Tony George and Vision Racing have saved the day for Ryan Hunter-Reay by reaching an agreement in principle to put the talented American driver into one of their cars for the 2009 IndyCar Series season, beginning with next Sunday’s Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.

George is the founder and CEO of the Indy Racing League Series and also the team owner at Vision. Hunter-Reay was last year’s Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year who went on to win the IndyCar race at Watkins Glen International last July when he was competing for Rahal-Letterman Racing. That team lost its sponsor when the American Ethanol Industry scaled back because of political unrest and that left Hunter-Reay searching for a new opportunity.
 

Hunter-Reay, who also is the national spokesperson for IZOD’s partnership with IndyCar, had been talking to Vision Racing, KV Racing Technologies, a team co-owned by former driver Jimmy Vasser and former Champ Car series owner Kevin Kalkhoven: HVM team owner Keith Wiggins and Dale Coyne Racing.
 

After consulting with Terry Angstadt, the president, commercial division, IndyCar Series, George decided to make the commitment and add Hunter-Reay to the team that already includes American driver Ed Carpenter, who is also George’s stepson.
 

Angstadt was reached by VERSUS.com Friday evening and was ecstatic that Hunter-Reay is back as a full-time IndyCar driver.
 

“He sure is and we’re darn happy about it,” Angstadt said. “Ryan is a very good driver, a very accomplished guy, a great representative of our sport and a talented driver. It’s fantastic that we got him a ride.
 

“Quite frankly, at the 11th hour we were in serious conversations with Keith Wiggins and Dale Coyne and then talking it through with Tony George we arranged from some strong B to B (business to business) relationships to fund this program. In my opinion, six months from now, a year from now, this will be one of the most well-funded cars we have on the grid. We have a great foundation laid for Ryan.”
 

George ran a two-car team last year that included Carpenter and A.J. Foyt, IV but had scaled back to a one-car team after funding could not be arranged to run two cars.
 

But as the season great closer, the opportunity developed to sign Hunter-Reay, who is considered one of the next American IndyCar stars.
 

“Ryan could not be a classier young man,” Angstadt said. “He is very talented on the race track, very composed and a nice, nice young guy. We couldn’t be more pleased to have him locked in.
 

“Vision is going to be a great home for him.”
 

While the agreement in principle has been reached, the contract is expected to be signed once George returns from a family vacation.
 

But Angstadt confirmed the deal is done.
 

“I was on and off the phone with Tony 10 times over the last two days and this deal is good to go,” Angstadt said.
 

Hunter-Reay was contacted Friday and was excited about the opportunity with Vision but wanted to wait until he signed the contract over the weekend before discussing it further.
 

“We still have to sign the contract here, but it came together last-minute,” Hunter-Reay said.
 

There are many reasons why it was a priority for IndyCar to get Hunter-Reay a full-time ride.
 

He is an attractive and talented American driver who along with other young Americans Danica Patrick, Graham Rahal and Marco Andretti gives IndyCar a solid foundation of young, fast and aggressive drivers from the United States in a series that also features a strong contingent of international drivers.
 

But the biggest reason of all is Hunter-Reay’s involvement with IZOD, which has entered into a huge agreement with IndyCar as the official apparel company of the series and is already featuring Hunter-Reay in commercial, magazine and billboard advertising.
 

“He is the perfect size, height and the perfect temperament to be one of our models and a national spokesperson,” said Mike Kelly, executive vice president, marketing, Phillips-Van Heusen Corporation. “He also has a beautiful golf swing. Right now, he is on a huge billboard in New York on the West Side Highway hitting the ball up out of a trap. There are lots of reasons to like Ryan. His position as a great up-and-coming American driver with a lot of drive, there are lots of good reasons to get attached to him.
 

“It was very important to get him a full-time ride. I can’t underscore that enough. Personally, I like Ryan a lot. He is a winner and he is good for the sport and the brand. From a business point of view we made him the center of our 2009 campaign. We wanted to bring the drivers to the forefront and celebrate the drivers and what they represent. He represented all the right stuff and we connected the brand to him and he is our representative in the campaign, the commercial, print and other areas.
 

“It is important for the sport and for the brand because we have attached a great deal of production value to that. It is very important that he is involved and has every opportunity to be a part of it.”

Angstadt was encouraged by IZOD’s cooperation and participation to make the deal with Vision. IZOD, however, will not be the sponsor of the team because of its status as an IndyCar partner, but helped arrange some business to business relationships.
 

IZOD will have a major presence on all IndyCar telecasts on VERSUS in addition to the races that will be on ABC.

And now that Hunter-Reay is back behind the wheel of an IndyCar, he expects to have a major presence on the race track.
 

The addition of Hunter-Reay brings the car count up to 20 for St. Petersburg but Angstadt said another 1-2 car/driver combinations may be arranged before next weekend.

Bruce Martin, two-time winner of the Russ Catlin Award for best auto racing story, has covered IndyCar racing for more than 25 years