Heylen frustrated to lose drive

The Belgian, who finished second in the last round, at Assen, said: "I'm just so disappointed to have to give up the season right now, just as we were getting to prove how much progress we had made.

"It's been really hard for us at Conquest, you know? I didn't even compete in the first three rounds. There was a lot of accident damage that wasn't our fault - we got crashed out of two races, and one qualifying session by other drivers. And I screwed up at Mont-Tremblant.

"But we overcame those problems, and then recently we started to make big progress too. That's a lot to ask of a one-car team, and with so little testing being allowed.

"Really, the last two races in Europe were when it started to turn round for us. At Zolder we didn't get a chance to show what we could do because Dan Clarke wiped us out of the first day so the team had to rebuild the car, and then on race day we lost seventh gear which screwed up our speed and our fuel mileage.

"But you know, until we lost that seventh gear, we were had one of the fastest cars out there. And then at Assen we started to prove it, and we got second place, and not through luck. We were passing people and chasing Justin [Wilson, winner] really hard.

"I'm convinced we could have ended this season on a high, and I hope this decision won't damage Champ Car's chances in Belgium next year. We were really making progress with potential sponsors."

Heylen also expressed his disappointment at what he described as a "great partnership" being forced to end.

He said: "My sponsor, Grafiprint did everything and more to keep up his side of the deal. Eric [Bachelart, Conquest team-owner] did everything he had to and more to keep everyone happy.

"And then in Elkhart Lake, Chris Mower [team manager] returned, and everything worked even better. We all had great relationships. Certainly I'd like to believe that if Eric can run me next year, he would choose to."

Heylen admitted he will have mixed feelings watching the final two Champ Car rounds, where he will be replaced by Nelson Philippe.

He joked: "If Nelson does badly, I suppose it will make me look good! But seriously, I wouldn't want the team to suffer. Nelson is a good driver, and I know how good that car is now. It's a potential top five car."