Ray lands drive with Schmidt

The 1999 title winner parted company with Foyt last week after claiming that the outfit could not afford to run three cars. He will now drive at this weekend's Chicagoland race and at Texas the week after in a Schmidt Dallara-Chevrolet.

The deal is the latest chapter in a career that has been turbulent since Ray split with Team Menard in August 2001.

"The last 12 to 14 months for me haven't gone as I would have planned or wanted to plan on," he told ESPN. "While for me personally, it hasn't been the highest highs or best moments, certainly they're educational, and you learn from things and mistakes."

He added there is a possibility that he could stay on with Schmidt for next year depending on how these two races go.

Team boss Schmidt raced against Ray before he was paralyzed in a testing accident and turned his hand to team management. "In some sense, it feels strange for me because Greg and I were such fierce competitors back in '99 for that entire year," he said.