INDYCAR: Carpenter, Fisher confirm split

Carpenter, Josef Newgarden and road/street course specialist Luca Filippi competed under the CFH Racing banner last year following a merger between the single car teams Ed Carpenter Racing and Sarah Fisher Hartman, however with Fisher and Hartman having ended their involvement, the team will revert to the ECR moniker for 2016.

"After competing for a year as CFH Racing, we will be returning to ECR for 2016 and beyond," said Carpenter in a statement. "While we had a great year as CFH Racing, we have had some partnership changes within the organization and it makes the most sense to return to ECR. I am proud of what we have accomplished as a team since we started in 2012 and look forward to building upon that success for another exciting Verizon IndyCar Series season."

The team will continue to be based at its current location on Main St. in Speedway under the joint ownership of Carpenter, Tony George and Stuart Reed, with Fisher to retain a connection by assisting the team with sponsorship development and working with existing partners.

"It's important for IndyCar to have strong entries on grid and this team needs to be two of them, so I will do what I can to help them with business developments and continue with solutions for our current partners," said Fisher. "I am lucky to have been an owner in this series for eight years, having incredible memories along the way. Lastly, I am extremely thankful to Wink and Libba Hartman for everything they've done to help us get to where we are today."

The team has also confirmed that it might only field one car full-time. Josef Newgarden is set to contest the full season in the No. 21 entry, with Fuzzy's Ultra Premium Vodka backing for the first four races. But while Carpenter will reprise his oval-only role in ECR's second car, no road/street program has yet been confirmed for the No. 20.

"ECR is in a great position as we head into 2016," Carpenter said. "We have been a Chevrolet team from the beginning, so we're excited to continue that relationship and help them win another championship. We have had a very productive off-season and our plans are well underway for a successful year."

Newgarden said that he is confident that the restructured team will be capable of helping him to build on the form that helped him earn two victories last season.

"I may never have had the chance to race an Indy car if it was not for Wink Hartman, Libba Hartman, Sarah Fisher and Andy O'Gara," he said. "They really were a huge turning point in my career and helped me break into the professional level. Their support was everything and more that a young driver could ask for.

"Moving forward, I'm extremely excited about 2016 with Ed Carpenter Racing. I enjoy working with Ed Carpenter so much, as both a teammate and a team owner. I look forward to putting 100 percent into the season and trying to achieve greater and bigger results. With the entire ECR team and the Chevy partnership we have, I feel there is absolutely nothing that can stand in our way from topping our very promising season in 2015."