former competitor in USAC and World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series, she won one pole, in 2002 at Kentucky Speedway, and was runner-up in the 2001 race at Homestead-Miami Speedway. In hiring Carpenter, she found a driver who fits the image she built her team around.
“I really like Ed,” Fisher said. “He’s all-American and we have the same background. We’re very much similar on all fronts, so it seemed like a natural fit to move forward with him as the driver. I think in the big picture for the team, we didn’t want to introduce a new driver with a new team right before the new car came out. It gives us a year to figure things out and when the new car comes out, we’ll be even more prepared.”
Carpenter will compete in all the domestic oval events except for the race at The Milwaukee Mile. He will also enter the road/street events at St. Petersburg, Mid-Ohio and Baltimore. Fisher hopes to find additional sponsorship for the car which will allow it to compete in the full season.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if we nail that down,” Fisher said. “We’re not there yet. We have nine events and I think we can go after the oval championship and we need to lock down the international races. I think we’re headed in the right direction to make that happen. (Finding a sponsor to run the full season) is a huge focus for us. It’s really hard to accomplish that and drive the car. I didn’t get a lot of time to spend with our partners this year and I think that’s a lot of the reason why we are where we are.”
Carpenter, 29, was limited to part-time duty in 2010, running four races through a joint venture between Vision Racing and Panther Racing. The Indianapolis native won his first career pole in September at Kentucky Speedway, where he finished second for the second-straight season.
“It really came together quickly over the last three weeks,” Carpenter said. “I’d been working on some things with Panther and trying to carry over some of the momentum from what we did in 2010 but wasn’t sure where that was going, so I called Sarah about her plans.
“In a lot of ways, I feel like we had a deal done after that first phone call. I was blessed that I called at the right time. Working with Sarah and Andy (O’Gara) up to this point has been great. I’m excited to work with Dollar General. Seeing the work they’ve done with Sarah, I’m excited to be a part of it.”
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