Motorsports journalist Gordon Kirby suggested at the Champ Car finale in Mexico City that the youngest Andretti would be replacing Dan Wheldon in his No. 26 Jim Beam Dallara-Honda for 2006 with Michael Andretti coming out of retirement to run a fifth car for his Andretti Green Racing team at the Indianapolis 500. Though a novel proposition to some, it was later confirmed in a December 15 press conference that he would move up to the Indy Racing League full-time as the youngest driver in series history and would trade sponsors – the New York Stock Exchange and Motorola – with Dario Franchitti as Andretti was not old enough to run an alcohol-sponsored car.