Kanaan seals KV IndyCar seat

The 2004 champion parted company with Andretti Autosport at the end of last year, and then lost his planned 2011 drive with De Ferran Dragon Racing when a sponsorship shortfall caused Gil de Ferran's squad to close.

But he will now join Takuma Sato and EJ Viso in a third Group Lotus-backed car at KV.

Team boss Jimmy Vasser said: "I think Tony is a great addition to our team. He, along with Taku and EJ gives KVRT - Lotus a very strong driver line-up and one I am sure can compete for podium finishes and race wins. Tony's knowledge and experience will be extremely valuable to our team."

Kanaan revealed that he had talked to KV before signing for De Ferran Dragon last winter.

"Jimmy and I started talking about joining forces at the end of last season, but the timing was not ideal and I ended up signing with Gil," he said. "When I became a free agent in mid-February, calling Vasser seemed like a natural thing to do since KVRT was one of the top teams still looking for a driver.

"Jimmy and I go back a long way, we were rivals during the CART days, but more than that, we have always been good friends, which helped a lot with our negotiations."

The Brazilian is not concerned that the deal came together too late to allow him to test with KV before this weekend's season-opener in St Petersburg.

"I've spent the last six months looking for sponsorship and not thinking about racing so I missed all the pre-season testing, but I really can't complain," said Kanaan.

"With a group of guys like Vasser and his team backing me, plus the help of my new team-mates, Takuma Sato and EJ Viso, the only thing I can say is that I'm ready to do what I do best, drive a racecar and push hard to give KVRT - Lotus their first IndyCar win."