1997 became PacWest's breakout year, with the team taking four wins - three from Blundell and Gugelmin's sole CART victory at Vancouver. The team was since considered a major team, and was figured to be in contention for the championship in 1998.
The next three years, however, turned out to be a disappointment. 2001 saw Blundell, who retired after the previous season's end, replaced with 2000 Indy Lights Champion Scott Dixon, who earned PacWest's final victory at Nazareth, in which Dixon's teammate Gugelmin withdrew after the death of his son.
2002 was PacWest's final year, in which the troubled team could only obtain associate sponsorship from NTN. The team started four races with Dixon and Oriol Servia. After the third race, Dixon left the team to join Chip Ganassi Racing, and Servia started one more race before McCaw closed the organization.
The team was purchased by Kevin Kalkhoven and Craig Pollock to form PK Racing. The team operated as KV Racing Technology from 2003 until the end of the 2016 season.
The PacWest team's two cars were the cars used by main characters Jimmy Bly (#18) and Joe Tanto (#17) in the 2001 action movie Driven.
Mark Blundell is a British racing driver who competed in Formula One for four seasons, sports cars, and CART. He won the 1992 24 Hours of Le Mans. He was a Formula One presenter for the British broadcaster ITV until the end of the 2008 season when the TV broadcasting rights switched to the BBC. Blundell returned to the track in 2019, driving in the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship for the Trade Price Cars team.
Maurício Gugelmin is a Brazilian former racing driver. He took part in both Formula One and Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART). He participated in 80 Formula One Grands Prix, debuting in 1988 for the March team. Gugelmin achieved one top-three finish and scored a total of ten championship points in the series. He competed in CART between 1993 and 2001, starting 147 races. Gugelmin won one race, in 1997 in Vancouver, finishing fourth in the championship that year. His best result in the Indianapolis 500 was in 1995 where he started and finished in sixth position, leading 59 laps. For a period, he held the world speed record for a closed race track, set at California Speedway in 1997 at a speed of 240.942 mph (387.759 km/h). Gugelmin retired at the end of 2001 after a year that included the death of his third child.
Galmer was an American racecar manufacturer that built cars used from 1992 through 1993 in CART competition and the Indianapolis 500. The cars were commissioned by the Galles Racing team. Although they were an American-based effort, spearheaded by Alan Mertens (galmerinc.com), the cars were actually assembled at the Galmer Engineering shop in Bicester, England.
KV Racing Technology was an auto racing team that last competed in the IndyCar Series. The team was originally formed as PK Racing before the 2003 season by Australian businessman Kevin Kalkhoven and former Formula One team manager Craig Pollock from the remnants of the PacWest team.
Dale Coyne Racing (DCR) is an American professional open-wheel racing team that currently competes in the IndyCar Series. 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.
Forsythe/Pettit Racing was an American racing team that competed in the Champ Car World Series owned by Gerald Forsythe and Dan Pettit. The Champ Car effort ceased operations after the 2008 unification of North American open wheel racing.
The 2002 FedEx Championship Series season, the twenty-fourth in the CART era of U.S. open-wheel racing, consisted of 19 races, beginning in Monterrey, Mexico on March 10 and concluding in Mexico City, Mexico on November 17. The FedEx Championship Series Drivers' Champion was Cristiano da Matta. Rookie of the Year was Mario Domínguez.
The Firestone Firehawk 600 was a CART series auto race scheduled for April 29, 2001 at the Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Texas, United States. It was scheduled for 248 laps around the 1.5-mile (2.4 km) oval at TMS. However, it was postponed and ultimately cancelled due to concerns about driver safety. It was the only race in CART history that was canceled outright for safety reasons.
The Grand Prix of Road America, also known as the Sonsio 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 the CART 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 Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey is an IndyCar Series race held at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca near Monterey, California. The event dates back to 1960, and became an American open wheel race in 1983. The race was part of the CART/Champ Car series from 1983 through 2004. After a fifteen-year hiatus, the event returned in 2019 as part of the IndyCar Series, replacing Sonoma.
The 1995 PPG Indy Car World Series season, the seventeenth in the CART era of U.S. open-wheel racing, consisted of 17 races, beginning in Miami, Florida on March 5 and concluding in Monterey, California on September 10. The PPG Indy Car World Series Drivers' Champion and Indianapolis 500 winner was Jacques Villeneuve. Rookie of the Year was Gil de Ferran. This was the last season before the formation of the Indy Racing League by Indianapolis Motor Speedway owner, Tony George, and the last time the USAC-sanctioned Indianapolis 500 would appear in the Series.
The 1994 PPG Indy Car World Series season was the 16th national championship season of American open wheel racing sanctioned by CART under the name "IndyCar". The season consisted of 16 races. Al Unser Jr. was the national champion, his second CART title, and the rookie of the year was Jacques Villeneuve. The 1994 Indianapolis 500 was sanctioned by USAC, but counted towards the CART points championship. Al Unser Jr. won the Indy 500 from the pole position, his second career victory in that event.
The 2001 Honda Grand Prix of Monterey was a CART motor race held on October 14, 2001 at the Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in California, United States. It was the 19th round of the 2001 CART season.
The 1997 Marlboro 500 was the 17th and last round of the 1997 CART season. It happened on September 28, 1997, at the then brand-new California Speedway.
The 1996 Bosch Spark Plug Grand Prix was a CART race which happened at the Nazareth Speedway on April 28, 1996. It was the 5th round of the 1996 IndyCar season.
The 1997 Molson Indy Vancouver was the 15th round of the 1997 CART season. At that time, the Italian driver Alex Zanardi was the leader of the standings with 39 points in front of the French-Brazilian driver Gil de Ferran.
The 1996 Miller Genuine Draft 200 was a CART race that happened at the Milwaukee Mile. It happened on June 2, 1996. It was the 7th round of the 1996 IndyCar season.
The 1996 Rio 400 was a CART race at the Emerson Fittipaldi Speedway. It happened on March 17, 1996. It was the 2nd round of the 1996 IndyCar season.
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 2000 Marlboro Grand Prix of Miami presented by Toyota was the first round of the 2000 CART FedEx Championship Series, held March 26, 2000, on the Homestead–Miami Speedway in Homestead, Florida.
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