"If you asked me any one thing that separated Will from any of them, it's very difficult to say. It's one of those things where you look at it and, you know, you say you need to make sure that we, as an organisation, can go out and test and we can go out and do all the things we normally do, let [Castroneves] remain focused. There really wasn't any definite timeline. It's always been something we've kind of taken day to day.

"We're very fortunate to have someone like Will available to join the team [but] the way I look at it is, we have three drivers. There's three drivers for Team Penske in 2009. We'll determine who drives which one of those two cars depending on how everything sorts out. We'll kind of take it a day at a time. That's what we've been doing to this point."

Power will now work closely with fellow countryman Ryan Briscoe as Penske begins its preparations for the 2009 season, and admits that he was delighted to be picked up by the team, especially after his future with KVRT looked bleak following the loss of Craig Gore's Aussie Vineyards backing.

"I'd like to thank Roger and Tim for giving me this fantastic opportunity," the 2008 Long Beach race winner admitted, "Penske is a team that's won a lot of championships, Indy 500s, races, [so] I'm really looking forward to helping these guys out for the 2009 season.

"I know there [was] a handful of drivers in the mix [and] I feel very privileged that they chose me. I'm really going to give this a hundred per cent. No matter what the outcome is, I'm very happy to be here."

Although the deal may only be for pre-season development work, Power is determined to make the most of it as he looks to cement his future in the IndyCar Series.

"To drive for Penske, it's a real honour," he repeated, "When you come to the US and race open-wheel, it's the sort of team you want to sign up for. When I was given this offer, I didn't give it much thought. I really wanted to go. Honestly, I didn't have anything solid at the time anyway. I just thought it was the best direction for me. I can learn a lot in this team. These guys have got a lot of experience. I think no matter what happens I'll come out of it a better driver."