Cristiano da Matta

[macdaddy]

This was posted today (Jan.26) on SpeedTV:

I’m planning to race in Champ Cars again. Obviously my main target is to try to race with Newman/Haas Racing, trying to put a deal together. We depend a little bit on some sponsorship deals that are still to be finalized. I’m anxiously waiting on these things to happen. I’m looking forward to be on the racetrack again with Champ Cars.

I think my chance to be back with Champ Cars is pretty high. What I’m not sure is where I’m going to be driving at. That’s a slightly more difficult question. All these sponsorship deals, they depend on big companies, and sometimes the decision takes longer than we think it’s going to take. Sometimes it’s shorter than we think it’s going to take. But the process is always complicated, so is difficult to judge.

But, I’m pretty sure I’m going to be on the grid for next year. I’m for sure hoping.

[Kicking-back]

Good news.

Looks like PKV is the most likely destination from what I've read.

[Dov]

^ Imo, that's only if the sponsorship deals fall through at NHR.

[rustyfan]

da Matta returning would certainly add some weight to the driver line-up, and hopefully he'll end up with NHR.

[macdaddy]

IMO, hopefully he doesn't end up at NHR.
Vasser and da Matta at PKV, coupled with Jim McGee, would be my 1st choice.
The Penske dominance of 1994 became monotonous after awhile!

[courageous]

Bit concerned about him coming back - the last driver to fail in F1 & come back was Zanardi; he didn't exactly pick up where he left off.

[macdaddy]

I don't get your point, courageous.

[mac]

There were a lot of issues in the Mo Nunn team when Alex got back.

Shortly before his accident, he and the team were starting to make strong progress.

[carsten66]

... and also on crash.net two CdM reports...
"Pretty high chance":
http://www.crash.net/uk/en/news_view...d=3&nid=104690
and " F1 was good - but no fun":
http://www.crash.net/uk/en/news_view...d=1&nid=104691

[enemy-ace]

Originally Posted by macdaddy

IMO, hopefully he doesn't end up at NHR.
Vasser and da Matta at PKV, coupled with Jim McGee, would be my 1st choice.

Not me! A third seat at Newman-Haas would be great. Bourdais v. daMatta would be a stellar battle. Afraid poor Bruno would get pushed aside though. That is if he keeps on singing the blues.
At PKVR I would like to see a young hotshoe, preferably Wirdheim. In a way I wouldn't be too bummed if Vasser retired and two seats became available.
I think PKVR are making all the right moves to becoming competitive as a "team", and the available seats will be rather desirable.

[Omega99]

I've got to say I agree with Macdaddy. PKV is the probably the best place from an entertainment standpoint. It'd be nice to see daMatta push the car up the grid, and with the help of McGee, PKV stands an excellent chance of being one of the best. Hopefully Jimmy's luck starts to turn around for him. Also there's more likely to be a better battle between daMatta and Bourdais if team orders can't be a factor.

[Hazza]

Originally Posted by mac

There were a lot of issues in the Mo Nunn team when Alex got back.

Shortly before his accident, he and the team were starting to make strong progress.

He had a 3rd place in the bag before ol' Maxy Wilson cut his tyre. And well, there was a high chance of victory @ Laustitz. Thats not even how you spell it but what the hey, you know what I mean.

[Kicking-back]

Is da Matta really a driver to "push a car up the grid"?

Surely his best season came when he had a demonstrable technical advantage?

[BootsOntheSide]

He certainly pushed PPI up the grid when he was there, and seemed to do the same for Toyota - he did generally outdrive Panis as a rookie in F1.

[BootsOntheSide]

In a way, I'd rather see him end up at PKV, as long as Wirdheim gets either a third car there or a seat somewhere else. I son't see is as a good thing to have the big teams running lots of cars when a lot of smaller teams are struggling to get onto the grid at all - the situation in the IRL is unfortunate, and it's a shame the same thing happened in ChampCars last year.

[carsten66]

Indeed the scenario with two strong teams in the way we see the combination NHR with Bourdais/Junqueira and PKV with Vasser/da Matta seems to be the best solution.
Not to forget we will see a strong runner up team with RuSport (I hope so...) and with Tracy and Dominguez we can expect four more winning-drivers on the grid.

And I would like to see Valiante, RHR and Servia back... and perhaps with Wirdheim and Verstappen on board... the drivers list looks not that bad.

[rustyfan]

PKV has a long way to go before they deserve to be mentioned in the same breath as NHR, IMO. Sure, they had a number of podium finishes in 2004 (or more specifically, Vasser did), but neither PKV driver managed to score a pole nor a victory.

EDIT - This is also the reason why I would prefer to see da Matta at NHR, since he would be able to challenge Bourdais on even terms. This is far from certain should he end up with PKV.

[N I Tram]

I'd probably rather see him at PKV, as they seem like a team who can really go places. Then again, he'd probably be in a car that would've been there anyway (in Wirhdeim's hands) at PKV, rather than a true extra car from Newman-Haas.

[Snrub]

I seem to recall back in 2002 that in a few events that CDM didn't start so well or had something happen, that he moved up the field and finsished well.

As for Jimmy stepping aside for new drivers, I've been really impressed with Jimmy the last couple of seasons. He's had a lousy car, but he's been more aggressive than in the past and I think there's some of that old form that was missing for a while. I'd really like to see what he can do in competitive equipment.

[macdaddy]

This, from SpeedTV:

“Dalziel and Wirdheim are certainly fast guys and we've got a great interest in both of them,” added McGee. “We're close to making a decision. We're going to run both Ryan and Wirdheim again at Sebring and see how things develop over the next couple of weeks. But we have to make a decision by the first couple of weeks of February. In fact, we'd like to make it before then.”

It is believed that the major factor slowing CDM’s negotiations with Newman/Haas is the Brazilian’s high salary request. N/H has so far been unable to secure sponsorship deals that would cover da Matta’s price without making the third car a money-loser.

[marcus]

well if damatta wants to race that bad , surely he would accept a salary reduction wouldnt he ??

[JohnSSC]

Hmmm, first it is imperative to get Shorty back because he is a former Champ and spent 2 years in F1 so he brings cachet. Now he has to take less than what he is worth because N-H can't scratch up the $$$ to sign him?

He has proven value as a driver and he should not have to lower his own salary to come to CC. CC needs him more than he needs it.

[macdaddy]

True... To an extent...
Is he gonna get a comparable salary and a competitive ride in another series? Especially at this late stage?

[jjspierx]

Originally Posted by JohnSSC

Hmmm, first it is imperative to get Shorty back because he is a former Champ and spent 2 years in F1 so he brings cachet. Now he has to take less than what he is worth because N-H can't scratch up the $$$ to sign him?

He has proven value as a driver and he should not have to lower his own salary to come to CC. CC needs him more than he needs it.

Champcar doesn't need CDM. Sure it would be nice to have him back, but no team is going to take a loss, just so he could come back. If NHR can't get the money needed, than CDM is just going to have look elsewhere, or accept less money. CC isn't Formula 1.

[MLM]

Originally Posted by rustyfan

da Matta returning would certainly add some weight to the driver line-up, and hopefully he'll end up with NHR.

Weight!? da Matta!?
Seriously, you all are making good points, inre:NHR vs. PKV.

Right now, I'm inclined to say PKV would be a better choice, especially given the fact that IF money is the issue, the "K" part (Kalkhoven) would be able to probably ante up the money for an additional car, if push comes to shove.

It would be interesting to see how CdM would handle a potentially mid-pack car. (and who knows about that, now that they added McGee to the team ).

ps, jjspierx....I agree that CdM would have to take a paycut but I'm not too sure if I agree with the "Champcar doesn't need CdM" statement. Right now, CC can use all the "name drivers" they can get, IMHO.