Race By Race - Champ Car World Series Driver and Team Changes Expected for 2005

Race By Race Race By Race

2005 Champ Car Teams

Tracking the "Silly Season" for the Champ Car World Series.

Who will be driving where and with what equipment next season?

Currently there are 20 confirmed seats and 0 more that are likely to be confirmed.

Confirmed seats are shown in bold and unknowns have question marks.

All teams will be running Cosworth engines in 2005.

If you have any insider information to share, please email us!

Also, see our IndyCar and Formula One silly season pages.

Last updated Tuesday, May 27, 2008.

Team

Driver 1

Driver 2

Driver 3

Chassis

Sponsors

~~Condor Motorsports~~

July 10: A rumor is doing the rounds that former Toyota Atlantic team Condor Motorsports is aiming to compete in Champ Car in 2005. They last raced in 2003.

Dale Coyne Racing

Tarso Marques
Michael Valiante
Oriol Servia

Ricardo Sperafico
~~Gaston Mazzacane~~
~~Tonis Kasemets~~
~~Michael Keohane~~
~~Gualter Salles~~
~~Marcus Marshall~~
~~Mario Haberfeld~~
~~Björn Wirdheim~~
~~Bryan Sellers~~
~~Alex Figge~~
~~Jarek Janis~~

Lola

American Medical Response
~~yokeTV.com~~

June 22: Tarso Marques will return to the #19 seat for this weekend's Cleveland race. Michael Valiante may be back later.

June 9: Oriol Servia will remain at Newman/Haas, filling in for the injured Bruno Juqueira. Dale Coyne is testing Michael Valiante as a potential replacement at Portland International Raceway on Wednesday.

June 1: With Oriol Servia filling in for the injured Bruno Junqueira at Milwaukee, Dale Coyne has to scramble to find a driver with oval experience to pilot the #19 car. If Servia remains with Newman/Haas, finding street and road course drivers should be an easier prospect, especially if they bring their checkbooks.

April 6: Ricardo Sperafico tells Brazilian racing site Super Licença that he concluded his contract negotiations today to run the whole season with Dale Coyne and he is on his way to Long Beach.

April 6: Dale Coyne tells Autosport to expect a surprise for the second seat, but goes on to say Michael Valiante would be an appealing choice. He also said he had had no contact with Rodolfo Lavín or Jos Verstappen.

April 5: Mario Haberfeld says on his personal web site that he will sit out the 2005 season, rather than spend his substantial funding on a ride with Coyne.

April 1: Dale Coyne Racing has confirmed Oriol Servia, who gets the team's first listing on the Champ Car web site. The Indianapolis Star tips Gaston Mazzacane for the second seat.

March 30: Robin Miller at speedtv.com lends credence to the rumor that Björn Wirdheim's backer (his father) was not impressed at Sebring by the lack of manpower and budget at Coyne, so is pursuing a ride with HVM.

March 29: While Oriol Servia is expected to be in one car at Long Beach, Autosport says Björn Wirdheim will announce a deal with another team this week that should raise some eyebrows.

March 22: Rumor has Oriol Servia and Björn Wirdheim testing for Coyne at Sebring this week. Meanwhile, Bryan Sellers has signed to drive an Esperante for the factory Panoz squad in the ALMS.

March 14: Although Oriol Servia has not been officially announced, he has not been testing elsewhere. Robin Miller says he is likely to return and adds one of the Sperafico family to the mix.

January 26: Autosport adds Alex Figge to the list of potential Coyne drivers. With no announcement of an Argentine race in 2005, Gaston Mazzacane may not be so certain of a ride.

December 14: Estonian driver Tonis Kasemets, who competed in Toyota Atlantic this year, is testing for Coyne at Sebring today and tomorrow.

December 8: Michael Valiante, Australian F3 driver Marcus Marshall and Atlantic driver Bryan Sellers tested for the team at Sebring last week. What is behind the team testing additional drivers? Could the seats for Servia and Mazzacane not be as secure as we believed? Or is a third car a possibility? Or is Dale Coyne helping out some potential new teams? Or are the drivers paying for the test?

November 4: Jarek Janis only lasted one race in the AMR car. We hear tales that he accused Dale Coyne of not giving him the best equipment, so that should end any chance of him driving for the team in 2005. Tarso Marques returns in Mexico for the final race of this season.

October 18: Dale Coyne has announced that Gaston Mazzacane will compete for the team for the entire 2005 season, but will sit out the remaining two races. There is speculation that Jarek Janis will drive the second car in Surfer's Paradise. The press release is worded ambiguously (deliberately?) and some have taken it to mean that the team will run three cars in 2005. More likely, the team will keep Oriel Servia with AMR sponsorship, and run Mazzacane with Argentine sponsorship (linked to a 2005 race there) in the second car. Jarek Janis will hope to do well enough at Surfer's to attract another team for next year.

October 8: AutoRacing1.com reports that Czech driver Jarek Janis will test for Coyne this weekend at Putnam Park. Janis is a former F3000 driver now racing in DTM.

September 8: YokeTV.com has folded.

July 10: Oriol Servia is starting to pull Coyne up from the bottom of the results, so he stands a good chance to retain his seat if sponsorship can be found. The second seat will go to the highest bidder.

~~Dyson Racing~~

~~Chris Dyson~~

~~Lola~~

~~Thetford~~
~~Norcold~~

July 16: We tracked down Dyson Racing at Infineon Raceway today and heard that Chris Dyson is using his Toyota Atlanta racing as a learning experience to improve his sports car skills. It is rare to push a sports car 100% all the time, as you do in competitive open wheel cars. Chris will run further Atlantic races this year and hopes to run more in 2005, as far as his schedule will allow. There are no plans to field a Champ Car entry.

~~Fittipaldi Racing~~

~~Jos Verstappen~~
~~Joao Paulo De Oliveira~~
~~Ricardo Zonta~~

~~Lola~~

April 5: No sign of this team appearing at Long Beach. Meanwhile, Emerson Fittipaldi has been busy elsewhere.

Forsythe Racing

Paul Tracy

Mario Domínguez

Rodolfo Lavín?
Jos Verstappen?
David Martinez?
~~Andreas Wirth~~
~~Björn Wirdheim~~
~~Andrew Ranger~~
~~Alex Tagliani~~
~~Alex Figge~~
~~Ryan Hunter-Reay~~
~~Mathias Lauda~~
~~Jarek Janis~~
~~Tomas Enge~~
~~Jon Fogarty~~
~~Patrick Carpentier~~

Lola

Indeck
Corona?
Procter & Gamble?
Pizza Hut?
HSBC?

March 30: Forsythe has announced Mario Dominguez joining the team, to drive the #7 Indeck Lola-Ford. No mention of Corona or a third car.

March 27: Several sources, including Robin Miller, are suggesting Mario Domínguez may move from HVM to Forsythe. One theory is that he will be traded with Rodolfo Lavín, because with Domínguez expected to join the Midland F1 team next year and Herdez gone as sponsor, HVM needs a long-term relationship with a Mexican driver to attract new Mexican sponsors (such as Corona). Another possibility is that Forsythe needs a bigger name to keep the Corona sponsorship, and HVM is happy to trade Domínguez for financial assistance towards running two cars.

March 23: Both Paul Tracy and Rodolfo Lavín are testing for Forsythe at Sebring this week. No sign of a third car.

March 18: Like we said, no Tagliani for Forsythe - he has signed to Walker. Now the questions remain: is Björn Wirdheim set to join Paul Tracy and will Roberto Lavín be back with his Corona sponsorship?

March 16: Rumors link Alex Tagliani with Forsythe. But if Gerry Forsythe and Kevin Kalkhoven are funding Ryan Hunter-Reay's drive, why didn't they place him with Forsythe if the seat was available? Shuffling RHR and Tag among the Champ Car owners' own teams doesn't make sense!

March 14: We saw Rodolfo Lavín wearing his Corona Forsythe uniform in San Jose on January 6 (see Gallery). With no official announcement of the team line-up, rumors are starting to fly. Robin Miller suggests Lavín could even move to HVM if he still has his Corona sponsorship. We think Miller is having some fun at the expense of some more gullible web sites!

March 1: Matthias Lauda also drops out of the running for a Champ Car seat with the announcement that he will race in Europe for the Coloni GP2 team.

February 22: Jarek Janis has signed to drive for a Japanese Formula Nippon team this year.

February 14: We hear Andrew Ranger is in negotiations with Forsythe.

January 26: Rumors abound that Jos Verstappen will be at the Sebring test in early February. In previous years, this has been a publicity exercise in an attempt to secure a Formula One ride, but after sitting out last season, could this year be for real? Several teams have been mentioned, including Forsythe, but we doubt he will test for more than one.

January 11: Autosport reports that Mathias Lauda, son of three-times Formula One world champion Niki Lauda, is looking for a Champ Car ride after plans to join a new all-Austrian team in Formula Superfund have fallen apart. His manager, brother Lukas Lauda, has been in Chicago this week negotiating to run Mathias in a fourth Forsythe entry. If he has the money, this could well happen, but Lukas might be wise to wait until the deal is done before talking to the press.

December 8: Forsythe ended up testing Andrew Ranger, Alex Figge, Andreas Wirth and Jarek Janis at Sebring last week. No sign of Tomas Enge, who seems likely to remain with Patrick's IndyCar team. Wirth's test was primarily a reward for winning the US Formula BMW championship.

November 23: Autoracing1 reports that Forsythe will test four drivers at Sebring next week, rumored to be Andrew Ranger, Tomas Enge, Alex Figge and an un-named Polish driver (maybe really Czech driver Jarek Janis?) Jon Fogarty is not included as he is believed to be signed to the Flying Lizard ALMS team for 2005.

November 19: Canadian sports network RDS fingers Andrew Ranger as a potential replacement for Patrick Carpentier in the third Forsythe car.

November 10: A Forsythe Racing press release says Patrick Carpentier has signed to drive for Cheever Racing in the IRL.

November 7: Jerry Forsythe tells David Phillips that Rodolfo Lavín will be back alongside Paul Tracy, together with his Corona sponsorship. The team is looking at a couple of young Czech drivers, presumably including Jarek Janis, and also will be testing Mexican driver David Martinez. As many as four cars are possible!

October 18: The Forsythe team will give Toyota Atlantic champion Jon Fogarty a test in a Champ Car next month. We think this has more to do with winning his championship than there being a ride for him at Forsythe, but other sources are saying the team could run more than two cars next year. That would need a new sponsor to step forward. Meanwhile, Patrick Carpentier's rumored IRL deal at Cheever Racing is said to have fallen through.

September 26: Patrick Carpentier announces he will be joining Eddie Cheever's IndyCar team for 2005. Paul Tracy, Jimmy Vasser and others think he must be mad!

September 10: At the provisional qualifying press conference at Laguna Seca Patrick Carpentier said he has yet to make his decision on where to race next season. He has some more talking to do with Gerry Forsythe. Of course, he may be waiting until he is not at an official Champ Car event.

August 30: Patrick Carpentier puts himself in play by saying he has received several offers from IndyCar teams for next year, but no prospects other than ride-buys in Champ Car. Autosport believes he could be a candidate for third cars at Penske and Ganassi. He says he will make a decision by Laguna Seca.

August 23: Robin Miller says he has talked to Paul Tracy about rumors of him replacing Robby Gordon at Richard Childress Racing in Nextel Cup next year. Paul says he came to an agreement with Forsythe about staying with the Champ Car team a couple of weeks ago.

July 25: Paul Tracy says he will be back in a Champ Car next year.

July 10: Forsythe is part of the Champ Car ownership group, so his team will be back. If plans are on track, there should be more teams coming and no need to fund three cars again. The team desperately need a major new Canadian sponsor, but they will fight to retain Paul Tracy whatever happens, and even if he does not win the 2004 championship. If Corona stays, they will want a Mexican driver.

HVM

Björn Wirdheim
~~Mario Domínguez~~

Ronnie Bremer
~~Rodolfo Lavín~~
~~Roberto González~~
~~Jos Verstappen~~
~~David Martinez~~
~~Memo Rojas~~
~~Homero Richards~~
~~Antonio Pérez-Garibay~~
~~Rafael Martinez~~
~~Alex Tagliani~~
~~Ryan Hunter-Reay~~
~~Michel Jourdain Jr.~~
~~Justin Wilson~~

Lola

Tecate?
Nextel (Mexico)?
Gigante?
Office Depot?
Herdez?
~~Corona~~

April 4: HVM has confirmed Björn Wirdheim and Ronnie Bremer as its drivers for 2005.

March 31: Björn Wirdheim tells Autosport he has signed to race for HVM and is flying to the team's base in Indianapolis for final preparations.

March 30: After testing with Dale Coyne, Björn Wirdheim was not impressed with that team's manpower and budget. Robin Miller believes Wirdheim is now close to securing a seat at HVM. Team manager Keith Wiggins confirms that Mario Dominguez will move to Forsythe and tells Miller that Rodolfo Lavín and Ronnie Bremer are also in the frame at HVM, but the team is still scrambling to make sure they have the funding to run two cars.

March 23: Joining Mario Dominguez in testing for HVM at Sebring this week are Jos Verstappen, Roberto González and Ronnie Bremer.

March 21: Jos Verstappen had a seat fitting for the Hola Viva Mexico team today in advance of testing at Sebring this Wednesday and Thursday. In the past we have taken Jos Verstappen rumors with a pinch of salt, but this appears to be the real deal!

March 18: Alex Tagliani did indeed go to Walker.

March 16: HVM team manager Keith Wiggins tells the Toronto Star that he has not spoken to Alex Tagliani or his agent - but would be welcome if he brought sponsorship.

March 14: Robin Miller believes Alex Tagliani is more likely to end up at Walker Racing. If Roberto González still has his Nextel sponsorship, he could bring it to HVM.

March 11: If there is no room for him at Rocketsports, Alex Tagliani says he will look to HVM for his 2005 race seat. He is currently finalizing his personal sponsorship package, which should ensure him a ride with one of the teams.

March 8: Alex Figge is competing for Pacific Coast Motorsports in the ALMS.

January 25: With the sale of the Jordan F1 team to Midland Group, Autosport reports that Mario Domínguez's manager is working to get him a seat in 2005. Mario still has a contract to race for HVM and his move to Midland was planned to coincide with a new Mexican F1 race in 2006.

January 21: Herdez Competition confirms that Mario Domínguez will continue to race for the team and makes its name change to HVM official in a press release, following the departure of Herdez. New sponsorship is being finalized, so we will see if the team has a more colorful name when racing begins.

January 18: In an interview with A Toda Makina, Mario Domínguez tells us competition for the second seat is between David Martinez, Homero Richards, Memo Rojas, Robert González and possibly Antonio Pérez-Garibay.

January 15: Autoracing1 reports that David Martinez will test for the team at Sebring the first week in February.

January 6: Michel Jourdain Jr. has signed to race in the NASCAR Busch series for PPC Racing.

December 24: Rumors emanating from South of the Border say the team has signed giant Mexican oil company Pemex as title sponsor. Also, that Michel Jourdain Jr. is close to being signed.

November 22: Justin Wilson has signed to RuSport. Does this leave the door open for Michel Jourdain Jr. to bring new Mexican sponsorship?

November 8: David Phillips of Racer magazine says Justin Wilson could move to Herdez or RuSport if Conquest cannot find the funds to keep him. Robin Miller says Ryan Hunter-Reay is being courted by Chip Ganassi for his IndyCar squad, while TSN reports team manager Keith Wiggins as saying "money issues" could affect Ryan's return to the team. Roberto González is also though to be in the frame here, bringing his Mexican Nextel sponsorship as Herdez reduces its backing.

November 7: Mexican newspaper Reforma is reporting that the proposed new Formula One team Midland F1 has approached Mario Domínguez to help develop their Dallara chassis in 2005 and race for the team in 2006. He still has a year left on his Herdez contract - could he do both next year?

July 28: Rumors persist that Herdez will scale back its involvement in the team due to senior management changes in the food group. Autosport suggests Keith Wiggins could revive the name of his old F1 team, Pacific.

July 10: 2004 has been another year of growth and improving results. Both drivers could be retained for 2005.

~~Hemelgarn Racing~~

~~Delta Faucet~~

July 10: Champ Car courted this IRL team in 2004 when it was unable to raise the funds for a full season. This may have helped sway support from Tony George for an Indy 500 field-filler, but if the team was coming to Champ Car, it would have happened by now.

Jensen MotorSport

Fabrizio Del Monte
Michael Valiante?
~~Rodolfo Lavín~~
~~Christian Fittipaldi~~
~~Memo Gidley~~
~~Ryan Dalziel~~
~~Adam Pecorari~~

Lola

Konica Minolta
Starwood?

May 26: Eric Jensen tells the Champ Car web site that he is reverting to his original plan of running just the Canadian races. He still has Konica Minolta sponsorship on board, but additional funding promised for Long Beach onwards failed to come through.

April 27: Autosport says Eric Jensen is considering his options for the remainder of 2005, feeling a more experienced driver may help his start-up team come together more quickly. He may replace Fabrizio Del Monte with Rodolfo Lavín for the Mexican races, and has Christian Fittipaldi in mind for the remainder of the season. Fittipaldi, who has commitments in Grand-Am and Brazilian stock cars, says he has not been contacted, but would love to do it when the calendar allows.

April 7: Italian driver Fabrizio Del Monte flew into Long Beach today to take up his seat with Jensen Motorsport. He thinks it's for the whole season; others are suggesting it's a one-race deal.

April 6: Eric Jensen tells Autosport that he has spoken to Memo Gidley, and he is a possibility for Long Beach, but not the long term. Michael Valiante is still a possibility.

April 5: Eric Jensen tells the Toronto Sun that he will announce his driver on Thursday in Long Beach. He says he has not spoken to Michael Valiante for at least two weeks. According to rumors, the driver for the first race of the season may be a one-off deal, with Memo Gidley a possibility.

March 29: Eric Jensen is reported to have postponed this week's driver announcement while some "material issues" are finalized. Michael Valiante is still tipped for the seat.

March 26: Robin Miller adds Ryan Dalziel to the list of potential drivers, despite the fact that Dalziel has been driving for Pacific Coast Motorsports in the ALMS.

March 23: Autosport tips Michael Valiante for the Jensen seat.

March 19: Jensen Motorsports announces on its web site that it plans to run a single car for the whole 2005 Champ Car season. It expects to reveal its driver at a press event in Toronto on March 30 and to test April 1 to 3, prior to the Grand Prix of Long Beach.

November 6: This Canadian Toyota Atlantic and Formula BMW team announces on its web site that it plans to run in five Champ Car races in 2005. The Toronto Star expands on this with news that owner Eric Jensen intends to run one car in four Canadian races and one US race, probably the Grand Prix of Silicon Valley. He hopes to find a Canadian driver for the seat, but will test several drivers and take the best available.

September 12: It is Silly Season and what could be sillier than other sites picking up on our little joke and suggesting that Eric Jensen would drive for his own team if they move to Champ Cars? Admirably, he stepped aside at Montreal and Laguna Seca to work with promising young driver Adam Pecorari. It is probably at least another year before either team or Pecorari are ready for Champ Car, but you never know...

July 10: The long term objective for the team has been to move up from Toyota Atlantic to Champ Cars. Could this be the year?

~~Leberle~~

April 5: It is no surprise that nothing has materialized.

Mi-Jack Conquest Racing

Nelson Philippe
~~Justin Wilson~~

Andrew Ranger
~~Matt Halliday~~
~~Bruce Jouanny~~
~~Ricardo Sperafico~~
~~Alex Sperafico~~
~~Zsolt Baumgartner~~
~~Jos Verstappen~~
~~Bas Leinders~~
~~Ryan Hunter-Reay~~
~~Alex Figge~~
~~Romain Dumas~~
~~Patrick Carpentier~~

Lola
~~Reynard~~

Mi-Jack
LeasePlan

March 21: 18-year-old Canadian Andrew Ranger has been confirmed for the second seat alongside Nelson Philippe, also 18, at Mi-Jack Conquest.

March 8: Andrew Ranger is indeed testing for Conquest on the California Road Course this week.

March 3: The Journal de Montréal reports that Andrew Ranger will test for Conquest on the California Speedway road course next week.

February 4: Conquest announced today in a teleconference from Sebring that Nelson Philippe will return to the team for 2005. He will race the primary car, engineered by Don Bricker, who worked with Justin Wilson last season. Bruce Ashmore, former chief designer at Lola, who has since worked at Player's Forsythe and Reynard North America, has joined as technical director. The team will be testing Bruce Jouanny, Matt Halliday and Alex Figge this weekend, and has additional time lined up at Homestead in mid-February. A decision on the second driver is expected in about three weeks, and a major new sponsor is also in the works.

January 31: Robin Miller reports on speedtv.com that Alex Figge and Bruce Jouanny will join Matt Halliday this week in testing for the second Conquest seat.

January 19: The New Zealand Herald reports that former Toyota Atlantic driver Matt Halliday from Auckland will test for Conquest at Sebring February 4 and 5.

January 17: Romain Dumas, talking to a French radio station, says he will return to Alex Job Racing in the ALMS for 2005.

December 23: Brazilian driver Ricardo Sperafico joined Romain Dumas in testing for the team this week. Ricardo finished second in the 2003 European F3000 championship. He is cousin to Alex Sperafico, who raced for Bachelart in the first half of the 2004 season.

December 17: Speedtv.com says French driver Romain Dumas, who competed in the ALMS in 2004, will test for Conquest at Sebring starting on Wednesday.

November 23: TSN says there are hopes that Mario Haberfeld can be enticed back, now the team has Lolas.

November 22: Justin Wilson has signed to RuSport for 2005.

September 1: Autosport quotes Bas Leinders as saying if he cannot get a ride in F1 next season, he will go to fellow Belgian Eric Bachelart's Conquest Racing. Wishful thinking?

August 29: Nelson Philippe's arrival has been followed up with a new Lola. Expect all races to be in Lolas from now on.

August 15: Nelson Philippe has replaced Alex Sperafico after leaving Rocketsports over a contract dispute following Cleveland. He brings LeasePlan sponsorship and is likely to carry over to 2005.

July 10: Justin Wilson is adapting to Champ Cars well. If they can keep him, they could be competing for the championship in 2005. If extra sponsorship comes with good results, they could afford a few more Lola chassis and a second top driver. More likely we will see another pay driver, possibly Nelson Philippe, who originally tested for the team last year and could even take the seat from Alex Sperafico this season.

~~Mo Nunn Racing~~

~~Lola~~

April 5: Mo Nunn has been busy putting together an Indy 500 entry for Adrián Fernández.

Newman/Haas Racing

Sébastien Bourdais

Oriol Servia
Bruno Junqueira
~~Ricardo Zonta~~
~~Kenny Bräck~~
~~Ryan Hunter-Reay~~
~~Mario Haberfeld~~
~~Memo Gidley~~
~~Buddy Lazier~~
~~Michel Jourdain Jr.~~
~~Patrick Carpentier~~
~~A.J. Foyt IV~~

~~Antonio Pizzonia~~
~~Cristiano da Matta~~

Lola

McDonald's
PacifiCare
Centrix Financial

June 9: Oriol Servia will continue to sit in for the injured Bruno Junqueira. Toyota F1 test driver Ricardo Zonta was also considered for the role.

June 1: Oriol Servia will take Bruno Junqueira's seat, at least for Milwaukee. After that, we shall see...

June 1: Dr. Terry Trammell, who is treating Bruno Junqueira at Methodist hospital in Indianapolis, says the driver is looking at a six month recovery period. Robin Miller gives some suggestions for potential replacements in an article at speedtv.com. Ryan Hunter-Reay has been the subject of discussions for the Milwaukee race, but Paul Gentilozzi does not want to give him up for just a single race. (As Newman/Haas absorbs the implications of Bruno's long term absence, they may be more inclined to take Ryan.) Michel Jourdain Jr. has a NASCAR commitment at the same time as the Milwaukee race. Memo Gidley has no conflict this weekend, but would for races later in the season. Miller thinks Buddy Lazier would be a good fit for Milwaukee, based on his performance in the Indy 500 and Carl Haas' interest several seasons ago. Patrick Carpentier's contract counts him out as a substitute for Milwaukee. Mario Haberfeld is probably the most qualified driver with no conflicts for the season.

May 29: Bruno Junqueira suffered two fractures to his spine in the accident that put him out of the Indy 500 today. The current leader in Champ Car points will miss several races while he recovers. We expect much speculation over the next few days about who will substitute for him starting next weekend at Milwaukee.

February 22: Autosport says Antonio Pizzonia's hopes of a Champ Car ride this season have been dashed, because the Williams F1 team will not release him from his contractual commitments.

February 19: Rumors continue that Antonio Pizzonia is looking for a Champ Car ride and Newman/Haas is considering running a third car for him. There are suggestions of insufficient space in the NHR race shop, but the team did succeed in running an extra car for Bruno Junqueira in the Indianapolis 500 last year. Talking to Autosport, Pizzonia says there are possibilities with other teams too.

February 7: Speedtv.com carries the unlikely suggestion that Antonio Pizzonia, disappointed at his rejection for a Williams F1 race seat, will run in a third Newman/Haas car with sponsorship from Brazilian oil company Petrobras.

February 1: Cristiano da Matta has signed to PKV Racing.

October 11: Carl Haas confirms he has Bruno and Sébastien under contract for 2005 in an interview with Gordon Kirby posted to the Champ Car Web site. He says he can run a third car for Cristiano da Matta too, if Shorty wants to return.

August 27: Paul Newman and Carl Haas participated in today's announcement of a marketing agreement between McDonalds and Champ Car. Haas appears to have rejected the IRL overtures and to be in line with Newman. Three cars are possible next year, especially if Sébastien Bourdais stays and Cristiano da Matta returns.

August 9: Things are coming to a head between Carl Haas and Paul Newman. Carl has been offered $16 million or more to move from Champ Car to the IRL, plus Lola being added as a chassis supplier. Running in both series is not permitted by the deal.

August 7: Cristiano da Matta's manager was spotted at Road America this weekend.

August 5: Cristiano da Matta has been replaced by Ricardo Zonta at the Toyota F1 squad, but he will stay with the team as a backup driver for the remainder of the season.

July 28: Sébastien's manager, David Sears, says he is working to get him an F1 test before the end of the year.

July 10: While there is gossip in the F1 paddock that Sébastien Bourdais will be there next season, it is far more likely that he will be in Champ Car still with Newman/Haas. Cristiano da Matta's stint in F1 is probably over, and Carl Haas still has a contact option with him, so he is expected to return. Where does that leave Bruno? In the IRL with one of two team cars there, according to Robin Miller.

PKV Racing

Jimmy Vasser

Cristiano da Matta
~~Roberto González~~
~~Björn Wirdheim~~
~~Ryan Dalziel~~
~~Homero Richards~~
~~David Besnard~~
~~Josh Hunt~~

Jorge Goeters

Lola

Bell Micro
Gulfstream
Vista Broadband Networks
KPLJ Ventures
Puma?
Optium?
~~Nextel (Mexico)~~

May 16: PKV Racing announces it will run Jorge Goeters in a third car at this weekend's Monterrey, Mexico race. Goeters became a national hero when he put his car on pole for the Mexico City NASCAR Busch race in March.

April 4: PKVR announces it is employing Ryan Dalziel as a consultant, keeping him in the fold for future opportunities.

March 10: Björn Wirdheim tells Autosport he is close to signing a deal to race in Champ Car, but no word on the team. He is believed to have been the main choice for the PKV Racing seat until former champion Cristiano da Matta came on the market. A third car is a possibility, but he is more likely destined for another team.

February 9: Autosport reports that Ryan Dalziel has signed to drive a Corvette in the ALMS with Pacific Coast Motorsports.

February 2: Ryan Dalziel tells Autosport that, with da Matta signing to PKVR, his hopes of a Champ Car ride this year are dead in the water. He is expected to sign to an ALMS team.

February 1: Cristiano da Matta has been confirmed as pilot of the second PKVR car. What of Björn Wirdheim and Ryan Dalziel? Chances of a third car are slim.

January 29: PKVR will announce its second driver in a conference call on Tuesday, February 1. That is several days before it has an opportunity to test Björn Wirdheim and Ryan Dalziel again at Sebring, so this is likely to be Cristiano da Matta joining the team.

January 19: In an interview with Gordon Kirby, Jim McGee says the team would like to run Cristiano da Matta, if Newman/Haas is unable to fund a third car for him. PKVR will be testing Björn Wirdheim and Ryan Dalziel again at Sebring over February 4 to 6. A decision on the second driver is expected soon after.

January 11: Speedtv.com believes Ryan Dalziel is still trying to put together a deal with PKVR.

November 7: David Phillips says PKVR will test Björn Wirdheim and Ryan Dalziel at Barber Motorsports Park in Alabama next week.

November 3: Swedish driver Björn Wirdheim will test for PKV Racing later in the month. He tested for Patrick Racing under the guidance of team manager Jim McGee at the end of last season, but chose to join the Jaguar F1 team as a test driver. PKVR is attempting to lure Jim McGee to the team and a seat for the former F3000 champion could be part of the attraction. Roberto González is said to be shopping his Nextel sponsorship to other teams.

September 27: Walker Racing will field the car for David Besnard at Surfer's Paradise, as part of the deal brokered by Kevin Kalkhoven and Craig Gore.

September 3: An announcement from Australia says Josh Hunt has traded in his promise of a ride in a third PKV Racing car at Surfer's Paradise for another year of sponsorship in Toyota Atlantic. Instead V8 Supercup star and Ford driver David Besnard will have the seat. He will fly to the USA for a test with the team. Of course, this is unlikely to lead to a permanent ride with the team in 2005.

August 5: Homero Richards expects to test for the team next month. This could be in preparation for a run in a third car in Mexico City this year, in the same way that PKV has said it will run Josh Hunt at Surfer's Paradise.

July 10: Now Jimmy Vasser is nominally a part-owner of this team he is assured a ride. Roberto González brings the Mexican sponsorship.

~~Prost~~

July 5: There is a rumor that former F1 champion and team owner Alain Prost plans to start a Champ Car team for 2005. There are reasons why this is called the Silly Season.

~~Rahal-Letterman Racing~~

~~Danica Patrick~~

~~Lola~~

~~Argent Mortgage~~

September 13: Team manager Scott Roembke has revealed some of the team's plans for Danica Patrick in an IndyCar. Rahal will not be back.

Rocketsports

Ryan Hunter-Reay

Timo Glock
~~Alex Tagliani~~
~~Guy Smith~~
~~Jos Verstappen~~
~~Memo Gidley~~
~~Michael Valiante~~
~~Nelson Philippe~~

Lola

DHL Global
Johnson Controls
~~LeasePlan~~

April 2: Rocketsports confirms Timo Glock will join with sponsorship from DHL Global.

March 31: Timo Glock announces on his web site that his deal with Rocketsports is done. He is also listed for the #8 car on the Champ Car web site.

March 18: Alex Tagliani has been snapped up by Walker Racing. Stand by for the announcement of Timo Glock to join Ryan Hunter-Reay at Rocketsports.

March 14: Quoting Alex Tagliani at speedtv.com, Robin Miller says Tag is out at Rocketsports. A seat with another team is almost certain, because he brings some of his own sponsorship, including Saputo, and he is a big draw at the Canadian races. Miller tips Walker Racing as most likely.

March 11: Alex Tagliani tells Radio Canada that his seat at Rocketsports is not as safe as he expected. With Ryan Hunter-Reay signed and Timo Glock close to a deal that brings $4 million, owner Paul Gentilozzi may not have room for Tag. A third car may not be an option and Tag says his next best option after Rocketsports is the still open seat at HVM.

March 8: Rocketsports has announced Ryan Hunter-Reay as driver of its second car. The team is testing RHR and Formula One refugee Timo Glock on the California Speedway road course this week in preparation for Long Beach. A third car for Timo Glock is still a strong possibility.

March 2: Autosport says Timo Glock is still being considered for a seat at Rocketsports. He has personal sponsorship from Deutsche Post, which owns DHL - currently in the middle of a big US campaign to associate itself as a credible competitor to FedEx and UPS.

February 23: Robin Miller believes Rocketsports will run three cars - for Alex Tagliani, Ryan Hunter-Reay and Timo Glock.

February 4: Timo Glock tested for Rocketsports at Sebring today. Ryan Hunter-Reay will have his turn tomorrow.

February 2: Autosport says F1 refugee Timo Glock will test for Rocketsports at Sebring this week.

November 30: Ryan Hunter-Reay has turned down an offer to test for Chip Ganassi's IndyCar squad, saying he wants to stay in Champ Car. Rocketsports could be where he is headed, given his issues at Herdez.

November 13: Alex Tagliani has been re-signed with a three-year contract.

October 29: Memo Gidley will be racing in a Grand Am Daytona prototype for Finlay Motorsports next season.

September 10: Rocketsports is believed to be working on a full program for Memo Gidley in 2005, once his commitments in the Speed World Challenge are over.

August 2: Robin Miller says British driver Guy Smith will take over the second seat from Road America because Memo has other commitments. They must both be in the frame for driving for the team next year.

July 23: Paul Gentilozzi says there is no way he is going to run a driver, like Michael Valiante, who has never even tested a Champ Car. So much for those rumors... Memo gets to do double duty commuting between Vancouver and his Speed World Challenge race in Portland.

July 10: Alex Tagliani still needs some top results, but continues to fit well with the team. Memo Gidley replaced Nelson Philippe at the Toronto race and has driven for the Rocketsports Trans-Am team. Paul Gentilozzi would like to have him in the second car, but he brings no personal sponsorship money. Michael Valiante may drive the #17 car in Vancouver.

RuSport

A.J. Allmendinger

Justin Wilson
~~Michel Jourdain Jr.~~

Lola

Western Union?
Red Bull?
BG Products?
~~Gigante~~
~~Office Depot~~

November 22: Justin Wilson has been confirmed to drive alongside A.J. Allmendinger. No word on sponsorship yet. Carl Russo says the team will remain at two cars, so Michel Jourdain Jr. is off to explore new pastures.

~~Sierra Sierra Enterprises~~

~~Andrew Ranger~~
~~Ryan Dalziel~~
~~Jon Fogarty~~

~~Lola~~

~~Tide~~

March 21: With Andrew Ranger taking his Canadian Tide sponsorship to Mi-Jack Conquest, we do not expect to see Sierra Sierra move up to Champ Car.

Team Australia Racing

Alex Tagliani
~~Mario Haberfeld~~

Marcus Marshall
~~Norbert Siedler~~
~~Michael Valiante~~
~~Andrew Ranger~~
~~Bryan Sellers~~
~~Matt Halliday~~
~~Timo Glock~~
~~David Besnard~~
~~Nicky Pastorelli~~
~~Christijan Albers~~
~~Darren Manning~~

Lola

Aussie Vineyards
Cummins?
Holset Turbochargers?
Fleetguard?
Onan?
LaunchPoint?

March 30: A press release from Walker Racing gives a little more insight into the structure of Team Australia Racing. Walker Racing still exists and is 100% owned by Derrick Walker. Team Australia Racing, controlled by Craig Gore and John Fish, provides the sponsorship assets to campaign the two cars.

March 29: Australian businessmen Craig Gore and John Fish have bought a controlling interest in Walker Racing and renamed it Team Australia. Derrick Walker will still manage the operation of the team, which in 2005 will run Alex Tagliani and Australian rookie Marcus Marshall with sponsorship from Aussie Vineyards.

March 18: Walker Racing announces its two-Lola line-up for 2005 will be Alex Tagliani and Australian rookie Marcus Marshall. Wherefore Mario Haberfeld?

March 14: Robin Miller tips Walker as the most likely destination for Alex Tagliani. But he says an unnamed Australian (not Marcus Marshall) will be in the other car, while we saw Mario Haberfeld happily testing with the team last week. Can the lead-up to the season really get that silly?

March 8: Mario Haberfeld is testing on the California Speedway road course this week in a Lola painted in Brazilian colors. Australian sports car driver Marcus Marshall is testing the second Lola.

March 2: Derrick Walker admits to Autosport that his team could close if he cannot find a suitably funded driver. However, the team will be testing Mario Haberfeld in its new Lolas next week on the California Speedway road course. The driver hopes to announce his 2005 plans by the end of next week, possibly assisted by his father's recent sale of his packaging business for over $200 million. Also, Norbert Siedler still hopes to find the funding to drive for the team.

February 25: Norbert Siedler tested in a Walker Reynard on the Homestead-Miami road course on Tuesday. The team was very impressed with his lap times. Norbert says he is working hard to make driving for Walker a reality.

February 22: Nicky Pastorelli has signed up as Jordan F1 test driver.

February 18: Nicky Pastorelli is in line for the test driver role at the Jordan F1 team. He had a surprise test with the team in Barcelona today and his management says negotiations with Walker about a Champ Car ride are on hold in anticipation of signing to Jordan.

February 14: Autosport says Austrian Norbert Siedler is scheduled to test for Walker Racing at Homestead next week.

February 2: Autosport says F1 refugee Timo Glock will test for Rocketsports at Sebring this week. He has previously tested for Walker.

January 31: Robin Miller mentions a rumor that Timo Glock, who drove for the Jordan F1 team last year, may be testing a Champ Car at Sebring this week. Conquest have been forthcoming about which drivers they are testing, so that leaves Walker as a possibility for Glock.

January 26: Autosport says Matt Halliday will test for Walker at Sebring, although we had previously heard it would be with Conquest.

January 14: Walker Racing owner Derrick Walker announced today that his team will campaign with the Lola chassis for the entire 2005 Champ Car World Series season. Two Lola cars have been purchased and the team plans to compete as a two-car effort for the 2005 season. No word on the drivers yet, though. Meanwhile, Nicky Pastorelli will be testing for Minardi in Italy next week.

December 23: Christijan Albers has signed to the Minardi Formula One team.

December 8: DTM star Christijan Albers and European F3000 champion Nicky Pastorelli will test for Walker Racing at Sebring on December 14.

October 19: In its official announcement of running David Besnard at Surfer's Paradise, the team says it is gearing up to run two cars in the coming seasons.

October 8: Walker will finally get the opportunity to run Michael Valiante when he steps into the team's second Reynard for the season finale in Mexico. His debut at last season's finale was denied when local wildfires led to the cancellation of the California Speedway event. The team definitely has an eye on running Valiante next season, so this returns him to the top of the list of potential drivers.

September 27: Walker Racing will field a car for David Besnard at Surfer's Paradise, as part of the deal brokered by Kevin Kalkhoven and Craig Gore. Bezzy is a former Toyota Atlantic driver, but this is probably a one-off deal, not an indication of a drive next season.

September 15: Derrick Walker tells Gordon Kirby that the team plans to switch to Lolas next year. He says he would love to keep Mario Haberfeld and it is essential to move up to a two-car team.with Lolas.

July 10: Derrick Walker can continue to fund a car with money from Cummins and Mario Haberfeld.