Bell impresses in first Champ Car test

Bell, who picked up his fourth Indy Lights win of the year at Mid-Ohio last weekend, posted an unofficial fastest lap of 1m06.6 seconds around the 2.258-mile permanent road course - a time which would have put him in the middle of the grid for last Sunday's round of the CART series - and left team boss Pat Patrick keen to see more of the American youngster.

"I was very impressed with Townsend's performance today," said Patrick. "We plan on testing him again at Chicago after the Road America race, and hopefully we can work out something to get him into a CART race before the end of the season."

It is thought that Patrick Racing could run a third car for Bell alongside regular drivers Jimmy Vasser and Roberto Moreno in one of the rounds later in the year, with a view to offering him a full-time race seat with the Indianapolis-based team next year. But in the meantime Bell, 26, was focusing on more immediate matters at hand - like getting to grips with Champ Car power.

"This thing's a blast to drive," said Bell. "My main goal was to get some laps, keep improving and learn all I could. These cars are incredible. The power of the Toyota engine is awesome and it's a real gas driving a Champ Car. The whole experience was just incredible.

"It was good to have Mr Patrick here, and working with people with the experience of (general manager) Jim McGee and Jimmy Vasser is invaluable," added Bell. "I did my best to live up to their expectations and my own. Today was a big day in my career, but in many ways it is just the beginning. I am ready to go."

Bell was the Indy Lights Rookie of the Year in 2000 and his four wins in the series this year - at Long Beach, Toronto, Milwaukee and Mid-Ohio - has taken him to a 25-point lead in the standings.