2001 American Memorial

Motor race held in 2001 February 2025 51 32 0 N 13 55 10 E type:landmark_region:DE-BB title Germany American Memorial EuroSpeedway_Lausitz_tri-oval_diagram.svg Map of the track September 15 2001 The American Memorial 16 21 CART EuroSpeedway Lausitz Klettwitz, Brandenburg, Germany Oval 2.023 3.256 154 311.54 501.42 Gil de Ferran Brazil Team Penske No time trials Tony Kanaan Brazil Mo Nunn Racing 34.747 96 Kenny Bräck Sweden Team Rahal Max Papis Italy Team Rahal Patrick Carpentier Canada Forsythe Racing The 2001 American Memorial (de Amerikanisches Denkmal 2001) was a Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) motor race held on September 15, 2001, at the EuroSpeedway Lausitz in Klettwitz, Brandenburg, Germany. It was the 16th round of the 2001 CART season and the first race in the series to be held in Europe. Originally known as the German 500, the event's name was changed by CART in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks. Kenny Bräck, driving the #8 Ford-Cosworth for Team Rahal, won with his teammate Max Papis finished in second place in the #7 Ford-Cosworth. Patrick Carpentier, driving the #32 Ford-Cosworth for Forsythe Racing, finished third to give Ford all three podium positions. The race was run under caution for the final twelve laps due to a massive accident involving Alex Zanardi, driving the #66 Honda for Mo Nunn Racing, and Alex Tagliani, Carpentier's teammate and driver of the #33 Forsythe Racing car. The crash resulted in a traumatic amputation of both of Zanardi’s legs and nearly resulted in his death. Report Background The German 500 was the first CART race ever to be held in Europe.Wade Stephen September 14, 2001 CART re-names race 'The American Memorial' http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/cart-re-names-race-the-american-memorial-1.263866 live https://web.archive.org/web/20121105121927/http://www.cbc.ca/sports/story/2001/09/14/cart010914.html November 5, 2012 June 10, 2022 Canadian Broadcasting Corporation It was the beginning of a two-week European stretch for the series; the Rockingham 500 was held at Rockingham Motor Speedway in Corby, England one week later. EuroSpeedway chairman Hans-Jörg Fischer hoped for a crowd of 70,000 at the track, which had a capacity of 90,000.Wade Stephen CART branches out: 70,000 expected to attend German 500 The Spokesman-Review Associated Press September 13, 2001 https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=XjcSAAAAIBAJ&sjid=dPIDAAAAIBAJ&pg=3930,1007347&dq=german+500+cart C2 September 13, 2009 Entering the German 500, the 16th round of the 2001 CART season, Gil de Ferran held the lead in the season's points standings with 115 points. Bräck and Hélio Castroneves were joint second on 110 points, and Michael Andretti was fourth, seven points further back.CART German 500 Preview Championship Auto Racing Teams September 10, 2001 http://www.cart.com/News/Article.asp?ID=1812 September 13, 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20030403211746/http://www.cart.com/News/Article.asp?ID=1812 April 3, 2003 Four days before the race, the September 11 attacks took place, causing most major American sporting events scheduled on the same weekend as the German 500 to be postponed, including National Football League (NFL) and Major League Baseball (MLB) games and the New Hampshire 300 NASCAR Winston Cup Series race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.For The Record: A summary of how the sports world responded to the Sept. 11 tragedy Sports Illustrated September 24, 2001 http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1023748/index.htm November 3, 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20121025085504/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1023748/index.htm October 25, 2012 dead The Italian Grand Prix, a Formula One race, was held that weekend. According to CART vice president Ronald Richards, the series decided to continue with the race prior to the cancellation of that week's NFL games, a decision followed by other American leagues. Richards acknowledged that "We wish we would have had the input regarding the NFL's decision prior to making our decision." In remembrance of the September 11 attacks' victims, and desirous of avoiding criticism for holding the German 500 so soon afterward, CART changed the race's name to the American Memorial.Wade Stephen CART renames race 'The American Memorial' USA Today Gannett Company September 14, 2001 http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/sports/motor/cart/2001-09-14-american-memorial.htm December 19, 2015 The series also held tributes on the day of the race,CART To Offer Tributes Championship Auto Racing Teams September 13, 2001 http://www.cart.com/News/Article.asp?ID=1833 September 14, 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20030403231645/http://www.cart.com/News/Article.asp?ID=1833 April 3, 2003 and made a $500,000 donation to the World Trade Center Relief Fund, matching the event's prize fund.CART Community, Drivers To Provide Aid To WTC Relief Fund Championship Auto Racing Teams September 15, 2001 http://www.cart.com/News/Article.asp?ID=1865 September 14, 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20030404020348/http://www.cart.com/News/Article.asp?ID=1865 April 4, 2003 Practice and qualifying thumb|left|upright|Gil de Ferran (pictured in 2005) was awarded pole position as the leader of the Drivers' Championship standings. The first day of practice for the American Memorial was scheduled on September 13, but was cancelled because of rain.Rain Wipes Out Test Day At German 500 Championship Auto Racing Teams September 13, 2001 http://www.cart.com/News/Article.asp?ID=1837 September 14, 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20030403231747/http://www.cart.com/News/Article.asp?ID=1837 April 3, 2003 Practice was held the following day, and Tony Kanaan of Mo Nunn Racing recorded the fastest lap of 34.624 seconds. Teammate Zanardi had a lap of 34.991 seconds for the second-fastest time; he was followed by Carpentier, Bräck, and Bruno Junqueira.Mo Nunn Racing Tandem Tops Speed Chart For The American Memorial Championship Auto Racing Teams September 14, 2001 http://www.cart.com/News/Article.asp?ID=1855 September 14, 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20030110135822/http://www.cart.com/News/Article.asp?ID=1855 January 10, 2003 As of September 13, Andretti was unable to travel to Germany from his Nazareth, Pennsylvania residence,Texas Motor Speedway's season falls apart https://www.newspapers.com/clip/4779086/the_indianapolis_star/ Steve Ballard The Indianapolis Star 36 Newspapers.com September 14, 2001 April 30, 2017 since his planned September 11 flight had been grounded. Andretti was able to arrange a charter flight to Germany and landed in Dresden the next day.ChampCar/CART: Lausitz Friday summary Motorsport.com September 17, 2001 http://www.motorsport.com/indycar/news/champcar-cart-lausitz-friday-summary/ August 28, 2024 April 27, 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20160427192005/http://www.motorsport.com/indycar/news/champcar-cart-lausitz-friday-summary/ dead Due to the rainout and the drivers' lack of familiarity with the EuroSpeedway, CART cancelled qualifying for the American Memorial. The starting grid was determined by drivers' order in the season points standings. The pole position went to de Ferran, though due to the lack of qualifying, he was not awarded a point in the standings as was customary for pole winners. Bräck earned second position since he held a tie-breaker over Castroneves, who started third, and Andretti began the race in fourth. Race thumb|right|upright|Kenny Bräck (pictured in 2011) won the race, which finished under caution due to Zanardi's accident. On race day, a 30-minute warm-up session was held before the event began; Kanaan again posted the fastest time (35.288 seconds), followed by Zanardi and Paul Tracy.Warm-Up Is Checkered Championship Auto Racing Teams September 15, 2001 http://www.cart.com/News/Article.asp?ID=1863 September 14, 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20030404014959/http://www.cart.com/News/Article.asp?ID=1863 April 4, 2003 The 154-lap race began at 1:56 p.m. local time; Bräck immediately took the lead, and Andretti went into second coming out of the first turn. They remained the top two in lap 20, with Dario Franchitti in third. Six laps later, Andretti passed Franchitti to reclaim second when the latter was unable to pass a slower car.Tate Mark The American Memorial – Saturday Afternoon Press Notes Championship Auto Racing Teams September 15, 2001 http://www.cart.com/News/Article.asp?ID=1885 September 14, 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20030403195658/http://www.cart.com/News/Article.asp?ID=1885 April 3, 2003 Drivers near the lead begin making their first round of pit stops on lap 35, and continued doing so through lap 40. Around that time, Bryan Herta and Cristiano da Matta experienced problems with their cars and became the first two drivers to retire from the race. By lap 60, Bräck had built a lead of more than seven seconds. Carpentier had moved into second place, and Andretti, Tagliani, and Franchitti rounded out the top five. Bräck relinquished his lead on lap 64, when he went off course while attempting to lap Junqueira. The first caution flag of the day came out, but not before Carpentier took the lead as Bräck regained control of his car and re-entered the track in second place.Oreovicz John Brack Wins CART's European Debut Championship Auto Racing Teams September 17, 2001 http://www.cart.com/News/Article.asp?ID=1880 September 14, 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20030404024444/http://www.cart.com/News/Article.asp?ID=1880 April 4, 2003 Pit stops took place during the caution, with Carpentier, Bräck, and Andretti still in the top three positions. Green flag racing resumed on lap 70, and Kanaan began moving toward the front of the field; he passed Andretti for third place on lap 73, and took second from Bräck four laps later. The second caution of the race occurred on lap 80, when Junqueira and Toranosuke Takagi collided; Takagi spun off the track, but was able to continue. Andretti and Franchitti made pit stops during the caution, and the green flag came out on lap 85. Kanaan passed Carpentier on lap 95, and Zanardi went into second shortly afterward, as Carpentier tried conserving fuel to complete the race with one fewer pit stop than the other contenders. Kanaan, Zanardi, and Bräck made pit stops from laps 105 to 113, and Andretti inherited the lead. Franchitti suffered a "mechanical problem" on lap 116 and had to retire from the race. More pit stops occurred from laps 121 to 123, and Zanardi claimed the lead over Kanaan. The two contested the lead, and Kanaan was two-tenths of a second behind Zanardi when he made a pit stop for the final time on lap 141. Bräck moved up to second, and was followed by Carpentier and Tagliani. Zanardi accident and finish Zanardi went onto pit road for his last stop on lap 142. When attempting to re-enter the track, "he seemed to accelerate too early", according to the Associated Press' recap.Zanardi loses both legs in crash CNN Sports Illustrated Associated Press September 15, 2001 http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/motorsports/news/2001/09/15/zanardi_crash_ap/ September 12, 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20090218163039/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/motorsports/news/2001/09/15/zanardi_crash_ap February 18, 2009 Zanardi could not control his vehicle's rear end,Bechtel Mark A Fateful Turn Sports Illustrated September 24, 2001 http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1023743/index.htm September 14, 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20111019234709/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1023743/index.htm October 19, 2011 and the car slid sideways onto the track, after having gone through grass. After Carpentier veered up the track to narrowly miss Zanardi's car, Tagliani drove straight into it at an estimated speed of 200 mph km/h on. The impact split Zanardi's chassis into two pieces and littered the circuit with debris. The drivers were taken by airlift to the Klinikum Berlin-Marzahn hospital. Following the accident, the last 12 laps were run under a caution flag. There was one further retirement, on lap 153; Christian Fittipaldi made a pit stop due to a fire in the back of his car and dropped out. Bräck won the race, finishing ahead of Papis and Carpentier, who were second and third respectively.Wade Stephen Brack wins crash-marred American Memorial USA Today Gannett Company Associated Press September 16, 2001 http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/sports/motor/cart/2001-09-15-germany-win.htm December 19, 2015 Andretti took fourth place, followed by Oriol Servià in fifth, Takagi in sixth, and Kanaan in seventh. De Ferran, Scott Dixon, and Tracy rounded out the top ten.American Memorial results USA Today Gannett Company September 15, 2001 http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/sports/motor/cart/2001-09-15-germany-results.htm December 19, 2015 Post-race thumb|Alex Zanardi (center, pictured in 1998) was involved in a life-threatening accident with 12 laps remaining. According to CART physician Dr. Steve Olvey, Zanardi's condition when he left the track was "extremely critical". The crash had been life-threatening. It caused a traumatic amputation of both of his legs, the entire left leg from the thigh down and the right leg from the knee down. This resulted in the loss of 75% of his blood volume; last rites were given to him afterward.https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/olympics/paralympic-sport/8973571/Alex-Zanardi-puts-life-threatening-Champ-Car-crash-behind-him-to-go-for-gold-in-hand-cycling-at-London-2012.html Alex Zanardi puts life-threatening Champ Car crash behind him to go for gold in hand cycling at London 2012 The Daily Telegraph Telegraph Media Group Cary Tom December 23, 2011 December 19, 2015Nack William After the Miracle Sports Illustrated April 15, 2002 https://www.si.com/vault/2002/04/15/321670/after-the-miracle-having-barely-survived-a-horrific-crash-in-which-he-lost-both-legs-alex-zanardi-is-attacking-rehab-with-the-same-passion-and-purpose-that-made-him-a-racing-champion April 30, 2017 Upon arriving at Klinikum Berlin-Marzahn, Zanardi underwent a three-hour surgery to clean and close the wounds. He also fractured his pelvis and suffered a concussion.McGee Ryan Alex Zanardi's story just got better ESPN September 5, 2012 http://www.espn.com/racing/story/_/id/8341623/paralympics-alex-zanardi-story-just-got-better April 30, 2017 Tagliani had a sore back as a result of the accident, and was released from the hospital after one day.Wade Stephen Tagliani still shaken by Zanardi wreck USA Today Gannett Company Associated Press September 19, 2001 http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/sports/motor/cart/2001-09-19-tagliani.htm December 19, 2015 On September 17, one of Zanardi's doctors said that his life was not in danger, although he had been placed under an induced coma in an attempt to prevent trauma shock.Kammerer Roy Zanardi out of danger; racing world shaken The Daily Courier Associated Press September 17, 2001 https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=ua4KAAAAIBAJ&sjid=LU0DAAAAIBAJ&pg=6779,2009191&dq=american+memorial 7A September 14, 2009 Doctors took Zanardi off the coma three days later,Zanardi comes out of coma Canadian Broadcasting Corporation September 20, 2001 http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/zanardi-comes-out-of-coma-1.294945 December 19, 2015 and he left Klinikum Berlin-Marzahn on October 30.Zanardi released from hospital Canadian Broadcasting Corporation October 30, 2001 http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/zanardi-released-from-hospital-1.265104 December 19, 2015 Johnny Herbert, who had previously been Zanardi's teammate in Formula One, said of the incident, "It's a big shock to everybody. You have accidents, yes, but you don't expect something this gruesome." Laz Denes, a spokesman for Zanardi's Mo Nunn Racing team, said the impact was "immense, almost harder than anything I've ever seen." According to Denes, the point of contact "was about 12 inches past the cockpit," and he called Zanardi's survival a "miracle". Tagliani commented several days after the crash that Zanardi was constantly in his thoughts. During his hospital stay, Zanardi contacted Tagliani and told him that he was not at fault. With his victory, Bräck claimed the lead in the points competition; with five races left in the season, he had 131 points. De Ferran was in second, 11 points behind Bräck, and Andretti was five points further back. Castroneves was 20 points out of the lead, in fourth place. Dixon trailed Bräck by 45 points, and was in front of Franchitti by one point. Carpentier's top-three finish left him in seventh, with 83 points, while Cristiano da Matta was five points behind him. In 2002, the German 500 was not held after the EuroSpeedway filed for insolvency.CART's German 500 canceled CNN Sports Illustrated Associated Press July 16, 2002 http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/motorsports/news/2002/07/16/cart_germany_ap/ November 16, 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20040824223246/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/motorsports/news/2002/07/16/cart_germany_ap/ August 24, 2004 The race returned to EuroSpeedway the following year, as did Zanardi, who ran 13 demonstration laps to represent those that he never completed in 2001.Wade Stephen Zanardi finishes his 13 laps after 20-month 'pit-stop' USA Today Associated Press May 11, 2003 http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/sports/motor/cart/2003-05-11-zanardi_x.htm December 19, 2015 Classification Race + Race results Pos Position No. Car number Driver Team Laps Laps completed Time/retired Grid Final starting position Points 1 8 Kenny Bräck SwedenTeam Rahal 154 01 2:00:20.940 2 21 2 7Max Papis ItalyTeam Rahal 154 02 +0.154 16 16 3 32Patrick Carpentier CanadaForsythe Racing 154 03 +2.804 9 14 4 39Michael Andretti USTeam Motorola 154 04 +4.699 4 12 5 22Oriol Servià SpainSigma Autosport 154 05 +5.225 20 10 6 5Toranosuke Takagi JapanWalker Racing 154 06 +6.410 26 8 7 55Tony Kanaan BrazilMo Nunn Racing 154 07 +6.647 10 6 8 1Gil de Ferran BrazilTeam Penske 154 08 +9.262 1 5 9 18Scott Dixon New ZealandPacWest Racing 154 09 +9.893 6 4 10 26Paul Tracy CanadaTeam Green 154 10 +10.324 11 3 11 4Bruno Junqueira BrazilChip Ganassi Racing 154 11 +12.987 15 2 12 3Hélio Castroneves BrazilTeam Penske 154 12 +14.929 3 1 13 19Townsend Bell USPatrick Racing 154 13 +18.469 27 — 14 12Memo Gidley USChip Ganassi Racing 153 14 +1 lap 18 — 15 40Jimmy Vasser USPatrick Racing 153 15 +1 lap 14 — 16 17Maurício Gugelmin BrazilPacWest Racing 152 16 +2 laps 23 — 17 16Michel Jourdain Jr. MexicoBettenhausen Racing 151 17 +3 laps 21 — 18 25Max Wilson racing driver BrazilArciero-Blair Racing 149 18 +5 laps 24 — 19 11Christian Fittipaldi BrazilNewman-Haas Racing 148 19 Engine 12 — 20 66Alex Zanardi ItalyMo Nunn Racing 142 20 Collision 22 — 21 33Alex Tagliani CanadaForsythe Racing 142 21 Collision 13 — 22 52Shinji Nakano JapanFernández Racing 142 22 Electrical 25 — 23 20Roberto Moreno BrazilPatrick Racing 130 23 Engine 8 — 24 51Adrián Fernández MexicoFernandez Racing 120 24 Engine 17 — 25 27Dario Franchitti UKTeam Green 115 25 Engine 5 — 26 6Cristiano da Matta BrazilNewman-Haas Racing 37 26 Gearbox 7 — 27 77Bryan Herta USForsythe Racing 31 27 Electrical 19 —Sources:Results: 2001 The American Memorial Championship Auto Racing Teams http://www.cart.com/Results/SessionResults.asp?ID=466 November 2, 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20030504134308/http://www.cart.com/Results/SessionResults.asp?ID=466 May 4, 20032001 Lausitz Champ Cars Motor Sport http://www.motorsportmagazine.com/database/races/4777-2001-lausitz-champ-cars June 7, 2016Germany Race Report – 2001 Honda September 15, 2001 https://hondanews.com/releases/germany-race-report-2001?page_size=100&page=53 June 30, 20192001 The American Memorial Racing-Reference https://www.racing-reference.info/race/2001_The_American_Memorial/R October 26, 2019 Standings after the race + Drivers' Championship standings Rank +/– Driver Points 1 10px 2Kenny Bräck Sweden131 2 10px 1Gil de Ferran Brazil120 3 10px 1Michael Andretti US115 4 10px 2Hélio Castroneves Brazil111 5 10px 1Scott Dixon New Zealand86Sources:The American Memorial 500 Results CNN Sports Illustrated September 15, 2001 http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/motorsports/news/2001/09/15/cart_results_ap/ November 15, 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20011108171921/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/motorsports/news/2001/09/15/cart_results_ap/ November 8, 2001ChampCar/CART: Standings after Vancouver Motorsport.com September 3, 2001 http://www.motorsport.com/indycar/news/champcar-cart-standings-after-vancouver-1/?dt_start=2001-09-03&dt_end=2001-09-03&s=1 August 28, 2024 August 14, 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20160814001421/http://www.motorsport.com/indycar/news/champcar-cart-standings-after-vancouver-1/?dt_start=2001-09-03&dt_end=2001-09-03&s=1 dead + Constructors' standings Rank +/– Constructor Points 1 10pxReynard UK286 2 10pxLola UK244Sources: + Manufacturers' standings Rank +/– Manufacturer Points 1 10pxHonda Japan257 2 10px 1Ford Cosworth UK 224 3 10px 1Toyota Japan222Sources: Note: Only the top five positions are included for the drivers' standings. References 2 2001 American Memorial 2001 2001 Molson Indy Vancouver 2001 Rockingham 500 N/A 2003 German 500 External links Results from Champ Car website (through Internet Archive) American Memorial, 2001 American Memorial American Memorial