A key Penske Corporation executive told Autoweek that Helio Castroneves future won’t be revealed for "about one month" after the end of the 2017 Verizon IndyCar Series season.

Autoweek reported on Thursday that Castroneves will likely return to full-time duty in the IndyCar Series next season instead of a planned move to the Team Penske Acura IMSA DPi program that will begin competition with the 2018 Rolex 24 at Daytona.

Bud Denker is the executive vice president of Penske Performance and Penske Automotive Group and the senior vice president of the Penske Corporation. Denker would not confirm where Castroneves would be racing next season and said the focus was on 'winning the championship' in the 2017 Verizon IndyCar Series.

Castroneves enters Sunday’s GoPro Grand Prix of Sonoma third in points, just 22 behind the leader and teammate Josef Newgarden, who is only three points ahead of Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon.

"We have plenty of time to announce where Helio will be next season and our main goal this weekend is to help him win his first IndyCar championship," Denker told Autoweek on Friday at Sonoma Raceway. "I’m not going to tell you what that decision is but we will reveal in in about one month from now.

"Right now, our priority this weekend is to bring another championship home to Roger Penske."

It was reported on July 8, that team owner Roger Penske and Team Penske president Tim Cindric were considering moving Castroneves away from a full-time IndyCar ride to the new Acura sports car team along with a chance to race in the 102nd Indianapolis 500 in a one-off.

Castroneves went out and won the follow day’s Iowa Corn 300 at Iowa Speedway – his first victory in three years. Castroneves said he wanted to remain a fulltime IndyCar driver and was still competitive at 42 years of age. Castroneves realized he was under contract with the team and would race “wherever they tell me” but made it no secret IndyCar was his choice.

The big decision that may keep him in the series may have been made by team owner Michael Andretti three weeks ago. That is when he announced he would remain with Honda rather than take his four-car team to Chevrolet. Without Andretti’s four cars, Chevrolet’s numbers on the grid would drop to just even if Team Penske if Team Penske contracted from four full-time entries to three.

"I think Chevrolet is the big reason that Helio will stay in the series as a full-time driver next year," Andretti said. "When we didn’t go over there, they can’t afford to only have seven cars on the grid so I think Team Penske has to stay with four cars and if that happens, they have to keep Helio over here.

"At 42, Helio is still a very fast driver and a championship contender. But I think it was our decision to not leave for Chevrolet that is the reason why he will probably return as a full-time driver."

Denker was asked if Castroneves’ wishes to remain in IndyCar will play a key factor in the final decision?

"We value what Helio has meant to this team and will take his input into consideration because he has been so important to Team Penske," Denker said. "No single driver has raced at Team Penske longer than Helio Castroneves and just as Rick Mears has a job with us for life, we feel the same way about Helio. His wishes and desires will play a key role in the decision that we make."

And it’s becoming clearer that final decision will likely see the popular three-time Indianapolis 500 winning driver return to a full-time spot on the Verizon IndyCar Series grid for his 21st season in 2018.

"Helio can still get it done on the race track and he has our full support," Denker said.

His rivals also believe it is important to keep Castroneves in the series.

"Helio Castroneves is one of our most popular drivers and on the track, he is one of our fiercest competitors," said Chip Ganassi Racing managing director Mike Hull. "I can’t speak for Roger Penske because we have our own team to run. But I can tell you Helio Castroneves is a star in the Verizon IndyCar Series.

"He is what we call a ‘ticket seller.’ He is a driver the fans buy tickets to come see race."

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