Sherman Prepares For Final Race Of The Season On Home Track

Indianapolis, Indiana. (September 4, 2008) - As a former member of the United States Air Force, driving the No. 16 National Guard Delphi car for most of the year as been an ideal situation for Panther's Firestone Indy Lights driver Brent Sherman.  Now, the Wauconda, Illinois driver will get to show off his car in front of family and friends as he treks from one Chicago suburb to another in preparation for the SunRichGourmet.com 100 at the Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet.

Sherman, who has turned in three Top Fives and four Top Tens on the seven oval tracks this year, is confident that is hometown track will produce the win that as thus far eluded him, and knowing that he will be racing with his friends and family looking on would make the win all the more special for him.

"I want to win.  We have been competitive on the ovals all year, and Chicago should be no different.  I am sure that the team will give me a good racecar, and I'll do my best to put it in victory Lane," Sherman said of his chances this weekend.  "This is a hometown race, so I'll have a lot of family and friends that are going to be attending.  Hopefully I can put on a good show for them."

Sherman also knows that winning with the National Guard name on the side of the racecar is a big deal and would be a sense of pride for the men and women who are serving our country in the military.

"It's cool to have the opportunity.  I know what military life is all about and to be overseas away from your family and friends.  Anything that we can do to help give them a morale boost is worth it," Sherman said.  "It's just an enormous honor to drive this car, not only because I am prior military, but the hard work to get here and trying for eight years to get a military sponsorship, it's huge to finally have the National Guard on my car."

Brent, who currently sits 11th in the Firestone Indy Lights Championship, will be looking to jump to as high as ninth in the standings with a strong finish and end the season with a win.

"I don't know what my future holds," Brent said.  "If this is my last race, I want to go out on top."

The Firestone Indy Lights Sun Rich Gourmet.com 100 will start at 12:30 p.m. on Sunday (ET) and be broadcast live on ESPN2.  The season finale race will be the only live broadcast of a Firestone Indy Lights race all season.

In the 2003 Indy Pro Series race in Chicago, driver Mark Taylor started on the outside of Row 1 and eventually took control of the race, giving Panther the victory in their only trip to the Chicagoland Speedway with an Indy Lights team. Taylor would lead 11 of the 67 laps in the race and go on to win the 2003 Indy Pro Series Championship.