 Forsythe Championship Racing | |
| Founded: | 1982 |
| Principal: | Gerald Forsythe |
| Former Series: | Champ Car World Series Indy Lights Champ Car Atlantic Championship |
| Drivers: | Danny Sullivan Al Unser Jr. Teo Fabi Jacques Villeneuve Greg Moore Tony Kanaan Patrick Carpentier Alex Tagliani Bryan Herta Paul Tracy A. J. Allmendinger |
| Driver Titles: | Champ Car World Series 2003 Paul Tracy
|
| Folded: | 2008 |
Forsythe Championship Racing was an American racing team that competed in the Champ Car World Series owned by Gerald Forsythe. The Champ Car effort ceased operations after the 2008 unification of North American open wheel racing. The team won the 2003 championship with driver Paul Tracy.
Forsythe Racing began sponsoring Lee Brayton's entry for his son Scott in 1981. Forsythe later started his own team, racing in CART part-time in 1982 with Héctor Rebaque and Danny Sullivan who drove for the team in the 1982 Indianapolis 500 and finished 13th and 14th, respectively. Later that season Rebaque won at Road America. Before Indy, Sullivan finished third at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Also that season Al Unser Jr. made his CART debut for the team at Riverside International Raceway and finished fifth. Moderate success continued from 1983 to 1985, most notably with rookie driver Teo Fabi who won four races in 1983, and started on the pole position at Indianapolis.
The team returned in 1994 as Forsythe-Green Racing with co-owner Barry Green, but by the next year the two had split and Green took their driver Jacques Villeneuve and Canadian cigarette sponsor Player's LTD to his new Team Green and won the 1995 Indianapolis 500 and CART championship. Forsythe reunited with Teo Fabi in a full-time effort in 1995 with Combustion Engineering sponsoring their team. Forsythe did keep sponsor Player's LTD for his Indy Lights team and Canadian Greg Moore brought home the 1995 Indy Lights championship for Forsythe. Moore tested a Champ Car for Team Penske late in 1995 so Forsythe quickly signed Moore to run their single 1996 Champ Car entry with Player's moving back from the Team Green squad as Villeneuve left IndyCar for Formula One. Moore would drive with Forsythe for the five seasons in total, one in Indy Lights where he would win 10 of 12 races, and four in Champ Car until his death at the end of the 1999 season. In Champ Car, Moore would capture five wins and place a best of fifth in the 1998 points standings, all with Forsythe Racing.
In 1998, the team expanded to two cars by adding Patrick Carpentier to the all-Canadian squad. Carpentier would drive for Forsythe through 2004 when he was hired by Cheever Racing of the rival Indy Racing League for 2005. Patrick captured five wins with the team. For 2000, Forsythe tabbed rookie Alex Tagliani to drive alongside Carpentier. In three seasons, Tagliani scored three poles and five podiums but no wins, so Alex was replaced by veteran Paul Tracy for the 2003 season. Tracy would win seven races on his way to bringing Forsythe its first CART championship in CART's final year of operations. In 2006, Mario Domínguez, who had replaced Carpentier, was fired mid-season and Forsythe brought in displaced American A. J. Allmendinger. Allmendinger proceeded to win his first three races with the team, his first Champ Car victories. Allmendinger was teammates with Paul Tracy who finished fourth in points in 2004 and 2005 after his championship-winning season. However, Allmendinger and the team were not able to come to terms for 2007 and Allmendinger announced he would be going to NASCAR Nextel Cup with Team Red Bull. Forsythe would later announce Dominguez's return to his team on March 30. Dominguez, however, was replaced by Oriol Servià on a race by race basis until Servia was hired full-time. For the 2008 season, Jerry Forsythe and former RuSPORT owner Dan Pettit, were to merge their teams into Forsythe/Pettit Racing to field at least two cars.[1] However, changes brought about the unification of open wheel racing into the IndyCar Series. This made competitive racing financially unviable in the eyes of Forsythe and he elected not to race in the IndyCar Series in 2008. The team's Atlantic operation, Forsythe Racing continued to contest that series through the end of the 2008 season and the team fielded three of the team's Panoz DP01 chassis in the 2008 Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach.[2]
On July 15, 2008 Forsythe Racing announced that they would return to the Firestone Indy Lights Series grid in 2009. According to additional reports, Forsythe Racing were close to finalizing IRL IndyCar Series and American Le Mans Series programs for 2009, according to team manager Ken Swieck. Swieck confirmed that Forsythe intended to compete in both series rather than choosing one or the other.[3] However, Forsythe never fielded any entries in either series.
The Forsythe team and its derivatives have amassed 34 CART and Champ Car victories and single championship in 2003 with Canadian Paul Tracy.
A. J. Allmendinger (2006) Patrick Carpentier (1998–2004) Kevin Cogan (1984)
Mario Domínguez (2005–2007) Corrado Fabi (1984) Teo Fabi (1983–1984, 1995) Memo Gidley (2000) Bryan Herta (2000–2001) Howdy Holmes (1985) Tony Kanaan (1999) Rodolfo Lavin (2004) David Martínez (2006–2008)
Franck Montagny (2008) Greg Moore (1996–1999) John Paul Jr. (1985) Héctor Rebaque (1982) Buddy Rice (2006)
Oriol Servià (2007) Danny Sullivan (1982) Alex Tagliani (2000–2002) Paul Tracy (2003–2008) Al Unser Jr. (1982) Jacques Villeneuve (1994) Lee Bentham (1997-1999)(key) (results in bold indicate pole position) (results in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Chassis | Engine | Tyres | Drivers | No. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| March 82C | Cosworth DFX V8t | Héctor Rebaque | 32 | 13 | DNS | 18 | 25 | DNP | 20 | 1 | 15th | 48 | ||||||||||||||||
| Danny Sullivan | 33 | 3 | 21 | 22nd | 28 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Al Unser Jr. | 5 | 21st | 30 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1983 | INDY | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| March 83C | Cosworth DFX V8t | Teo Fabi | 33 | 20 | 26 | 4 | 3 | 15 | 15 | 1* | 2 | 1* | 3 | 25 | 1* | 1* | 2nd | 146 | ||||||||||
| 1984 | INDY | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| March 84C | Cosworth DFX V8t | Teo Fabi | 33 | Ret | Ret | Ret | 12 | 3 | Ret | 13 | 25th | 15 | ||||||||||||||||
| Kevin Cogan | 8 | 10 | DNQ | 17 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Lola T800 | Corrado Fabi | Ret | 10 | 6 | Ret | 28th | 11 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Kenneth Acheson | DNQ | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1985 | INDY | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Lola T900 | Cosworth DFX V8t | Jan Lammers | 32 | 5 | 20 | 11 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 33 | 13 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Howdy Holmes | 14 | 10 | 11 | 17 | 13 | 22 | 9 | 10 | 21 | 16 | 21 | 18 | DNS | 25th | 12 | |||||||||||||
| 1995 | SFR | INDY | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Reynard 95i | Ford XB V8t | Teo Fabi | 33 | 16 | 13 | 7 | 3 | 7 | 8 | 4 | 7 | 23 | 9 | 4 | 19 | 4 | 17 | 12 | 19 | 9 | 9th | 83 | ||||||
| 1996 | MIA | RIO | SFR | LBH | NAZ | 500 | MIL | DET | TOR | |||||||||||||||||||
| Reynard 96i | Mercedes-Benz IC108C V8t | Greg Moore | 99 | 7 | 18 | 3 | 22 | 2 | 13 | 5 | 20 | 25 | 3 | 4 | 17 | 9 | 23 | 25 | 6 | 9th | 84 | |||||||
| 1997 | FON | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Reynard 97i | Mercedes-Benz IC108D V8t | Greg Moore | 99 | 4 | 2 | 23 | 16 | 2 | 13 | 1* | 1 | 5 | 24 | 23 | 27 | 2 | 18 | 17 | 24 | 13 | 7th | 111 | ||||||
| 1998 | ROA | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Reynard 98i | Mercedes-Benz IC108E V8t | Patrick Carpentier | 33 | 11 | 19 | 28 | 13 | 17 | 15 | 25 | 15 | 9 | 9 | 25 | 8 | 7 | 28 | 27 | 17 | 22 | 9 | 26 | 19th | 27 | ||||
| Greg Moore | 99 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 13 | 5 | 27 | 25 | 11 | 1 | 22 | 21 | 20 | 21 | 26 | 8 | 2 | 5th | 141 | ||||||
| 1999 | MOT | LBH | NAZ | RIO | GAT | MIL | POR | CLE | ROA | TOR | VAN | SRF | FON | |||||||||||||||
| Reynard 99i | Mercedes-Benz IC108E V8t | Patrick Carpentier | 33 | 7 | 26 | 17 | 14 | 6 | 22 | 9 | 9 | 7 | 22 | 11 | 10 | 23 | 6 | 2 | 9 | 19 | 24 | 25 | 13th | 61 | ||||
| Greg Moore | 99 | 1* | 4 | 8 | 12 | 8 | 6 | 2 | 13 | 18 | 4 | 20 | 23 | 3 | 11 | 26 | 20 | 23 | 16 | 17 | 26 | 10th | 97 | |||||
| Honda HRS V8t | Tony Kanaan | 44 | 21 | 6 | 22* | 23 | 5 | 7 | 18 | 15 | 22 | 6 | 17 | 1 | 6 | 23 | 11 | 9 | 21 | 9 | 6 | 8 | 11th | 85 | ||||
| 2000 | DET | MCH | VAN | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Reynard 2Ki | Ford XF V8t | Patrick Carpentier | 32 | 5 | 21 | 3 | 5 | 10 | 5 | 7 | 4 | 14 | 7 | 21 | 24 | 9 | 2 | 19 | 5 | 14 | 11th | 101 | ||||||
| Memo Gidley | 21 | 8 | 18 | 20 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Alex Tagliani | 33 | 9 | 4 | 13* | 15 | 19 | 22 | 6 | 13 | 16 | 5 | 16 | 9 | 9 | 14* | 18 | 23 | 14 | 16 | 22 | 6 | 16th | 53 | |||||
| Bryan Herta | 77 | 4 | 26 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2001 | MTY | LBH | TXS | NAZ | MOT | MIL | DET | POR | CLE | TOR | MCH | CHI | MDO | ROA | VAN | LAU | ROC | HOU | LAG | SRF | FON | |||||||
| Reynard 01i | Ford XF V8t | Patrick Carpentier | 32 | 25 | 23 | C | 25 | 19 | 17 | 8 | 5 | 26 | 21 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 9 | 16 | 3 | 16 | 10 | 26 | 11 | 10 | 10th | 91 | ||
| Alex Tagliani | 33 | 21 | 18 | C | 22 | 22 | 12 | 21 | 12 | 9 | 2 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 23* | 21 | 14 | 19 | 15 | 3 | 3 | 11th | 80 | ||||
| Bryan Herta | 77 | 16 | 10 | C | 21 | 21 | 22 | 15 | 14 | 3 | 18 | 5 | 21 | 25 | 24 | 17 | 27 | 15 | 13 | 12 | 18 | 25 | 22nd | 28 | ||||
| 2002 | MTY | LBH | MOT | MIL | LAG | POR | CHI | TOR | CLE | VAN | MDO | ROA | MTL | DEN | ROC | MIA | SFR | FON | MXC | |||||||||
| Reynard 02i | Ford XF V8t | Patrick Carpentier | 32 | 7 | 19 | 4 | 15 | 5 | 5 | 16 | 10 | 1* | 5 | 1* | 7 | 15 | 17 | 3 | 16 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 3rd | 157 | ||||
| Alex Tagliani | 33 | 5 | 16 | 2 | 19 | 10 | 12 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 11 | 12 | 18 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 8th | 111 | ||||||
| 2003 | STP | MTY | LBH | BRH | LAU | MIL | LAG | POR | CLE | TOR | VAN | ROA | MDO | MTL | DEN | MIA | MXC | SFR | ||||||||||
| Lola B02/00 | Ford XFE V8t | Paul Tracy | 3 | 1* | 1* | 1 | 17 | 12 | 12 | 3 | 2* | 2* | 1* | 1* | 15 | 1* | 6 | 4 | 16 | 1* | 13 | 1st | 226 | |||||
| Patrick Carpentier | 32 | 8 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 7 | 3 | 1* | 16 | 4 | 7 | 13 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 17 | 6 | 14 | 5 | 5th | 146 | |||||||
| 2004 | LBH | MTY | MIL | POR | CLE | TOR | VAN | ROA | DEN | MTL | LAG | LSV | SFR | MXC | ||||||||||||||
| Lola B02/00 | Ford XFE V8t | Paul Tracy | 1 | 1* | 7 | 17 | 3 | 17 | 5 | 1* | 12 | 2* | 4 | 10 | 18 | 4* | 10 | 4th | 254 | |||||||||
| Rodolfo Lavín | 3 | 10 | 13 | 9 | 18 | 9 | 14 | 15 | 2 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 4 | 15 | 13 | 14th | 156 | |||||||||||
| Patrick Carpentier | 7 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 16 | 3 | 16 | 14 | 9 | 2 | 1* | 3 | 16 | 6 | 3rd | 266 | |||||||||||
| 2005 | LBH | MTY | MIL | POR | CLE | TOR | EDM | SJO | DEN | MTL | LSV | SRF | MXC | |||||||||||||||
| Lola B02/00 | Ford XFE V8t | Paul Tracy | 3 | 2 | 15 | 1* | 3 | 1* | 16 | 3 | 2 | 16* | 8 | 17* | 17 | 3 | 4th | 246 | ||||||||||
| Mario Domínguez | 7 | 5 | 13 | 7 | 4 | 17 | 13 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 10 | 4 | 18 | 12 | 9th | 198 | ||||||||||||
| 2006 | LBH | HOU | MTY | MIL | POR | CLE | TOR | EDM | SJO | DEN | MTL | ROA | SRF | MXC | ||||||||||||||
| Lola B02/00 | Ford XFE V8t | Paul Tracy | 3 | 17 | 2 | 4 | 16 | 7 | 16 | 2 | 5 | 15 | 6 | 2 | 10 | 4 | 7th | 209 | ||||||||||
| David Martínez | 9 | 22nd | 13 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Mario Domínguez | 7 | 4 | 3* | 6 | 14 | 202 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| A. J. Allmendinger | 1* | 1* | 1* | 3 | 7 | 1* | 17 | 1 | 16 | 285 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Buddy Rice | 10 | 23rd | 11 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2007 | LSV | LBH | HOU | POR | CLE | MTT | TOR | EDM | SJO | ROA | ZOL | ASN | SFR | MXC | ||||||||||||||
| Panoz DP01 | Cosworth XFE V8t | Paul Tracy | 3 | 3 | 10 | 1 | 15 | 14 | 5 | 11 | 12 | 10 | 17 | 9 | 5 | 11th | 171 | |||||||||||
| Oriol Servià | 2 | 4 | 237 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 7 | 11 | 7 | 9 | 10* | 6 | 3* | 4 | 6 | 8 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Mario Domínguez | 9 | 17 | 6 | 78 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| David Martínez | 10 | 14 | 20th | 18 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
(key)
| Year | Chassis | Engine | Tyres | Drivers | No. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | HMS | STP | MOT | LBH | KAN | INDY | MIL | TXS | IOW | RIR | WGL | NSH | MDO | EDM | KTY | SNM | DET | CHI | SRF | |||||||
| Panoz DP01 | Cosworth XFE V8t | Paul Tracy | 3 | 11 | 51 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Franck Montagny | 7 | 2 | NC | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| David Martínez | 37 | 8 | NC | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Season | Date | Sanction | Track / Race | No. | Winning Driver | Chassis | Engine | Tire | Grid | Laps Led | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1982 | September 19 | CART | Road America (R) | 32 | Héctor Rebaque (R) | March 82C | Cosworth DFX V8t | Goodyear | 9 | 1 | |
| 2 | 1983 | August 14 | CART | Pocono 500 (O) | 33 | Teo Fabi (R) | March 83C | Cosworth DFX V8t | Goodyear | 2 | 116 | |
| 3 | September 11 | CART | Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course (R) | 33 | Teo Fabi (R) (2) | March 83C | Cosworth DFX V8t | Goodyear | 2 | 40 | ||
| 4 | October 23 | CART | Laguna Seca Raceway (R) | 33 | Teo Fabi (R) (3) | March 83C | Cosworth DFX V8t | Goodyear | Pole | 95 | ||
| 5 | October 29 | CART | Phoenix International Raceway (O) | 33 | Teo Fabi (R) (4) | March 83C | Cosworth DFX V8t | Goodyear | Pole | 138 | ||
| 6 | 1997 | June 1 | CART | Milwaukee Mile (O) | 99 | Greg Moore | Reynard 97i | Mercedes-Benz IC108D V8t | Firestone | 5 | 104 | |
| 7 | June 8 | CART | Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix (S) | 99 | Greg Moore (2) | Reynard 97i | Mercedes-Benz IC108D V8t | Firestone | 7 | 20 | ||
| 8 | 1998 | May 10 | CART | Rio 200 (O) | 99 | Greg Moore (3) | Reynard 98i | Mercedes-Benz IC108E V8t | Firestone | 7 | 5 | |
| 9 | July 26 | CART | Michigan 500 (O) | 99 | Greg Moore (4) | Reynard 98i | Mercedes-Benz IC108E V8t | Firestone | 14 | 36 | ||
| 10 | 1999 | March 21 | CART | Homestead–Miami Speedway (O) | 99 | Greg Moore (5) | Reynard 99i | Mercedes-Benz IC108E V8t | Firestone | Pole | 96 | |
| 11 | July 25 | CART | Michigan 500 (O) | 44 | Tony Kanaan | Reynard 99i | Honda HRS V8t | Firestone | 11 | 7 | ||
| 12 | 2001 | July 22 | CART | Michigan 500 (O) | 32 | Patrick Carpentier | Reynard 01i | Ford XF V8t | Firestone | 21 | 3 | |
| 13 | 2002 | July 14 | CART | Grand Prix of Cleveland (S) | 32 | Patrick Carpentier (2) | Reynard 02i | Ford XF V8t | Bridgestone | 2 | 66 | |
| 14 | August 11 | CART | Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course (R) | 32 | Patrick Carpentier (3) | Reynard 02i | Ford XF V8t | Bridgestone | Pole | 89 | ||
| 15 | 2003 | February 23 | CART | Grand Prix of St. Petersburg (S) | 3 | Paul Tracy | Lola B02/00 | Ford XFE V8t | Bridgestone | 2 | 71 | |
| 16 | March 23 | CART | Fundidora Park (S) | 3 | Paul Tracy (2) | Lola B02/00 | Ford XFE V8t | Bridgestone | 2 | 69 | ||
| 17 | April 13 | CART | Grand Prix of Long Beach (S) | 3 | Paul Tracy (3) | Lola B02/00 | Ford XFE V8t | Bridgestone | 2 | 33 | ||
| 18 | June 15 | CART | Laguna Seca Raceway (R) | 32 | Patrick Carpentier (4) | Lola B02/00 | Ford XFE V8t | Bridgestone | Pole | 87 | ||
| 19 | July 13 | CART | Exhibition Place, Toronto (S) | 3 | Paul Tracy (4) | Lola B02/00 | Ford XFE V8t | Bridgestone | Pole | 112 | ||
| 20 | July 27 | CART | Streets of Vancouver (S) | 3 | Paul Tracy (5) | Lola B02/00 | Ford XFE V8t | Bridgestone | Pole | 77 | ||
| 21 | August 10 | CART | Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course (R) | 3 | Paul Tracy (6) | Lola B02/00 | Ford XFE V8t | Bridgestone | Pole | 69 | ||
| 22 | October 12 | CART | Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez (R) | 3 | Paul Tracy (7) | Lola B02/00 | Ford XFE V8t | Bridgestone | Pole | 64 | ||
| 23 | 2004 | April 18 | CART | Grand Prix of Long Beach (S) | 1 | Paul Tracy (8) | Lola B02/00 | Ford XFE V8t | Bridgestone | 3 | 78 | |
| 24 | July 25 | CART | Streets of Vancouver (S) | 1 | Paul Tracy (9) | Lola B02/00 | Ford XFE V8t | Bridgestone | Pole | 81 | ||
| 25 | September 12 | CART | Laguna Seca Raceway (R) | 7 | Patrick Carpentier (5) | Lola B02/00 | Ford XFE V8t | Bridgestone | 2 | 40 | ||
| 26 | 2005 | June 4 | CART | Milwaukee Mile (O) | 3 | Paul Tracy (10) | Lola B02/00 | Ford XFE V8t | Bridgestone | 5 | 192 | |
| 27 | June 26 | CART | Grand Prix of Cleveland (S) | 3 | Paul Tracy (11) | Lola B02/00 | Ford XFE V8t | Bridgestone | Pole | 46 | ||
| 28 | 2006 | June 18 | CART | Grand Prix of Portland (R) | 7 | A. J. Allmendinger | Lola B02/00 | Ford XFE V8t | Bridgestone | 2 | 100 | |
| 29 | June 25 | CART | Grand Prix of Cleveland (S) | 7 | A. J. Allmendinger (2) | Lola B02/00 | Ford XFE V8t | Bridgestone | Pole | 36 | ||
| 30 | July 9 | CART | Exhibition Place, Toronto (S) | 7 | A. J. Allmendinger (3) | Lola B02/00 | Ford XFE V8t | Bridgestone | 2 | 38 | ||
| 31 | August 13 | CART | Grand Prix of Denver (S) | 7 | A. J. Allmendinger (4) | Lola B02/00 | Ford XFE V8t | Bridgestone | 2 | 45 | ||
| 32 | September 24 | CART | Road America (R) | 7 | A. J. Allmendinger (5) | Lola B02/00 | Ford XFE V8t | Bridgestone | 5 | 7 | ||
| 33 | 2007 | June 24 | CART | Grand Prix of Cleveland (S) | 3 | Paul Tracy (12) | Panoz DP01 | Cosworth XFE V8t | Bridgestone | 7 | 26 |