Legge recovering

The 25-year-old Brit was diagnosed with a fractured right thumb after complaining of pains during the final race of the season in Mexico City last weekend, and underwent a procedure to have two metal screws inserted to speed up her recovery.

Legge said: "I just can't say enough about Champ Car medical staff. They do a great job and it is very comforting knowing they are there for the drivers.

"I also want to thank Dr. Dickie, who performed the surgery. He did a fantastic job. I have a bit of pain right now, but that is to be expected. The good news is that when I recover I will be 100%."

The injury is not thought to be related to the horror smash she was involved in at Road America in September, when a rear-wing failure sent her into a concrete wall at 180mph and saw her car roll five times.

Legge made her ChampCar debut this year after joining PKV over the winter. She took the highest finish for a woman in the series' 27-year history with sixth at Milwaukee and went on to finish 16h in the championship.