The Firestone Indy Lights battle takes on more significant meaning as of today, following the introduction of a new and more impressive Firehawk Cup trophy.

The new cup, a Bruce Fox Inc design made of fine silver, nickel silver, carbon fibre and proprietary resin, standing 38-and-a-half inches tall and weighing in at 68 pounds, was created as part of Firestone's ongoing commitment to supporting the Indy Racing League's driver development series. In March, the tyre brand became title sponsor of the renamed Indy Lights series and announced additional prize incentives totalling more than a quarter of a million dollars for 2008.

"Firestone Indy Lights has been a great proving ground for talented young drivers," explained Firestone Racing's executive director, Al Speyer, "Just look at the names that have honed their skills there before moving onto the IndyCar Series - Tony Kanaan, Scott Dixon, Oriol Servia, Townsend Bell, AJ Foyt IV, Alex Lloyd - all are past Firestone Indy Lights champions who will drive this weekend in the Indianapolis 500. This just shows that Firestone Indy Lights is the right path to the IndyCar Series."

To underscore the steeped tradition of the series, the names of all Firestone Indy Lights champions dating back to 1991 will be inscribed on the new Firehawk Cup. That includes the years of Firestone and Dayton Indy Lights competition under the former Championship Auto Racing Teams umbrella from 1991-2001 and what was the IRL's Indy Pro Series from 2002-07.

"The Firestone Indy Lights continues to be the most diverse and competitive developmental series in the world," confirmed series director Roger Bailey, "We race on ovals, road and street courses, providing the essential preparation for drivers to graduate to the IndyCar Series.

"I think we've already contributed to the future of the sport as, on Sunday, almost half the field in the Indianapolis 500 - nine drivers who have competed in the Firestone Indy Lights under the IRL banner and six from the previous Indy Lights series - will be graduates of the [series]."

Among the additional prizes which will be presented by Firestone are a pair of 'legacy' awards honouring two fondly-remembered Firestone Indy Lights alumni, Greg Moore and Tony Renna, whose lives were cut short by motorsport accidents. The continuation of the Greg Moore Legacy Award and Tony Renna Rising Star Award will each will be accompanied by a $5000 post-season prize.

"This is a very proud day for Firestone and the Firestone Indy Lights series," Speyer added, "Not only are we able to unveil this striking and extraordinary new Firehawk Cup, but we've also formalised the 'legacy' awards so that the passion that Greg and Tony had for open-wheel racing will endure."

The Greg Moore Legacy Award is a continuation of the honour begun in CART/Champ Car following the Canadian star's death in 1999. Moore was the Firestone Indy Lights champion in 1995 before moving up to CART in '96 and winning five races in four seasons. The award will retain the same criteria, and will be given to a driver who most typifies Moore's distinctive combination of outstanding on-track talent and dynamic personality. The only difference is that it will be presented to a Firestone Indy Lights driver at the conclusion of the season, rather than drawing nominations from both the feeder and senior IRL series, as was the case under the CCWS umbrella.

The Tony Renna Rising Star Award was previously an IndyCar Series honour recalling the driver killed in a testing crash at Indianapolis in 2003. Renna raced in Firestone Indy Lights in 2001 before competing in seven IndyCar Series events over the next two seasons. The award will go to the Firestone Indy Lights driver who embodies the qualities - including teamwork, physical fitness and resourcefulness - which Renna demonstrated.

"Greg and Tony were tremendous racers and even better individuals," Speyer concluded, "Firestone is proud to keep their memories alive in our hearts and to help inspire the next generation of drivers to greater heights."