The 2001
Harrah's 500 was the tenth round of the 2001 CART World Series Season, held on July 22, 2001 on the
Michigan International SpeedwayMichigan International Speedway is a two-mile moderate-banked D-shaped superspeedway located off U.S. Highway 12 on more than in Brooklyn, in the scenic Irish Hills area of southeastern Michigan. The track is used primarily for NASCAR events. It is sometimes known as a "sister track" to Texas...
,
MichiganMichigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
,
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Rahal's
Kenny BräckKenny Bräck is a race car driver from Sweden. Until his retirement from racing, he competed in the CART, Indy Racing League and the IROC series. He is the winner of the 1999 Indianapolis 500 and the 1998 driving champion of the Indy Racing League. He survived one of the racing sport's biggest...
started on pole. The
MexicanMexican people refers to all persons from Mexico, a multiethnic country in North America, and/or who identify with the Mexican cultural and/or national identity....
driver
Adrian FernandezJosé Adrián Fernández Mier is a Mexican racing driver and co-owner of the Fernandez Racing team.-Early career:...
was the first driver to retire. During the pit stops, Newman Haas'
Christian FittipaldiChristian Fittipaldi is a Brazilian racing driver who has competed in various forms of motorsport including Formula One, Champ Car and NASCAR...
spun in the pit entrance. He did not retired. Team Green's
Paul TracyPaul Tracy is a professional automobile racer who has competed in CART, the ChampCar World Series and the IndyCar Series...
had problems during his pit stop. The two Rahal drivers: the Italian
Max PapisMassimiliano "Max" Papis is a racing driver who has competed in several top-level motorsports events such as Le Mans 24 Hours, Formula One and Champ Car. He has three Champ Car victories. He is the son-in-law of Emerson Fittipaldi. His son's godfather is fellow Italian Alex Zanardi...
and the Swedish
Kenny BrackKenny Bräck is a race car driver from Sweden. Until his retirement from racing, he competed in the CART, Indy Racing League and the IROC series. He is the winner of the 1999 Indianapolis 500 and the 1998 driving champion of the Indy Racing League. He survived one of the racing sport's biggest...
, alongside the mexican-american driver
Memo GidleyJosé Guillermo "Memo" Gidley is a Mexican-American racing driver, of German and Canadian ancestry, born in La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico in 1973. He holds dual citizenship - American and Mexican....
, from
Chip GanassiFloyd "Chip" Ganassi, Jr is a former American racecar driver and current racecar owner.He is currently the owner and president of Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates which operates teams on the IndyCar, NASCAR and Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series circuit...
, were battling for the lead. Kenny overtook Gidley and lapped Paul Tracy, but, Paul and Memo overtook Kenny. Then the 1st caution happened, because Penske's
Gil de FerranGil de Ferran , is a professional racing driver and team owner. De Ferran was the 2000 and 2001 Champ Car champion driving for the Penske Honda Team and the winner of the 2003 Indianapolis 500.Inspired by the success of fellow Brazilian Emerson Fittipaldi, de Ferran began his career in kart racing...
retired due to mechanical problems. Gidley was the leader. The brazilian
Tony KanaanAntoine Rizkallah Kanaan Filho, commonly known as Tony Kanaan is a Brazilian race car driver of Lebanese heritage. Kanaan won the 2004 Indy Racing League IndyCar Series championship driving Andretti Green Racing's 7-Eleven sponsored car, winning three times in his Honda-powered Dallara...
and the american
Bryan HertaBryan John Herta is an American race car driver. He currently runs his own team, Bryan Herta Autosport in the Firestone Indy Lights Series...
also led a few laps at that time. Then, the
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
driver
Jimmy VasserJimmy Vasser is a retired American racing driver and current co-owner of KV Racing Technology. Vasser won the 1996 IndyCar season championship with Chip Ganassi Racing, and scored ten victories in the series...
had problems. The
Patrick RacingPatrick Racing was an auto racing team in both Champ Car and the Indy Racing League.Patrick Racing was started by Pat Patrick with the formation of CART in 1978. Patrick Racing would win three Indianapolis 500s and two CART championships, making it one of the most successful CART teams ever.In...
driver retired at lap 132. At that time, the lead changed 31 times. At the 140th lap,
Kenny BrackKenny Bräck is a race car driver from Sweden. Until his retirement from racing, he competed in the CART, Indy Racing League and the IROC series. He is the winner of the 1999 Indianapolis 500 and the 1998 driving champion of the Indy Racing League. He survived one of the racing sport's biggest...
lost 3 positions at the same time. 30 laps later, after he was on the lead, Brack would lose 4 positions at the same time. At lap 151,
Memo GidleyJosé Guillermo "Memo" Gidley is a Mexican-American racing driver, of German and Canadian ancestry, born in La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico in 1973. He holds dual citizenship - American and Mexican....
suffered a drive through penalty. 2 laps later, the 2nd caution came out, due to debris. At lap 174, only 4 cars were in the lead lap. The 3rd caution happened at lap 216, after
Christian FittipaldiChristian Fittipaldi is a Brazilian racing driver who has competed in various forms of motorsport including Formula One, Champ Car and NASCAR...
hit the wall at turn 3. He injured his leg. During the caution, everyone went to the pits. The restart happened at lap 226, and the
MexicanThe United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
driver
Michel Jourdain, Jr.Michel Jourdain Jr. is an IndyCar driver. Jourdain Jr. started racing cars in the Mexican Formula Junior series at the age of 12. He then moved to the Mexican Formula K and Formula 2 series.-Champ Car:...
overtook
Kenny BrackKenny Bräck is a race car driver from Sweden. Until his retirement from racing, he competed in the CART, Indy Racing League and the IROC series. He is the winner of the 1999 Indianapolis 500 and the 1998 driving champion of the Indy Racing League. He survived one of the racing sport's biggest...
, and led 4 laps. At lap 230, 7 drivers were in the lead lap. 2 laps later,
Bryan HertaBryan John Herta is an American race car driver. He currently runs his own team, Bryan Herta Autosport in the Firestone Indy Lights Series...
, who came from nowhere, was the leader. 1 lap later, the Rahal teammates (Max Papis hit Kenny Brack) collided into each other. Both retired. 4th caution was out. In the last lap, the Player's
ForsytheForsythe, in business, can mean:* Forsythe Technology, Inc., an American businessForsythe, as a surname, includes the following people:* Abe Forsythe , Australian actor* Bruce Forsythe , British entertainer...
driver
Patrick CarpentierPatrick Carpentier is a retired Canadian race car driver. He is best known for his career in the Champ Car World Series and the IndyCar Series. In 2009, Patrick shared the #36 of Tommy Baldwin Racing with Mike Skinner and ran Michael Waltrip's #55 Toyota Camry in the road course races in the...
, the Herdez driver
Michel Jourdain, Jr.Michel Jourdain Jr. is an IndyCar driver. Jourdain Jr. started racing cars in the Mexican Formula Junior series at the age of 12. He then moved to the Mexican Formula K and Formula 2 series.-Champ Car:...
, and many other drivers were battling for the win. Carpentier's teammate, fellow Canadian
Alex TaglianiAlexandre Tagliani is a Canadian auto racing driver from Montreal, Quebec, Canada. He currently competes in the IZOD IndyCar Series, driving the #77 entry for Sam Schmidt Motorsports.-Champ Car career:...
"closed the door" against Jourdain on the backstretch, then, Carpentier overtook Jourdain, Team Green's
ScottishThe Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
Dario FranchittiGeorge Dario Marino Franchitti is a Scottish racing driver. He formerly competed in the CART series before switching to the IndyCar Series where he was 2007 champion, and won the rain-shortened 2007 Indianapolis 500. Franchitti is also a former NASCAR driver for Chip Ganassi Racing, competing...
to take his first win in his
CARTChamp Car was the name for a class and specification of open wheel cars used in American Championship Car Racing for many decades, primarily for use in the Indianapolis 500 auto race...
career.