VintageRPM » CART/Champ Car

2007 GP of Houston

Mike Stucker — Mon, 23 Apr 2007 01:06:38 +0000

2007 was the second year that the Champ Car World Series and Atlantic champions were run around the stadiums in Houston, Texas. What we didn’t know at the time was that it would also be the last, as the IRL would absorb Champ Car before the start of the 2008 season. This would be the one and only year that Champ Car teams would run the Cosworth turbo V8-powered Panoz DP01 chassis – one of the most beautiful open-wheel racers of the first decade of the 21st century.

Unlike 2006, the 2007 event was run on a normal Friday-Sunday (April 20-22) schedule, although the track was open to all comers on Thursday while the teams set up. Also unlike 2006, the entire paddock would be outside – the Reliant arena would only be used for race control and press facilities. The Atlantic race on Sunday was won by Sierra Sierra Enterprises Raphael Matos. The Champ Car race was a 1-2 Newman/Haas Lanigan finish with defending champion Sebastien Bourdais leading home his rookie teammate, Graham Rahal.

I took no pictures of the races on Sunday. In six years of attending CART/Champ Car events in Houston, I had never seen the actual races in person without a camera in front of my face, so I chose to spend Sunday just watching from the grandstands with my wife.

2007 GP of Houston Thursday

The paddock and a track walk the day before the official event opening.

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2007 GP of Houston Friday Atlantics

Atlantic practice on Friday. All photos shot at turn 8.

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2007 GP of Houston Friday CC Practice

Friday morning Champ Car World Series practice session shot from the chicane and pit entrance.

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2007 GP of Houston CC Autograph Session

Champ Car World Series autograph session on Friday. A place to get driver autographs and see the Face of Champ Car grid girls.

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2007 GP of Houston Friday Qualifying

Friday afternoon Champ Car World Series Qualifying. All photos taken at turn 8.

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2007 GP of Houston Saturday Atlantics

The Atlantic cars on Saturday - paddock and turn 8.

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2007 GP of Houston Atlantic Autograph Session

Saturday afternoon autograph session for the Atlantic drivers.

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2007 GP of Houston Saturday Champ Car

Champ Cars on Saturday.

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Gelles Atlantics Testing 2007

Mike Stucker — Sun, 14 Jan 2007 21:59:44 +0000

Over the weekend of January 13-14, Gelles Racing came to MotorSport Ranch Houston to test four drivers in their Champ Car Atlantic cars. Bob Gelles was kind enough to let me into their garage and photograph the team at work on Saturday. As it turned out, the Newman Wachs Racing Atlantics team was also there testing. Unfortunately, while I was there, the Newman Wachs car only turned a couple of laps before losing drive and disappearing into the garage for the remainder of the afternoon.

2006 GP of Houston

Mike Stucker — Sat, 13 May 2006 20:53:02 +0000

Open-wheeled racing returned to Houston in 2006 after a five year hiatus. Instead of running around the downtown streets as they did in the days of CART, Champ Car would now run through the streets and parking lots of Reliant Stadium and the Astrodome, south of downtown. This was the last year of the Champ Car World Series using the venerable Lola B02-00 chassis powered by Ford-Cosworth engines. Also on the bill were the Champ Car Atlantic Series as well as IMSA’s ALMS & Star Mazda series. (See separate gallery for ALMS & Star Mazda photos). The Atlantic teams had all new cars consisting of Mazda-powered Swift 016.a chassis.

This was an odd event weekend as it ran Thursday-Saturday (May 11-13) instead of the usual Friday-Sunday. This was because the headlining Champ Car race would be held under the lights on Saturday evening. The teams rolled into town on Wednesday and began setting up. This meant that any one who wanted could roam around the track and paddock on Wednesday. Speaking of the paddock, it was not equal for all series. The Champ Car teams were housed inside the air-conditioned Reliant Arena (which also served as race control and press center) while everyone else was outside. This indoor facility , though, was quite stark and did not seem as inviting as the GRB Center downtown had.

Andreas Wirth would win the Atlantic race and Sebastien Bourdais the Champ Car race.

The pictures that follow were originally shot for the now defunct RacingPress.com. Because of a credential snafu on the organizers part, I did not have a photo pass for Saturday, therefore there are no pictures of the actual races.

2006 GP of Houston Wednesday

Atlantic and Champ Car paddocks along with a pre-event press conference.

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2006 GP of Houston Thursday Atlantics

Atlantics practice on Thursday.

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2006 GP of Houston Thursday CC Practice

Day time Champ Car practice on Thursday.

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2006 GP of Houston CC Autograph Session

An autograph session for the Champ Car World Series drivers was held Thursday evening before the night qualifying session.

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2006 GP of Houston Thursday CC Qualifying

Nighttime Champ Car qualifying session.

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2006 GP of Houston Friday Atlantics

Friday Atlantic qualifying, followed by an autograph session for the Atlantic drivers.

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2006 GP of Houston Friday Champ Car

Friday Champ Car photos.

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Rocketsports Champ Car Testing 2006

Mike Stucker — Wed, 15 Mar 2006 22:46:47 +0000

The Rocketsports Champ Car World Series team tested F1 refugees Enrique Bernoldi and Antonio Pizzonia at MotorSport Ranch Houston on March 14 and 15, 2006. In addition to the team testing, MSR Houston members were also given time on track. Bellow are photos from the afternoon of the 14th.

Jensen Motorsports Testing 2006

Mike Stucker — Mon, 13 Feb 2006 22:47:35 +0000

On February 13, 2006, I went out to MotorSport Ranch Houston to watch the Jensen Motorsport Champ Car Atlantic Series team finish a week of testing. They were also testing one of their Formula BMW cars. The team did not have exclusive use of the facilities, so I was also able to photograph some club members as they ran their cars around the track.

1998 GP of Houston

Mike Stucker — Fri, 30 Oct 1998 01:13:09 +0000

On the first weekend in October 1998, big-time road racing came to the streets of downtown Houston for the first time with the running of the inaugural Texaco Grand Prix of Houston. Three series took part in the Grand Prix – the Toyota Atlantics, SCCA Trans-Am, and CART FedEx Championship Series. This was my first time at a race as a journalist. My job was to file reports for Motorsport News International (now Motorsport.com). Although not there as a photographer, I did manage to acquire a photo pass for all but Sunday’s CART Championship race. Those photos were taken from the George R. Brown Convention Center, which served as pits, paddock, press center, and race control..

1998 GP of Houston Pre-Race

The weekend's events actually started on Thursday, October 1, with a ceremony in front of the George R. Brown Convention Center to open the track. This was followed by a charity golf tournament with many of the drivers in attendance.

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1998 GP of Houston Practice

CART FedEX Championship practice and qualifying took place on Friday and Saturday.

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1998 GP of Houston Atlantics Race

Sunday afternoon began with the Toyota Atlantics race. The race started under full-course yellow when Masaoki Nagashima and Case Montgomery had a "coming together" on the final turn of the pace lap. It ended under yellow on lap 30 of a scheduled 45 because of a torrential downpour, with Anthony Lazzaro beating pole sitter Alex Tagliani and 1998 KOOL Toyota Atlantics Champion Lee Bentham.

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1998 GP of Houston CART Race

The inaugural CART Texaco Grand Prix of Houston is remembered for three things - heavy rain, teammates Paul Tracy and Dario Franchitti making contact in turn 5, and Tracy having a "dust-up" with team owner Barry Green after limping back to the pits. Franchitti would go on to win the race over 1998 CART Champion Alex Zanardi and 1998 CART Rookie of the Year Tony Kanaan.

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More CART Photos

Mike Stucker — Tue, 02 Jan 1900 01:17:52 +0000

More CART Photos at Motorsport.com:

2001 Grand Prix of Houston -CART