Indy Driver Matsushita Announces Retirement

Hiro Matsushita, the first Japanese Indy-car driver and the first to compete in the Indianapolis 500, announced his retirement Thursday in Homestead, Fla.

Matsushita, driver for Rancho Santa Margarita-based Arciero-Wells Racing, will compete through the season’s fifth race, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

His exit opens the door for Robby Gordon of Orange to return to CART Championship competition on a full-time basis. Gordon, 29, was hired Jan. 27 to be test driver for Arciero-Wells and compete in selected races.

“I have known the time has come to withdraw from this field by realizing that my inspiration to make a full-fledged effort has diminished,” said Matsushita, who turns 37 on Saturday. “Confronting myself in this new light came as a shock to me.”

Matsushita, of San Clemente, finished 27th in points last season. He will compete Sunday in the Grand Prix of Miami, and then on March 28 in the first CART race in his native Japan, the Budweiser 500, before returning for the Grand Prix of Long Beach on April 5.

Matsushita’s presence will continue to be felt in racing, and in the Arciero-Wells camp. He owns Swift Engineering in San Clemente, which created the Swift chassis used in the Toyota Atlantic series and by Newman-Haas drivers, including Michael Andretti. Andretti won in the Swift’s debut at the Miami race last year; it was the first American-built chassis to win such a race since 1983.

“We’ve been blessed being able to work with Hiro over the last four years,” said team owner Cal Wells III. “He has had a profound impact on the sport and will continue to be involved with our team as a driver, technical and management director.”