2001 CART FedEx Championship Series

Last updated

2001 CART season
FedEx Championship Series
CART vertical logo (1997-2002).svg
Season
Races20 (22 planned)
Start dateMarch 11
End dateNovember 4
Awards
Drivers' champion Flag of Brazil.svg Gil de Ferran
Constructors' Cup Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Reynard
Manufacturers' Cup Flag of Japan.svg Honda
Nations' Cup Flag of Brazil.svg Brazil
Rookie of the Year Flag of New Zealand.svg Scott Dixon
  2000
2002  
Bryan Herta's #77 Forsythe Reynard at Rockingham Motor Speedway in 2001 BryanHerta 2001.jpg
Bryan Herta's #77 Forsythe Reynard at Rockingham Motor Speedway in 2001

The 2001 FedEx Championship Series season was the twenty-third in the Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) era of American open-wheel car racing. It consisted of 20 of the 22 originally scheduled races, beginning in Monterrey, Mexico on March 11 and concluding in Fontana, California on November 4. What would have been the third race in the season, the Firestone Firehawk 600 in Fort Worth, Texas, was canceled after qualifying due to safety concerns. The FedEx Championship Series Drivers' Champion was Gil de Ferran, while the Rookie of the Year was Scott Dixon.

Contents

Off the track, the 2001 season was an unmitigated disaster for CART under the leadership of Joseph Heitzler. It included two race cancellations; a disastrous European tour that coincided with the September 11 attacks and witnessed a severe accident to former series champion Alex Zanardi in which he lost both of his legs; infighting amongst engine manufacturers that saw litigation and the announced future departure of Honda and Toyota; the loss of the series' television contract with ABC/ESPN; the departure of longtime tracks Michigan International Speedway and Nazareth Speedway; the loss of Firestone as the series' tire supplier and its replacement by parent company Bridgestone; and the defection of Team Penske to the rival Indy Racing League (IRL) at the conclusion of the season.

Team Penske and Team Motorola joined Chip Ganassi Racing in having concurrent IRL teams to run in the 2001 Indianapolis 500, with Penske's Helio Castroneves winning the race. In an unusual move, CART "sanctioned" the participation of teams in the race; this was an attempt to allow Penske's primary sponsor, Marlboro, to appear on cars in the 500, as they were prohibited from being in more than one racing series by the Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement. This legal maneuver was not successful, and Penske's cars ran without advertising. [1] [2] DaimlerChrysler shut down their CART program as an engine manufacturer via Mercedes-Benz brand as the company decided to move to NASCAR Winston Cup Series via the Dodge brand in the same year.

Drivers and constructors

The following teams and drivers competed in the 2001 CART Championship Series season. All cars ran on Firestone Tires. [3] [4]

TeamChassisEngineNoDriversRacesPrimary Sponsors
Flag of the United States.svg Team Penske Reynard 01i Honda HR-11 Flag of Brazil.svg Gil de Ferran All Marlboro 19
Penske Racing 2
3 Flag of Brazil.svg Hélio Castroneves All
Flag of the United States.svg Chip Ganassi Racing Lola B01/00 Toyota RV8E4 Flag of Brazil.svg Bruno Junqueira  R All Target
12 Flag of France.svg Nicolas Minassian  R 1–7
Flag of the United States.svg Memo Gidley 8–21
Flag of the United States.svg Walker Motorsport Reynard 01iToyota RV8E5 Flag of Japan.svg Toranosuke Takagi  R All Pioneer 20
Walker Racing 1
Flag of the United States.svg Newman-Haas Racing Lola B01/00Toyota RV8E6 Flag of Brazil.svg Cristiano da Matta All Texaco-Havoline
11 Flag of Brazil.svg Christian Fittipaldi All Kmart
Flag of the United States.svg Team Rahal Lola B01/00 Ford-Cosworth XF7 Flag of Italy.svg Max Papis All Miller Lite 17
Miller Genuine Draft 4
8 Flag of Sweden.svg Kenny Bräck All Shell
Flag of the United States.svg Bettenhausen Racing Lola B01/00 Ford-Cosworth XF16 Flag of Mexico.svg Michel Jourdain Jr. All Herdez
Flag of the United States.svg PacWest Racing Reynard 01iToyota RV8E17 Flag of Brazil.svg Maurício Gugelmin All Nextel
18 Flag of New Zealand.svg Scott Dixon  R All Powerware 19
Nextel 2
Flag of the United States.svg Patrick Racing Reynard 01iToyota RV8E19 Flag of the United States.svg Townsend Bell 16–17 Visteon
20 Flag of Brazil.svg Roberto Moreno All
40 Flag of the United States.svg Jimmy Vasser All OXXO 1
Patrick Racing 4
Visteon 15
Flag of the United States.svg Dale Coyne Racing Lola B2K/00 Ford-Cosworth XF19 Flag of Germany.svg Michael Krumm 1–2The Dark Dog
21 Flag of Brazil.svg Luiz Garcia Jr. 1–2 Embratel
Flag of the United States.svg Sigma Autosport Lola B01/00 Ford-Cosworth XF22 Flag of Spain.svg Oriol Servià All Sigma Autosport
Flag of the United States.svg Arciero-Blair Racing Lola B2K/00 Ilmor 25 Flag of Brazil.svg Max Wilson  R 1–4winnerB2B.com 9
Driving 101 10
Ford-Cosworth XF6–11, 13–19
Flag of the United States.svg Alex Barron 20–21
Flag of the United States.svg Team Green Reynard 01iHonda HR-126 Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Paul Tracy All KOOL 19
Team Green 2
27 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Dario Franchitti All
Flag of the United States.svg Team Motorola 39 Flag of the United States.svg Michael Andretti All Motorola
Flag of the United States.svg Forsythe Racing Reynard 01i Ford-Cosworth XF32 Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Patrick Carpentier All Player's 19
Racing Since 1961 2
33 Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Alex Tagliani All
77 Flag of the United States.svg Bryan Herta All Indeck
Flag of Mexico.svg Fernández Racing Reynard 01iHonda HR-151 Flag of Mexico.svg Adrián Fernández All Tecate
52 Flag of Japan.svg Shinji Nakano All Avex
Flag of the United States.svg Mo Nunn Racing Reynard 01iHonda HR-155 Flag of Brazil.svg Tony Kanaan All Hollywood Cigarettes 19
No Limits 2
66 Flag of Italy.svg Alex Zanardi 1–16 Pioneer 19
Mo Nunn Racing 1
Flag of the United States.svg Casey Mears  R 18–21
R Eligible for Rookie of the Year

Season summary

Schedule

RndDateRace NameCircuitCity/Location
1March 11 Flag of Mexico.svg Tecate/Telmex Grand Prix of Monterrey  R  Fundidora Park Monterrey, Mexico
March 25 Flag of Brazil.svg Rio 200 (Cancelled) O  Autódromo de Jacarepaguá Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
2April 8 Flag of the United States.svg Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach  S  Streets of Long Beach Long Beach, California
3April 29 Flag of the United States.svg Firestone Firehawk 600 (Cancelled) O  Texas Motor Speedway Fort Worth, Texas
4May 6 Flag of the United States.svg Lehigh Valley Grand Prix  O  Nazareth Speedway Nazareth, Pennsylvania
5May 19 Flag of Japan.svg Firestone Firehawk 500  O  Twin Ring Motegi Motegi, Japan
6June 3 Flag of the United States.svg Miller Lite 225  O  Milwaukee Mile West Allis, Wisconsin
7June 17 Flag of the United States.svg Tenneco Automotive Grand Prix of Detroit  S  The Raceway on Belle Isle Park Detroit, Michigan
8June 24 Flag of the United States.svg Freightliner/G. I. Joe's 200  R  Portland International Raceway Portland, Oregon
9July 1 Flag of the United States.svg Marconi Grand Prix of Cleveland  R  Cleveland Burke Lakefront Airport Cleveland, Ohio
10July 15 Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Molson Indy Toronto  S  Exhibition Place Toronto, Ontario
11July 22 Flag of the United States.svg Harrah's 500  O  Michigan International Speedway Brooklyn, Michigan
12July 29 Flag of the United States.svg Target Grand Prix of Chicago  O  Chicago Motor Speedway Cicero, Illinois
13August 12 Flag of the United States.svg Miller Lite 200  R  Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course Lexington, Ohio
14August 19 Flag of the United States.svg Motorola 220  R  Road America Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin
15September 2 Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Molson Indy Vancouver  S  Concord Pacific Place Vancouver, British Columbia
16September 15 Flag of Germany.svg The American Memorial  O  EuroSpeedway Lausitz Klettwitz, Germany
17September 22 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Rockingham 500  O  Rockingham Motor Speedway Corby, United Kingdom
18October 7 Flag of the United States.svg Texaco/Havoline Grand Prix of Houston  S  George R. Brown Convention Center Houston, Texas
19October 14 Flag of the United States.svg Honda Grand Prix of Monterey  R  Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca Monterey, California
20October 28 Flag of Australia (converted).svg Honda Indy 300  S  Surfers Paradise Street Circuit Surfers Paradise, Australia
21November 4 Flag of the United States.svg Marlboro 500  O  California Speedway Fontana, California

 O  Oval/Speedway
 R  Road course
 S  Street circuit

Race results

RndRace Name Pole position Fastest lap Lead most lapsWinning driverWinning teamReport
1 Flag of Mexico.svg Monterrey Flag of Sweden.svg Kenny Bräck Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Dario Franchitti Flag of Brazil.svg Cristiano da Matta Flag of Brazil.svg Cristiano da Matta Newman-Haas Racing Report
2 Flag of the United States.svg Long Beach Flag of Brazil.svg Hélio Castroneves Flag of Brazil.svg Hélio Castroneves Flag of Brazil.svg Hélio Castroneves Flag of Brazil.svg Hélio Castroneves Team Penske Report
3 Flag of the United States.svg Texas Flag of Sweden.svg Kenny Bräck Race cancelled Report
4 Flag of the United States.svg Nazareth Flag of Brazil.svg Bruno Junqueira Flag of Brazil.svg Tony Kanaan Flag of Sweden.svg Kenny Bräck Flag of New Zealand.svg Scott Dixon PacWest Racing Report
5 Flag of Japan.svg Motegi Flag of Brazil.svg Hélio Castroneves Flag of Italy.svg Alex Zanardi Flag of Brazil.svg Hélio Castroneves Flag of Sweden.svg Kenny Bräck Team Rahal Report
6 Flag of the United States.svg Milwaukee Flag of Sweden.svg Kenny Bräck Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Dario Franchitti Flag of Sweden.svg Kenny Bräck Flag of Sweden.svg Kenny Bräck Team Rahal Report
7 Flag of the United States.svg Belle Isle Flag of Brazil.svg Hélio Castroneves Flag of the United States.svg Michael Andretti Flag of Brazil.svg Hélio Castroneves Flag of Brazil.svg Hélio Castroneves Team Penske Report
8 Flag of the United States.svg Portland Flag of Italy.svg Max Papis Flag of Italy.svg Max Papis Flag of Italy.svg Max Papis Flag of Italy.svg Max Papis Team Rahal Report
9 Flag of the United States.svg Cleveland Flag of Brazil.svg Maurício Gugelmin Flag of Brazil.svg Roberto Moreno Flag of the United States.svg Memo Gidley Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Dario Franchitti Team Green Report
10 Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Toronto Flag of Brazil.svg Gil de Ferran Flag of Brazil.svg Hélio Castroneves Flag of Brazil.svg Gil de Ferran Flag of the United States.svg Michael Andretti Team Motorola Report
11 Flag of the United States.svg Michigan Flag of Sweden.svg Kenny Bräck Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Patrick Carpentier Flag of Italy.svg Max Papis Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Patrick Carpentier Forsythe Racing Report
12 Flag of the United States.svg Chicago Flag of Brazil.svg Tony Kanaan Flag of Sweden.svg Kenny Bräck Flag of Brazil.svg Hélio Castroneves Flag of Sweden.svg Kenny Bräck Team Rahal Report
13 Flag of the United States.svg Mid-Ohio Flag of Brazil.svg Gil de Ferran Flag of Brazil.svg Hélio Castroneves Flag of Brazil.svg Hélio Castroneves Flag of Brazil.svg Hélio Castroneves Team Penske Report
14 Flag of the United States.svg Road America Flag of Sweden.svg Kenny Bräck Flag of Brazil.svg Bruno Junqueira Flag of Brazil.svg Hélio Castroneves Flag of Brazil.svg Bruno Junqueira Chip Ganassi Racing Report
15 Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Vancouver Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Alex Tagliani Flag of Brazil.svg Hélio Castroneves Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Alex Tagliani Flag of Brazil.svg Roberto Moreno Patrick Racing Report
16 Flag of Germany.svg EuroSpeedway Flag of Brazil.svg Gil de Ferran Flag of Brazil.svg Tony Kanaan Flag of Sweden.svg Kenny Bräck Flag of Sweden.svg Kenny Bräck Team Rahal Report
17 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Rockingham Flag of Sweden.svg Kenny Bräck Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Patrick Carpentier Flag of Brazil.svg Gil de Ferran Flag of Brazil.svg Gil de Ferran Team Penske Report
18 Flag of the United States.svg Houston Flag of Brazil.svg Gil de Ferran Flag of the United States.svg Jimmy Vasser Flag of Brazil.svg Gil de Ferran Flag of Brazil.svg Gil de Ferran Team Penske Report
19 Flag of the United States.svg Laguna Seca Flag of Brazil.svg Gil de Ferran Flag of Brazil.svg Hélio Castroneves Flag of Brazil.svg Gil de Ferran Flag of Italy.svg Max Papis Team Rahal Report
20 Flag of Australia (converted).svg Surfers Paradise Flag of Brazil.svg Roberto Moreno Flag of the United States.svg Jimmy Vasser Flag of Brazil.svg Roberto Moreno Flag of Brazil.svg Cristiano da Matta Newman-Haas Racing Report
21 Flag of the United States.svg Fontana Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Alex Tagliani Flag of Italy.svg Max Papis Flag of Italy.svg Max Papis Flag of Brazil.svg Cristiano da Matta Newman-Haas Racing Report

Final driver standings

PosDriver FUN Flag of Mexico.svg LBH Flag of the United States.svg TMS Flag of the United States.svg NAZ Flag of the United States.svg MOT Flag of Japan.svg MIL Flag of the United States.svg BEL Flag of the United States.svg POR Flag of the United States.svg CLE Flag of the United States.svg TOR Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg MIS Flag of the United States.svg CMS Flag of the United States.svg MOH Flag of the United States.svg ROA Flag of the United States.svg VAN Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg LAU Flag of Germany.svg ROC Flag of the United Kingdom.svg HOU Flag of the United States.svg LAG Flag of the United States.svg SUR Flag of Australia (converted).svg CAL Flag of the United States.svg Pts
1 Flag of Brazil.svg Gil de Ferran 23C23137613414*24325281*1*3*46199
2 Flag of Sweden.svg Kenny Bräck 1 525C2*11*911620171201481*2725526163
3 Flag of the United States.svg Michael Andretti 428C6232481511924262345211427147
4 Flag of Brazil.svg Hélio Castroneves 81*C112*261*17121987*1*7*18124562022141
5 Flag of Brazil.svg Cristiano da Matta 1*2C1025257107154191062026362011140
6 Flag of Italy.svg Max Papis 1217C2468111*18816*132416222119192*107
7 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Dario Franchitti 96C817926124215161992592192323105
8 Flag of New Zealand.svg Scott Dixon  RY 1319C19322720510412413922184151798
9 Flag of Brazil.svg Tony Kanaan 77C1636DNS24161021851247812817593
10 Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Patrick Carpentier 2523C2519178526211239163161026111091
11 Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Alex Tagliani 2118C222212211292667823*211419153380
12 Flag of the United States.svg Jimmy Vasser 65C45211816526231423211915711561277
13 Flag of Brazil.svg Roberto Moreno 2711C12101532811122061112313222222*1976
14 Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Paul Tracy 34C318241421246712426261062418142473
15 Flag of Brazil.svg Christian Fittipaldi 2024C541853111218258181119248981370
16 Flag of Brazil.svg Bruno Junqueira  R 229C72441923231391713112112523721468
17 Flag of the United States.svg Memo Gidley 252*17145112010141832101465
18 Flag of Mexico.svg Adrián Fernández 1916C19165121921325102232124231410191845
19 Flag of Spain.svg Oriol Servià 1414C914141691723111891055102617251142
20 Flag of Mexico.svg Michel Jourdain Jr. 1713C13111325152516323171761719252371630
21 Flag of Japan.svg Toranosuke Takagi  R 1020C1420DSQ20181422 2 131121227626413161529
22 Flag of the United States.svg Bryan Herta 1610C212122151431852125241727151312182528
23 Flag of Italy.svg Alex Zanardi 2426C20711242613420919132420 3 24
24 Flag of Brazil.svg Maurício Gugelmin 1522Wth12101020107152214231516202016242017
25 Flag of Brazil.svg Max Wilson  R 2821C17232341925Wth1525251821162412
26 Flag of Japan.svg Shinji Nakano 1812C158161322229221618151422171521122111
27 Flag of France.svg Nicolas Minassian  R 118C181519177
28 Flag of the United States.svg Casey Mears  R 17112687
29 Flag of the United States.svg Alex Barron 1394
30 Flag of the United States.svg Townsend Bell  R 13121
31 Flag of Germany.svg Michael Krumm  R 23150
32 Flag of Brazil.svg Luiz Garcia Jr. 26270
PosDriver FUN Flag of Mexico.svg LBH Flag of the United States.svg TMS Flag of the United States.svg NAZ Flag of the United States.svg MOT Flag of Japan.svg MIL Flag of the United States.svg BEL Flag of the United States.svg POR Flag of the United States.svg CLE Flag of the United States.svg TOR Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg MIS Flag of the United States.svg CMS Flag of the United States.svg MOH Flag of the United States.svg ROA Flag of the United States.svg VAN Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg LAU Flag of Germany.svg ROC Flag of the United Kingdom.svg HOU Flag of the United States.svg LAG Flag of the United States.svg SUR Flag of Australia (converted).svg CAL Flag of the United States.svg Pts
ColorResult
GoldWinner
Silver2nd place
Bronze3rd place
Green4th–6th place
Light Blue7th–12th place
Dark BlueFinished
(Outside Top 12)
PurpleDid not finish
RedDid not qualify
(DNQ)
BrownWithdrawn
(Wth)
BlackDisqualified
(DSQ)
WhiteDid not start
(DNS)
BlankDid not
participate
(DNP)
Not competing
In-line notation
Bold Pole position
ItalicsRan fastest race lap
*Led most race laps
 RY Rookie of the Year
 R Rookie
  1. ^ Kenny Bräck also awarded 1 point for his pole position in Fort Worth. The race was canceled after qualifying due to excessively high speeds.
  2. ^ Toranosuke Takagi was penalized 2 points for rough driving in Toronto.
  3. ^ Alex Zanardi's car was impacted from the side by Alex Tagliani's car at EuroSpeedway Lausitz. He lost both of his lower legs in the impact. This signaled the end of his open-wheel racing career.

Nations' Cup

PosCountry FUN Flag of Mexico.svg LBH Flag of the United States.svg NAZ Flag of the United States.svg MOT Flag of Japan.svg MIL Flag of the United States.svg BEL Flag of the United States.svg POR Flag of the United States.svg CLE Flag of the United States.svg TOR Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg MIS Flag of the United States.svg CMS Flag of the United States.svg MOH Flag of the United States.svg ROA Flag of the United States.svg VAN Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg LAU Flag of Germany.svg ROC Flag of the United Kingdom.svg HOU Flag of the United States.svg LAG Flag of the United States.svg SUR Flag of Australia (converted).svg CAL Flag of the United States.svg Pts
1 Flag of Brazil.svg Brazil 11524124753111711311341
2 Flag of the United States.svg United States 454524821451123453227240
3 Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Canada 3431812859212381636101533187
4 Flag of Sweden.svg Sweden 5252119116201712014812725526163
5 Flag of Italy.svg Italy 121720681111841691913222119192118
6 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg United Kingdom 96817926124215161992592192323105
7 Flag of New Zealand.svg New Zealand 131919322720510412413922184151798
8 Flag of Mexico.svg Mexico 17139115121521331017361719141071675
9 Flag of Japan.svg Japan 1012148161318149131118157617413121542
10 Flag of Spain.svg Spain 1414914141691723111891055102617251142
11 Flag of France.svg France 118181519177
12 Flag of Germany.svg Germany 23150
PosCountry FUN Flag of Mexico.svg LBH Flag of the United States.svg NAZ Flag of the United States.svg MOT Flag of Japan.svg MIL Flag of the United States.svg BEL Flag of the United States.svg POR Flag of the United States.svg CLE Flag of the United States.svg TOR Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg MIS Flag of the United States.svg CMS Flag of the United States.svg MOH Flag of the United States.svg ROA Flag of the United States.svg VAN Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg LAU Flag of Germany.svg ROC Flag of the United Kingdom.svg HOU Flag of the United States.svg LAG Flag of the United States.svg SUR Flag of Australia (converted).svg CAL Flag of the United States.svg Pts

Chassis Constructors' Cup

PosChassisPts
1 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Reynard 01i378
2 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Lola B1/00 & B2K/00335
PosChassisPts

Engine Manufacturers' Cup

PosEnginePts
1 Flag of Japan.svg Honda 342
2 Flag of Japan.svg Toyota 309
3 Flag of the United States.svg Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Ford-Cosworth 297
4 Flag of the United States.svg Ilmor 0
PosEnginePts

References

  1. "Penske must drop Marlboro logos for Indy 500". Autosport . May 25, 2001. Retrieved November 29, 2024.
  2. "Indy 500 wasn't in Marlboro country; team drops logo". Maryland Daily Record. May 25, 2001. Retrieved November 29, 2024.
  3. "Honda Championship Auto Racing Highlights". April 2002.
  4. "2002 Toyota RV8F CART engine".

See also