Unser and Andretti to race at USGP

Unser will go head-to-head once more with former CART rival Mario Andretti, who is driving a third entry for the Infineon/Obermaier team.

The deal was finalised in Spa on Friday, while the series regulars prepared for the penultimate round of the 11-race series. Dario Franchitti and Michael Andretti were both contenders for the drive, but busy schedules meant that they were unable to take up the offer.

Unser will travel to Europe in the near future to have a first run in the car at Porsche's Weissach test track, which will give him a chance to get used to the car's ABS brakes.

Although in recent years celebrity drivers have struggled to keep up with the regulars, Unser is not to be underestimated, having shown in the past that he can readily adapt to any situation. He has often beaten the NASCAR stars in IROC oval races.

Andretti has already tried the car, but will get a second chance when he tests at Indianapolis for two days this weekend. Thanks to special dispensation from Tony George, he will become the first driver to ample the new road course in a pukka racing car. Although it will obviously give Mario a head start come race weekend, set-up information will be passed to the teams by Porsche.

American GT racer Randy Pobst will drive the second VIP car.