By JIM VERTUNO
AP Sports Writer

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) - IndyCar heads into 2019 with everything going in the right direction.

The series has a new long-term sponsor in Japanese communications giant NTT. Firestone has extended its tire supplier deal for five more years. A new broadcast deal with NBC is set to launch. The driver pool keeps building talent and the series is adding a long-awaited stop in Texas and bringing back an old one in California.

Veteran driver Tony Kanaan says the momentum building for the year is the best he has seen "by a long shot."

The 17-race IndyCar season opens on March 10 in St. Petersburg, Florida, before making its debut at the Circuit of the Americas in Texas, a track that has hosted Formula One's U.S. Grand Prix since 2012.

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