James Davison pulled on a white polo with the KV Racing Technology logo to make it official. The Indy Lights race winner will make his inaugural attempt to qualify for the 98th Indianapolis 500 Mile Race on May 25.
Davison will drive the No. 33 Always Evolving Racing/KV Racing Technology car, bringing the total to four cars under the team umbrella – full-season drivers Sebastien Bourdais and Sebastian Saavedra, plus Townsend Bell for the Indy 500 – for “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.” He's the seventh first-time Indy 500 driver entered.
“The Indy 500 is the childhood dream of mine,” said Davison, 27, of Australia. “Out of pure perseverance I’ve been able to make it here and find myself in a very good situation with KV Racing Technology and a good sponsor with Always Evolving Racing.”
Practice opens May 11 on the 2.5-mile oval, but Davison won’t get in his initial laps until May 15 because of a limited budget. Qualifications are May 17-18.
“There’s no need to take any significant risks, but just get up to speed and focus on getting in the race and on race set-up. Race day is pay day and getting a finish is what it’s all about,” Davison added.
Davison came up through the Australian open-wheel ranks before moving to the United States and competing in Formula BMW USA (winning on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course in 2005 in conjunction with the Formula One race weekend), Star Mazda and Champ Car Atlantic. He won two races in two seasons in Indy Lights, and finished second in the 2009 championship.
Davison made his Verizon IndyCar Series debut in August 2013 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and also competing at Sonoma Raceway in a Dale Coyne Racing car.
His grandfather, Lex Davison, won the Australian Grand Prix four times and his father, Jon Davison, was a driver and long-time racing promoter.
"James has shown his capabilities at each level where he has competed and he will be an excellent complement to the three drivers we already had in place for the ‘500,’ ’’ team general manager Steve Moore said. “James is very talented and, with the help of his experienced teammates, we're confident he will quickly be up to speed for this great race."