Girish Mahajan (Editor)

2002 CART season

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Races
  
19

Drivers' champion
  
Cristiano da Matta

Manufacturers' Cup
  
Toyota

Start date
  
2002

Race
  
19

End date
  
November 17

Constructors' Cup
  
Lola

Nations' Cup
  
Brazil

Rookie of the year
  
Mario Domínguez

2002 CART season wwwsmokingpencoukgp3graphicscart2002bjpg

Similar
  
2001 CART season, 2004 Champ Car season, 2000 CART season, 2007 Champ Car season, 1999 CART season

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.

Contents

Sports television channel ESPN dropped CART coverage for the 2002 season. CBS and Speed Channel took its place for two seasons.

Drivers and teams

Bridgestone became the exclusive tire supplier for CART, replacing Firestone, an association that would continue until the final Champ Car season in 2007. The 2002 season was last to feature multiple engine manufacturers.

The following teams and drivers competed in the 2002 CART Championship Series season.

Team changes

The biggest change to the team lineup in the 2002 CART season was the defection of Team Penske to the rival Indy Racing League. The departure of Team Penske, a CART stalwart from its earliest days, was an early sign of a major shift in the CART-IRL rivalry. Several other major CART powers would follow Penske to the IRL for the 2003 season. Target Chip Ganassi Racing and Mo Nunn Racing both set up separate IRL teams in 2002, but continued to compete in CART for the time being, though Mo Nunn downsized his team to a single car. They would be among the teams to leave CART for the IRL in 2003. Blair Racing also left CART for IRL. Patrick Racing downsized their effort to a single car, while Forsythe Racing shutdown their third car driven by Bryan Herta in 2001 for lack of sponsorship.

Driver changes

1996 series champion Jimmy Vasser, one of two former champions in the 2002 field (the other being Michael Andretti), left Patrick Racing for Team Rahal. Joining him at Rahal was Michel Jourdain Jr. who left Herdez Competition. Rahal's 2001 drivers, Kenny Bräck and Max Papis moved to Target Chip Ganassi Racing and Sigma Autosport. Papis took the seat previously occupied by Oriol Servià, who replaced the retiring Maurício Gugelmin at PWR Championship Racing. The 2002 season started with two rookies. 2001 Dayton Indy Lights champion Townsend Bell led a one car effort at Patrick Racing. Mario Domínguez signed on for another single car effort with Herdez Competition.

In-season changes

  • Lack of sponsorship led to the shutdown of PWR Championship Racing after the third race in Motegi, Japan. Scott Dixon landed in a third car at Target Chip Ganassi Racing, while Oriol Servià was sidelined for the time being.
  • Having already dropped the Bettenhausen name from its team name with the conclusion of the 2001 season, Herdez Competition changed their car number from 16 to 55 beginning with the fifth round at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. #16 had long been associated with Tony Bettenhausen, Jr. and his race team.
  • The fifth race at Laguna Seca was the last appearance for Sigma Autosport, which, like PWR earlier in the season, found their sponsorship well run dry, leaving Max Papis without a ride.
  • A run of disappointing performances and a two probation sanctions from CART Chief Steward Wally Dallenbach Sr. led to the firing of Townsend Bell from Patrick Racing after the ninth round at Cleveland. Oriol Servià drove the #20 car for the remainder of the season.
  • Adrián Fernández fractured his hip in a crash in the tenth race at Vancouver and sat out the following race at Mid-Ohio. Max Papis substituted for him.
  • Dale Coyne helped put together what was described as an "all-England" team named Team St. George for a one shot effort for the fifteenth race at Rockingham, England. Darren Manning was chosen to be the driver. The team used Coyne's traditional #19 car.
  • After clinching the season championship by winning the sixteenth race in Miami Cristiano da Matta ran with #1 on his car for the rest of the season.
  • Adrian Fernández was involved in a crash in the seventeenth race at Surfer's Paradise, Australia and suffered two thoracic fractures, which forced him to sit out the final two races of the season. Max Papis sat in for him again at Fontana and Luis Díaz substituted at Mexico City.
  • Dale Coyne Racing reappeared under its own name and ran André Lotterer at the final race of the season at Mexico City.

    • Races

  • (R) Road course/Street circuit, (O) Oval/Speedway

    • Nation's Cup

  • Top result per race counts towards Nation's Cup.

    • References

    2002 CART season Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA