Alessandro "Alex" Zanardi is an Italian professional racing driver and paracyclist. He won the CART championship in 1997 and 1998, and took 15 wins in the series. He also raced in Formula One from 1991 to 1994 and again in 1999; his best result was a sixth-place finish in the 1993 Brazilian Grand Prix. He returned to CART in 2001, but a major crash in the 2001 American Memorial resulted in the amputation of his legs. He returned to racing less than two years after the accident, competing in the European Touring Car Championship in 2003–2004 and then in the World Touring Car Championship between 2005 and 2009; he scored four wins.
Sébastien Olivier Bourdais is a French professional racing driver who currently races in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship for Cadillac Chip Ganassi Racing in the GTP category. He is one of the most successful drivers in the history of American open-wheel car racing, having won 37 races. He won four successive championships in the Open-Wheel Racing Series-sanctioned Champ Car World Series from 2004 to 2007. Later he competed at the IndyCar Series from 2011 to 2021. He also entered 27 races in Formula One for the Toro Rosso team during 2008 and the start of 2009.
The Lausitzring is a race track located near Klettwitz in the state of Brandenburg in northeast Germany, near the borders of Poland and the Czech Republic. It was originally named Lausitzring as it is located in the region of Lusatia, known as Lausitz in German, but was renamed EuroSpeedway Lausitz for better international communication from 2000 to 2010. The EuroSpeedway has been in use for motor racing since 2000. Among other series, DTM takes place there annually. It also used to host the Superbike World Championship.
Dale Coyne Racing (DCR) is an American professional open-wheel racing team that currently competes in the IndyCar Series and Indy NXT. The team was founded in 1984 and is owned by former driver Dale Coyne. From 1995 to 2000, the team was known as Payton-Coyne Racing, reflecting a partnership with Chicago Bears great Walter Payton. After the 1988 season, Coyne stepped out of the cockpit and turned his talents to the tutelage of several up-and-coming drivers. Once known for competing on budgets far smaller than most of their competitors, the team earned its maiden victory after 25 years at Watkins Glen International in July 2009 with Justin Wilson.
The Bommarito Automotive Group 500 presented by Axalta and Valvoline is an IndyCar Series race held at World Wide Technology Raceway in Madison, Illinois, United States. The event was first held as a CART series race from 1997 to 2000, initially on Memorial Day weekend. From 2001 to 2003, it was held as an Indy Racing League (IRL) event. After a hiatus of over a decade, the race returned in 2017 as part of the unified IndyCar Series.
The Grand Prix of Portland is a race in the IndyCar Series held at the Portland International Raceway in Portland, Oregon. The race was an annual event from 1984 to 2007, initially as a race in the CART series, and later as part of the Champ Car World Series. After a ten-year hiatus, the race made its return to the IndyCar Series in the 2018 season.
The Firestone Firehawk 600 was a planned American open-wheel car race scheduled for April 29, 2001 at the Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Texas, United States. The event was sanctioned by Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) and was the third round of the 2001 CART season. It was scheduled for 248 laps around the 1.5-mile (2.4 km) oval track. However, the race was postponed and ultimately canceled due to concerns about driver safety, as the high speeds the cars sustained through the circuit's long corners could potentially have led to drivers experiencing g-force induced loss of consciousness. It was the only race in CART history that was canceled outright for safety reasons. Kenny Bräck was awarded one point for qualifying on pole position at an average speed of 233.344 miles per hour (375.531 km/h).
The Grand Prix of Road America, also known as the XPEL Grand Prix at Road America for sponsorship reasons, is an IndyCar Series race held at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin. For twenty-five years, the event was part of CART/Champ Car World Series, with the first race being held in 1982. The event was put on hiatus in 2008 after the unification of Champ Car into the Indy Racing League.
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.
The Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey is an IndyCar Series race held at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca near Monterey, California, United States. The event dates back to 1960, and became an American open wheel race in 1983. The race was part of the CART series from 1983 to 2003, and then the Champ Car World Series, CART's successor, for 2004. After a fifteen-year hiatus, the event returned in 2019 as part of the IndyCar Series, replacing Sonoma.
Newman/Haas Racing was an auto racing team that competed in CART, Champ Car, and the IndyCar Series from 1983 to 2011. The team operations were based in Lincolnshire, Illinois. Newman/Haas Racing was formed as a partnership between actor, automotive enthusiast and semi-professional racer Paul Newman and long-time auto racing owner/driver Carl Haas. The duo were competitors in sports car racing during the 1970s and early 1980s. In 1983, they joined forces to enter the ranks of Indy car racing. Newman/Haas was one of the most successful teams in Indy car racing during the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s. The team won 105 CART/Champ Car races and eight season championships, followed by two race wins in the IRL/IndyCar Series.
The 2003 Grand Prix of St. Petersburg was the first round of the 2003 CART World Series season, held on February 23, 2003, at Albert Whitted Airport and the surrounding streets of St. Petersburg, Florida.
The 2003 London Champ Car Trophy was a Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) motor race held on 5 May 2003 at the Brands Hatch Indy Circuit in West Kingsdown, Kent, England in front of a crowd of just under 40,000 spectators. It was the fourth round of the 2003 CART season, the first American open wheel car race at the track since 1978, and the first of two European races of the season. Sébastien Bourdais of the Newman/Haas Racing team won the 165-lap race after he started from the second position. His teammate Bruno Junqueira finished second and Mario Domínguez of Herdez Competition took third.
The 2001 American Memorial was a Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) motor race held on September 15, 2001 at the EuroSpeedway Lausitz in Klettwitz, Brandenburg, Germany. It was the 16th round of the 2001 CART season and the first race in the series to be held in Europe. Originally known as the German 500, the event's name was changed by CART in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks. Kenny Bräck won the race for Team Rahal after starting from second position; his teammate Max Papis finished in second place, and Patrick Carpentier was third.
The 2001 Michigan 500 was a Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) race held on July 22, 2001, at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn, Michigan, before a crowd of 40,000 spectators. Branded as the 2001 Harrah's 500 Presented by Toyota for sponsorship reasons, it was the 11th round of the 2001 CART season, the 32nd running of the event, and the last time the event was held to CART rules as it became an Indy Racing League (IRL) race in 2002. Forsythe Racing's Patrick Carpentier won the 250-lap event by 0.243 seconds over Dario Franchitti of Team Green and Bettenhausen Racing's Michel Jourdain Jr. was third.
The 2002 Sure for Men Rockingham 500 was a Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) motor race held on 14 September 2002 at the Rockingham Motor Speedway in Corby, Northamptonshire, England in front of an estimated crowd of 38,000 people. It was the 15th round of the 2002 CART season, the second Rockingham 500, and the only race of the year to be held in Europe. Team Green driver Dario Franchitti won the 211-lap race starting from fifth position. Cristiano da Matta finished second for Newman/Haas Racing, and Forsythe Racing's Patrick Carpentier was third.
The 2001 Rockingham 500 was a Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) motor race held on 22 September 2001 at the Rockingham Motor Speedway in Corby, Northamptonshire, England before 38,000 people. It was the 17th race of the 2001 CART season, the second event of the year to be held in Europe, and the series' first visit to the United Kingdom. Team Penske driver Gil de Ferran won the 140-lap race starting from second position. Kenny Bräck finished second for Team Rahal, and Newman/Haas Racing driver Cristiano da Matta was third.
The 2001 Lehigh Valley Grand Prix, known informally as the 2001 Nazareth 225, was a Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) motor race held on May 6, 2001, at Nazareth Speedway in Nazareth, Pennsylvania, USA. It was the 4th round of the 2001 CART season. Rookie Scott Dixon won the race by just four tenths of a second over Kenny Bräck, while Paul Tracy took third.
The 2001 Marconi Grand Prix of Cleveland was a Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) motor race held on July 1, 2001, at Burke Lakefront Airport in Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It was the 9th round of the 2001 CART FedEx Championship Series season. Team Green driver Dario Franchitti won the race after narrowly escaping a first-turn pile-up and then by gambling on a fuel-saving strategy that saw his car run out of fuel just after crossing the finish line ahead of a hard-charging Memo Gidley and Bryan Herta.
The German 500 was an automobile race sanctioned by CART held at EuroSpeedway Lausitz in Germany in 2001 and 2003.
