Veteran IndyCar Series driver Jimmy Kite (a native of Missouri who grew-up in Stockbridge, Ga. ) will make his Indy Pro Series debut this weekend in the Chicagoland 100. Kite, who has 34 IndyCar Series starts, will drive the Team SWE No. 43 entry in the Indy Pro Series finale at the 1.5-mile Joliet, Ill. facility on Sunday, September 9. Team owner Steve Eppard and Kite have long been friends having first met while Eppard’s SWE prepared the gearboxes for various IndyCars that Kite drove. The two have been searching for the right opportunity to put the easy-going but fiercely competitive Kite into one of the SWE machines most of the season. With a second car on hand entering the final race of the year, SWE saw this as the right time to offer Kite the seat. The 100 mile/67 lap race at Chicagoland Speedway will be Kite’s second start on the track overall. His only other start came in the 2005 IndyCar Series event with Hemelgarn Racing.
Kite has raced in nearly every open wheel racing category from quarter-midgets to IndyCars with major victories in Silver Crown and midget competition and has been a fan favorite since debuting on the IndyCar scene in 1997. He made his Indy 500 debut in 1998 as the Fastest Rookie Qualifier and was narrowly bumped from making his sixth “500” start at this year’s race. Eppard began Team SWE, then known as Part Sourcing International, in 2006 prior to the Freedom 100 race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. In their inaugural season the team had four top-10 finishes. A name change in 2007 more closely linked the program to Eppard’s SWE gearbox services company. The Brownsburg, Indiana-based organization is currently ranked 20th in the Indy Pro Series entrant’s standings with 147 points.
Kite will race under the SWE banner this weekend with the program’s primary driver Jon Brownson (Breckenridge, Col. ). Brownson, a rookie in the Indy Pro Series, has piloted the No. 34 SWE car throughout the season. Also racing out of the SWE shops is the Team KMA No. 13 of Nashville event winner Robbie Pecorari (Aston, Pa. ).
Jimmy Kite, Driver: “I guess I have put enough miles in the IndyCar that I have finally landed an Indy Pro Series ride. Seriously, when Steve asked me to drive the SWE car I was really excited about the opportunity. The Pro Series car is one of the few open wheel cars I haven’t raced; that and an F1 car so maybe that will be next. I’ve never raced the number 43 either so that is another first for the weekend that I can mark down. I think it will be a great experience and a lot of fun. I have known Steve for years and we’ve had conversations about me driving his car and I am glad it finally came through. SWE puts a great car on the track and my goal is to win. I love racing but I love winning even more. I think we can do that with SWE. I’m looking forward to getting to Chicagoland in a few days. ”
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