ESPN IndyCar

The past two IndyCar Series (and Indianapolis 500) champions have been lost to NASCAR, but quality may be trumped by quantity as the open-wheel formula gears up for its most anticipated campaign in years.

With 26 cars on the grid for the 2008 season opener at Homestead-Miami Speedway (8 p.m. ET, ESPN2), it's the biggest IndyCar Series field since 2001, and certainly the deepest of the 12-year Indy Racing League era.

The influx of entries is the result of the unification of American open-wheel racing under the IRL banner. While the IndyCar Series is sad to see stars like Dario Franchitti and Sam Hornish Jr. depart, the loss could be more than offset by the arrival of drivers and teams that have been competing in the Champ Car World Series, including eight-time champion Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing.

This year's expanded crop of IndyCar drivers ranges from a 19-year-old rookie with a famous last name (but one oval race to his credit) to a 49-year-old owner/driver/hobbyist. Three female racers will play a prevalent role, and one of them (you know her name) is blossoming into a major star.

Even if you closely followed Champ Car, there are still a few faces you won't recognize coming to the IndyCar Series this year. So here's the lowdown on the 26 drivers entered at Homestead, seeded into five tiers of anticipated competitiveness and listed alphabetically:

(Statistics combine IndyCar Series and Champ Car World Series experience; research by Jeff Ianucci, MyNameIsIRL.com)

Aiming for the championship
• Marco Andretti (American, age 21; No. 26 Andretti Green Racing; 31 IndyCar starts, 1 win) -- After a character-building sophomore IndyCar campaign, Marco says he's ready to challenge for the title this year. If he does, history will repeat itself in a way: His father Michael's third year in top-level open-wheelers produced three wins and second place in the standings.

• Ryan Briscoe (Australian, age 26; No. 6 Team Penske; 21 starts) -- Team Penske groomed Briscoe in-house with its American Le Mans Series Porsche factory effort in 2007, and he passed his open-wheel audition with fifth place at Indy driving for a Penske satellite team. Limited oval experience could harm his title hopes.

• Helio Castroneves (Brazilian, age 32; No. 3 Team Penske; 176 starts, 18 wins, including 2001 and '02 Indianapolis 500) -- The only thing missing from the resume of IndyCar racing's most experienced driver is a season championship. As Penske's lead driver for the first time in his career, he'll be expected to deliver.

• Scott Dixon (New Zealand, age 27; No. 9 Ganassi Racing; 118 starts, 11 wins; 2003 IndyCar Series champion) -- Quiet but sharp-witted, intense yet still laid-back, Dixon is the racer's racer. Probably the most consistent driver in IndyCar and boasting the series' best road-racing record, the New Zealander is a smart bet for this year's title.

• Tony Kanaan (Brazilian, age 33; No. 11 Andretti Green Racing; 174 starts, 13 wins; 2004 IndyCar Series champion) -- With his friend Franchitti off to stock cars, TK becomes the undisputed team leader of AGR's four-car attack. He'll undoubtedly be a great mentor to his 20-something teammates, but the lack of a veteran wingman could hurt his championship hopes.

• Dan Wheldon (British, age 29; No. 10 Ganassi Racing; 80 starts, 13 wins, including 2005 Indianapolis 500; 2005 IndyCar Series champion) -- Wheldon is IndyCar racing's most exciting and unpredictable driver, both behind the wheel and behind a microphone. His form faltered slightly in the second half of '07, but he will be highly motivated to win negotiating power in a contract year.

Should (or at least could) win race or two
• Vitor Meira (Brazilian, age 30; No. 4 Panther Racing; 76 starts) -- Everybody is pulling for this genial racer to break through. Came close to winning before, but it's going to be tougher with the new larger fields.

• Danica Patrick (American, age 25; No. 7 Andretti Green Racing; 47 starts) -- Goals for '08 include first win, Top 5 in the championship, and the series lead in magazine covers and airtime.

• Will Power (Australian, age 27; No. 8 KV Racing; 30 starts, 2 wins) -- Taciturn Aussie came good with two Champ Car wins in '07 but faces a steep learning curve on ovals.

• Oriol Servia (Spanish, age 32; No. 5 KV Racing; 125 starts, 1 win) -- Tipped by some as most likely of the new batch of Champ Car pilots to succeed. Consistent racer who is not afraid to mix it up on ovals.

• Justin Wilson (British, age 29; No. 02 Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing; 55 starts, 4 wins) -- The logical favorite for the Champ Car title finds himself essentially starting over in IndyCar. Finished second at Milwaukee in the last of his five oval starts.

Podiums a realistic target
• Ed Carpenter (American, age 27; No. 20 Vision Racing; 65 starts) -- As results improved, the nepotism jokes disappeared for Tony George's stepson. Solid character being groomed for eventual management position with Vision team.

• A.J. Foyt IV (American, age 23; No. 2 Vision Racing; 65 starts) -- A lot more polished and relaxed than during those painful rookie days driving for his namesake grandfather.

• Ryan Hunter-Reay (American, age 27; No. 17 Rahal Letterman Racing; 49 starts, 2 wins) -- Won a pair of Champ Car races (including flag to flag at Milwaukee) before getting IndyCar break in mid-2007.

• Bruno Junqueira (Brazilian, age 31; No. 18 Dale Coyne Racing; 105 starts, 8 wins) -- Champ Car bulldog has unfinished business in IndyCar after back-breaking 2005 Indy 500 wreck.

• Darren Manning (English, age 32; No. 14 A.J. Foyt Racing; 60 starts) -- With Foyt's team finally emerging from the 1990s, Manning could spring a surprise.

• Hideki Mutoh (Japanese, age 25; No. 27 Andretti Green Racing; 1 start) -- Placed by Honda Japan, this product of Honda's "Formula Dream" program impressed during 2007 Indy Pro Series campaign and in a one-off IndyCar start.

• Graham Rahal (American, age 19; No. 06 Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing; 14 starts) -- Some observers reckon Rahal Jr. is a better prospect than Marco Andretti, and they should have a long rivalry in IndyCars -- unless one or both of them gets a Formula One opportunity.

• Buddy Rice (American, age 31; No. 15 Dreyer & Reinbold Racing; 81 starts, 3 wins, including 2004 Indianapolis 500) -- The dream season of '04 seems a long time ago now, but Rice is still capable of making some noise.

A top-10 will get them noticed
• Enrique Bernoldi (Brazilian, age 29; No. 36 Conquest Racing; 0 starts) -- Toiled at the fringes of F1 before opting to try his luck in America this year.

• Jay Howard (English, age 27; No. 24 Roth Racing; 0 starts) -- 2006 Indy Pro Series champion gets a chance in the big cars and hopes to attract the attention of a top team.

• Mario Moraes (Brazilian, age 19; No. 19 Dale Coyne Racing; 0 starts) -- Youngest driver in the series is as raw as rookies come.

• Franck Perera (French, age 23; No. 34 Conquest Racing; 0 starts) -- Outdrove and outpointed Atlantic series champion Rafael Matos in the second half of 2007 and was fastest in Champ Car's final test session.

• Ernesto Viso (Venezuelan, age 23; No. 33 HVM Racing; 0 starts) -- Won two GP2 races but found doors closed in F1.

Lucky to run in the top 20
• Milka Duno (Venezuelan, age 35; No. 23 Dreyer & Reinbold Racing; 7 starts) -- The Milka Duno Experiment continues, and she'll share a car with American Townsend Bell. Expect Bell to extract a lot more from the car.

• Marty Roth (Canadian, age 49; No. 25 Roth Racing; 9 starts) -- A full season behind the wheel for this Toronto businessman before he passes the torch to focus on team ownership.

John Oreovicz covers open-wheel racing for National Speed Sport News and ESPN.com.