The Newman Haas team took a well deserved and conclusive 2004 Bridgestone Presents the Champ Car World Series Powered by Ford championship title victory at Mexico City over the weekend with Frenchman Sebastien Bourdais cementing the triumph with his seventh victory of the season. It was also the teams ninth 2004 win, as Bourdais’ Brazilian team mate Bruno Junqueira added two victories to the tally in what was a stellar season for the Illinois based team and long time customer of Lola Cars International Ltd.
Since Carl Haas and Paul Newman entered a Lola T700 Cosworth in to the 1983 PPG Indycar World Series for Mario Andretti, the team have racked up an incredible 82 race wins and five outright championship victories. Racing legends such as Michael Andretti, Paul Tracy, Nigel Mansell and of course Mario, have all tasted victory in Lola chassis.
2004 has been Newman Haas’ most successful season ever with nine wins between the talented duo of Bourdais and Junqueira, both of whom were also champions in Lola Formula 3000 cars in 2002 and 2000 respectively. It is a tribute to the teams dedication and skill that they have led the way so effectively this season, winning on street, road and oval tracks alike.
Martin Birrane, Chairman of Lola Cars International paid his own compliments to the Newman Haas squad, saying; “They have had a truly impressive season and deserve all their success. As a company we take a tremendous amount of satisfaction from knowing that all the teams we supply are confident in the quality of our product. Carl (Haas) and Paul (Newman) have built up a very professional organisation over the years and one that has consistently challenged for wins and championships. This latest success is richly deserved and we congratulate each and every member of the team for a job well done in what is a very tough series indeed.”
Adding to those comments was Rupert Manwaring, Managing Director of Lola Cars, who said: “Having been to a number of the races this season I have seen for myself that this is a hugely competitive series and one that requires total racing commitment which is a quality that the whole grid have in abundance. Newman Haas have been a real force this season and with six different winners it really goes to show that the continued re-emergence of Champ Car as one of the most competetive series in the world is growing stronger, race by race.”
Lola Cars have scored 154 Champ Car victories since the inception of the series in 1979. The first win came at Elkhart Lake in 1983 when Mario Andretti won, fittingly for Newman Haas. Since then, Lola’s commitment to technical excellence has seen many victories and titles for amongst others; Paul Tracy (2003), Cristiano Da Matta (2002), Nigel Mansell (1993), Bobby Rahal (1992 & 1987), Michael Andretti (1991), Al Unser Jr (1990) and Mario Andretti (1984).
