WIX Filters announced recently it has expanded its involvement with Dreyer & Reinbold Racing as the chief technical partner in 2020, including sporting its black and WIX yellow colors in two NTT INDYCAR SERIES events with young driver Sage Karam at the controls of the No. 24 WIX Filters DRR Chevrolet entry.
With more than 80 years of production, the global manufacturer of filtration products will enter its eighth campaign in a multi-level partnership with Dreyer & Reinbold Racing, including serving as the Official Technical Partner and Oil Filter of the team.
In 2020, WIX Filters and the DRR team will participate in the 104th Indianapolis 500, set for May 24 at the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway with Karam driving as well as at the NTT INDYCAR SERIES season-opener, the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on March 13-15, as the primary partner on the No. 24 DRR Chevy. In addition, WIX Filters has been a partner in thechampionship winning DRR’s Rallycross squad in recent years.
“We are extremely pleased to announce the WIX Filters expansion with Dreyer & Reinbold Racing after many years of a successful association at the world’s biggest motorsports event, the prestigious Indianapolis 500, and other racing outlets,” said Jeff Blocher, director of sales and marketing for MANN+HUMMEL. “Our relationship with Dennis Reinbold’s team and Sage as a driver has been outstanding, and we wanted to expand our successful technical involvement with additional NTT INDYCAR SERIES races in 2020. The DRR team is very experienced and works very well with our WIX Filters engineers to give our company great feedback on and off the track. Sage is one of the top young open-wheel stars in North America and we look forward to seeing Sage battle at the front of the IndyCar Series field in the No. 24 WIX Filters race car.”
Motorsports organizations have trusted the performance and quality of WIX Filters for over 50 years, and in return, the various racetracks provide superb testing grounds for the WIX engineers.
Dreyer & Reinbold Racing, which has entered and qualified 40 cars in the Indy 500 dating back to 1999, has given Karam impressive machines to battle in the famed Indy 500 including winning the “Hard Charger” Award as a rookie in 2014. Last year, DRR fielded two drivers in the 103rd Indy 500 with Karam in the No. 24 WIX Filters car and veteran J.R. Hildebrand in the No. 66 Salesforce car.
“We cannot thank WIX Filters enough for our outstanding association entering its eighth year with the Dreyer & ReinboldRacing team and now expanding our team’s participation in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES this year,” said DRR team owner Reinbold. “WIX Filters has made valuable contributions to the racing industry for decades as well as being a leader in its category for over 80 years. We are working very hard to put WIX Filters in victory lane with Sage and produce a contender for the winner’s podium.”
Reinbold has also indicated that his organization is working on plans to compete in additional NTT INDYCAR SERIES races yet to be announced, as the Carmel, Inddian-based team seeks additional partnership for selected events.
The sensational racing legacy of the Dreyer & Reinbold families dates back to 1927 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway with legendary car builder Floyd “Pop” Dreyer, who built cars for the entire front row in 1931. Reinbold, Dreyer’s grandson, has qualified every car he has entered as car owner in the Indy 500 and has recorded four top-10 finishes including a best of fourth in 2012.
Karam, the 25-year-old racer from Nazareth, Pennsylvania, was an Indy Lights series and F2000 series champion before his “rookie” performance at the Indy 500 in 2014 for DRR. Since 2014, Karam has qualified for every Indy 500 including five events for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing. In addition, Karam drove the WIX Filters ARX Rallycross Lights car to a feature victory last year at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.
“Needless to say, I’m so happy to have WIX Filters back on my No. 24 car for 2020 and to expand our NTT INDYCAR SERIES race schedule with the St. Petersburg and another race,” said Karam, who recently tested the WIX Filters Chevrolet on the road course at Sebring, Florida. “It’s exciting to continue the DRR relationship with WIX for the Indy 500 as we look to win that prestigious race. WIX Filters is well known around the world and in numerous forms of motorsports. I have enjoyed working with the staff on and off the track including promoting a strong digital presence. Aligning with an industry leader like WIX is an honor, and our WIX Filters IndyCar livery will be another crowd-pleaser this year too. I’m ready to go.”
Karam will make his 2020 debut in the No. 24 WIX Filters DRR IndyCar in the streets of St. Petersburg, Florida, on Friday, March 13 with the season-opening feature set for March 15 at 3:30 p.m. EDT. Qualifying rounds for the 104th running of the Indy 500 are scheduled for Saturday, May 16 and Sunday, May 17. The start for this year’s Indianapolis 500-Mile Race is scheduled for 12:15 p.m. EDT on Sunday, May 24.