Charlotte, NC (My Sportsbook) - Michael Jourdain Jr, a veteran of nine years in the Champ Car Series, will drive a Busch Series race car in 2005. The 28- year-old will compete in a Ford for ppc Racing.

The Mexico City, Mexico native will become the first Hispanic driver to run a full season in the Busch Series.

"This is going to be a great sponsorship opportunity for companies in both the U.S. and Mexico," said ppc Racing team owner Greg Pollex. "We've already started talking with potential sponsors, and are making progress now that the contract with Michel is in place. We're committed to running the full schedule of Busch races this year, depending on what NASCAR will allow in terms of the superspeedways.

"Michel's been great," Pollex added. "Our crew guys have already adopted him; he has a good sense of humor and gets along great with his new teammates. We know there's going to be a learning curve for him coming over from open-wheel, but he's got the talent and the right attitude to compete at this level."

In 152 career Champ Car starts, Jourdain had two wins among 42 top-10s. His best series finish was third in 2003, when he competed for Team Rahal.

In March, the series will travel outside the United States for the first time with a race at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez in Mexico City, Mexico.