Forsythe and RuSPORT combine forces
Dear Peter, We think the Newman/Haas/Lanigan team may still be trying to get Wilson (to replace Bourdais) but apparently that deal isn't done yet. It requires adequate sponsorship, so we predict Wilson will either end up there or with Forsythe/Pettit Racing. Mark C.
11/26/07 Two of the most competitive teams in the Champ Car World Series will combine operations for the 2008 season.
Forsythe Championship Racing owner Jerry Forsythe and RuSPORT owner Dan Pettit announced today that they will combine operations and run under the banner of Forsythe/Pettit Racing beginning with the 2008 season.
Forsythe, a co-owner of the Champ Car World Series, said: “I am pleased to announce the combination of Forsythe Championship Racing and RuSPORT Racing. I know that Dan (Pettit) and I share the same goal and that is to compete for a championship. This partnership will enable us to do that and I look forward to a successful season for Forsythe/Pettit Racing in 2008 and for many years to come."
Pettit, who purchased RuSPORT last season from Carl Russo and also serves as a co-owner of the Champ Car World Series, said: “I am thrilled to be partnering with Jerry Forsythe. The entire Forsythe team has experience competing at the highest levels and winning championships. I think combining our efforts will give us a team that can contend for a title immediately."
Forsythe Racing is one of the most successful teams in the history of Champ Car having amassed 32 wins, 34 poles and one championship in 16 years of competition. The team, which began operations in 1983, but took a hiatus from 1985 until 1993, has campaigned such well-known drivers as: Teo Fabi, who in 1983 won four races and captured six poles, including the Indianapolis 500, and went on to place second in the Champ Car standings; Jacques Villeneuve, one win, finished second at the 1994 Indy 500 and was “Rookie of the Year" at both Indy and for the Series; the late Greg Moore, five wins; Patrick Carpentier, five wins; Alex Tagliani; Paul Tracy, 12 wins and the Series championship in 2003; and A. J. Allmendinger, who scored five wins in just nine starts in 2006. Last year, Forsythe Championship Racing campaigned four different drivers. Oriol Servia made 11 starts placing sixth in the points, while Paul Tracy had one victory (Cleveland). Mario Dominquez and David Martinez also contested races.
RuSPORT joined the Champ Car World Series in 2004 and has quickly risen to become one of the top teams in the Series. It has scored four wins in four seasons and finished second in the championship standings the last two years with driver Justin Wilson. In their inaugural season, Allmendinger finished sixth in the standings and captured the Roshfrans Rookie-of-the-Year award. In 2005, former Formula 1 driver Wilson joined the team and he and Allmendinger formed a dynamic duo contending for the championship and race wins all season. Wilson scored the teams first two victories that year and eventually placed third in the championship with Allmendinger finishing fifth. The following year, Wilson notched another win and captured the first of his two runner-up showings in the final standings (2006 and 2007). This past year he earned the team’s fourth win (Assen, Holland).
Forsythe/Pettit Racing, which will operate out of the Forsythe Championship Racing Indianapolis-based shop, is expected to announce its 2008 driver line-up soon.
The 2008 Champ Car World Series season will consist of 14 races, six in the U. S., three in Canada, three in Europe and one in both Australia and Mexico City. The season opens on April 20 with the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach. Champ Car PR