Wheldon's contract expired at midnight on 30 May. He then became a color commentator for the cable television channel Versus (now NBCSN) for three IndyCar Series events (Iowa, Texas and Toronto) in the belief he would not race again in 2011. He impressed viewers with his expertise, quick wit and ease in interacting with other commentators. Wheldon was also employed by IndyCar, car manufacturer Dallara and designer Tony Cotman to test and develop the official prototype model of a new one-specification chassis that debuted at the beginning of the 2012 season. In early October, he drove Tagliani's No. 77 Sam Schmidt Motorsports car for the Kentucky Indy 300 at Kentucky Speedway as preparation for the season-ending IZOD IndyCar World Championship at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Wheldon qualified in 28th-place after failing to set a qualifying time because his car did not pass a technical inspection; he finished 14th. On the morning of 16 October, he signed a multi-year contract to replace Patrick at Andretti Autosport from 2012 on.