A.J. Foyt Racing splits with Paul Tracy

Paul Tracy's run with A.J. Foyt Racing is over — for now.

The 40-year-old open-wheel veteran from Scarborough, Ont., finished at the back of the pack last week at the ABC Supply Company/A.J. Foyt 225 at The Milwaukee Mile racetrack in his first race for Foyt.

He won't get a second try at Texas Motor Speedway this weekend, as he'll be replaced by Foyt's grandson, A.J. Foyt IV, for this weekend's IndyCar series race in Texas.

"I spoke with [team manager] Larry Foyt [Monday] to say, 'OK, let's do this season, and he appreciated that, and said he'd discuss it with his dad,'" Tracy told racer.com Wednesday.

"Then later, A.J. called and said, 'Look, I'm embarrassed about the car we gave you in Milwaukee. I can't afford to be putting you in my equipment until we've got ourselves up to par. Having you in the car puts our team under the microscope, and I want to get our team better before we do that again.'"

Tracy was filling in for Brazilian driver Vitor Meira, who broke a vertebra during the Indianapolis 500 a month ago.

The 2003 Champ Car champion will still race in the Toronto and Edmonton stops on the tour for KV Racing, and didn't rule out racing for Foyt in the future.

"A.J. is a straight-up guy. I'd never worked with him before last weekend, and I liked his attitude of trying to get things done," Tracy told the website. "So I've basically told him that any time he wants to run me — and I'm talking a race or even a test — then he just has to call. I'd be really happy to help.

"I'm sad not to continue with Foyt. I was looking forward to travelling to races again and helping a little team punch big. But ultimately, it's the team's decision. I hope we can work together again soon."

Tracy finished 14th at the Indy 500 for the KV Racing team. The race was won by Helio Castroneves.