Andretti Autosport has confirmed today that James Hinchcliffe will return to the cockpit of the #27 car for next season and telecom company United Fiber and Data will be the primary sponsor of the car. UFD will also be an associate sponsor for Marco Andretti and Ryan Hunter-Reay.
“We saw how great with he was as a brand ambassador,” said Bill Hines of UFD. “We want to piggyback off that. Hinch is a hilarious individual. He’s not such a great golfer. The face of UFD should be this one.”
Hinchcliffe’s return was among the rumor mill as we was linked to potential deals with KV Racing and Chip Ganassi Racing.
“We’re doing an encore performance,” said Hinchcliffe. “The last two years have been tremendous. To keep the band together so to speak is huge.”
Another move for Andretti Autosport is the return of the team to Honda for 2014. The team was powered by Honda from 2003-2011 and in the teams previous incarnation as Team Green, Honda powerplants were used as well.
“It’s like going back to family,” Andretti said. “Team Green was one of the factory Honda teams in the mid-90s. I do want to thank Chevrolet, awesome to work with, them and Illmor. Won a championship with them and a lot of races. The way everything came down. Honda was the best option going forward.”
Essentially the switch to Honda is kind of a trade as Chip Ganassi Racing will switch from Honda to Chevrolet in 2014, keeping a balance of power between the big three of Penske, Ganassi and Andretti.
