Barron expects title shot

A race-winner with Blair Racing and Mo Nunn Racing in the past, Barron only made it onto the podium once last season and finished 12th in the championship, as all the Chevrolet-powered drivers struggled to keep up with the dominant Honda runners. Barron expects Eddie Cheever's team to be much closer to the pace this year.

"We've done a lot in the off-season for the level of the team," he said. "What you need to do is set a good base of things that you need to go after. We got a head start on that this year with being on board with Toyota.

"I think that's going to bump us up in the right direction. So far, it's gone great: we have two strong cars running, everybody's high-spirited.

"Our hopes are high. We definitely want to go for the championship."

Barron has a new team-mate this year in his former Champ Car rival and fellow ex-Toyota Atlantic champion Patrick Carpentier. In addition to swapping from Chevrolet to Toyota power for its two Dallaras, Cheever Racing has also strengthened its engineering staff with the signing of ex-Prost Formula 1 technical director Henri Durand, who also boasts experience with the Ligier, Ferrari, McLaren and Jordan teams.

"We are excited for the 2005 season," said Cheever's managing director Max Jones. "We have assembled a great group here."