Ward confirmed at Ganassi

The Ganassi team was the first Champ Car team to break ranks and run the IRL's Indianapolis 500. Juan Pablo Montoya took a dominant victory for Ganassi in his rookie attempt at the classic race in 2000, and Ganassi placed three of the four cars he entered in 2001 in the race's top six.

Ward has earned 22 top ten finishes in 45 IRL race starts. The California native made his name in motocross competition before switching to cars.

"I'm looking forward to this season," said team boss Chip Ganassi. "However, I want to be cautious about this year because it is going to be a learning year for us. The main thing that we are trying to do is to gather information and expertise about these cars.

"I'm excited to have a driver like Jeff with us because he has a lot of experience in these types of cars. I'm also looking forward to racing with some of my old friends in the Indy Racing League."

Ward said: "This is what I've been shooting for my entire career. I'm extremely excited to be running with a first-class operation here at Chip Ganassi Racing. I feel that I have a great chance to win some races, most importantly, the Indy 500."