Briscoe set for Indy switch

Briscoe has recently completed a four-day test on both road and oval tracks with the team and is hotly-tipped to join Scott Dixon and Darren Manning in the team in 2005.

The 23-year-old Australian is a long-term Toyota driver and is part of the Toyota Drivers' Academy, enjoying the support of the Japanese manufacturer as he moved up through the ranks. He won the Formula 3 Euroseries in 2003, beating Christian Klien among others and spent 2004 as a Toyota F1 tester.

He had been thought likely to land an F1 race seat with Jordan, but that potential deal appeared to collapse last week and Briscoe headed to the states to complete four days of testing at Phoenix with Ganassi (two on the road course at Firebird Raceway and two on the one-mile oval at Phoenix International Raceway).

"He got on well," commented Manning, who was at Phoenix on all four days helping Briscoe settle into the Toyota-engined Ganassi G-Force. "He had a blister on his hand after the first day at Firebird because he hadn't shifted in a long time but he enjoyed it.

"And he adapted to the oval. I told him it was just a corner with a steering wheel and he got right up to speed."

Should the expected deal go ahead it will be the first time that a TAD-backed driver has contested the IRL. TAD currently backs a number of young hopefuls in categories like Formula Renault and Formula 3.