Panther Racing has confirmed that it has re-signed former IndyCar Series champion Dan Wheldon for the 2010 season.

Wheldon, who rejoined the team this season after leaving Chip Ganassi Racing, finished tenth in the championship standings with a best finish of second coming in the Indianapolis 500 back in May.

The Briton will continue to drive the #4 entry with sponsorship for the car to be announced at a later date.

"I'm excited for next season, honestly," he said. "Anytime I'm out of a racecar for too long I get restless. But I feel like we made some progress towards the end of the season after some struggles that show we're heading in the right direction.

"My goals are to win races. Obviously we haven't achieved everything we wanted for the season, so for next year I'd like to build on the momentum that we've created this year and make it a winning season."

While Wheldon endured a tough end to the season, with just one top ten finish in the final eight race of the year, team boss John Barnes said he was optimistic about the future and had made it clear over what his expectations are for 2010.

"What I can tell you is that we're going to be fighting tooth and nail to improve," he said. "We've got a group here that we really like, and I've made clear in the last two weeks what my expectations are for our team and driver."