Lotterer to make CART debut in Mexico.
Jaguar Formula One test driver Andre Lotterer will get his first taste of Champcar action when he lines up for a one-off drive with Dale Coyne Racing at the season-closing race in Mexico City next weekend.
The German, who has raced only rarely since taking on a bigger role with Jaguar this year, will fill the seat previously occupied in a similar capacity by Darren Manning on home turf at Rockingham two months ago.
Jaguar Formula One test driver Andre Lotterer will get his first taste of Champcar action when he lines up for a one-off drive with Dale Coyne Racing at the season-closing race in Mexico City next weekend.
The German, who has raced only rarely since taking on a bigger role with Jaguar this year, will fill the seat previously occupied in a similar capacity by Darren Manning on home turf at Rockingham two months ago.
German involvement in CART has not proven too successful in the past, with Michael Krumm's 2001 seat at PRG falling foul of finance and Arnd Meier proving no more than a steady backmarker before that, but Coyne and CART hope that Lotterer's appearance will boost television coverage of the sport in mainland Europe.
"This came about because of our German connection, and German television is going to broadcast the Mexico race, so it should have a good presence," Coyne told cart.com from his Chicago base, before admitting that he would like to run a German driver in 2003, "Obviously, there is a lot of interest in auto racing in Germany with Michael Schumacher."
Lotterer, who last competed regularly in the British F3 series, will pilot the same #19 Ford-Cosworth-powered Lola used by Manning at Rockingham in September. Coyne admits, however, that, despite being a road course as opposed to an oval, he is not necessarily expecting the German to do as well as his predecessor.
"We tested Andre at Sebring and it went pretty well, but he's only 20 and he didn't get to do as much testing at Jaguar as he wanted," the veteran team boss confirmed, "He's got nowhere near the miles and experience of Manning. He needs more time in the car, but I think he'll be okay - as long as we pick him up at the airport because he can't rent a car yet!"
Coyne remains confident of fielding two cars on a full-time return to CART competition next year but, aside from revealing that he would like to run one German, would not be drawn on his likely line-up.
"We're very close to announcing one [driver] and we've got a lot of irons in the fire," he said.
