2002 Gran Premio Telmex-Gigante

2002 Mexico City

Race details
Race 19 of 19 in the 2002 CART season
Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez track layout
Date	November 17, 2002
Official name	2002 Gran Premio Telmex-Gigante Presented by Banamex/Visa
Location	Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez Mexico City, Mexico
Course	Permanent Road Course 2.786 mi / 4.484 km
Distance	73 laps 203.378 mi / 327.332 km
Weather	Hazy
Pole position
Driver	Bruno Junqueira (Target Chip Ganassi Racing)
Time	1:25.941
Fastest lap
Driver	Shinji Nakano (Fernández Racing)
Time	1:27.248 (on lap 70 of 73)
Podium
First	Kenny Bräck (Target Chip Ganassi Racing)
Second	Cristiano da Matta (Newman/Haas Racing)
Third	Bruno Junqueira (Target Chip Ganassi Racing)

The 2002 Gran Premio Telmex-Gigante was the nineteenth and final round of the 2002 CART FedEx Champ Car World Series season, held on November 17, 2002 at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in Mexico City, Mexico. It was the first Champ Car race at the track since the 1981 season. The race preceded a mass exodus of significant drivers and teams who all competed in their final Champ Car event, most of whom knew beforehand that they would not return. Most rued the fact that they were leaving for the rival Indy Racing League, wishing to continue in CART rather than endure a more stable future in the IRL.^[1] CART's winningest driver (42 wins), Michael Andretti, along with Kenny Brack, Scott Dixon, Dario Franchitti, Tony Kanaan, and Japan's most successful driver in U.S. open wheel racing Tora Takagi would all bid CART adieu in favor of the IRL. Other entities leaving CART included 1996-1999 champions Chip Ganassi Racing, 1995 champions Team KOOL Green, and Mo Nunn Racing permanently switched to the IRL, and Japanese automotive industry giants Honda and Toyota likewise left CART for the IRL. Season champion Cristiano da Matta was set to leave CART for Formula One with his engine supplier's F1 team, and Christian Fittipaldi attempted a stock car career.

Qualifying results

Pos	Nat	Name	Team	Qual 1	Qual 2	Best
1		Bruno Junqueira	Target Chip Ganassi Racing	1:25.941	1:26.126	1:25.941
2		Christian Fittipaldi	Newman/Haas Racing	1:26.027	1:27.670	1:26.027
3		Dario Franchitti	Team KOOL Green	1:26.147	1:26.891	1:26.147
4		Tony Kanaan	Mo Nunn Racing	1:26.719	1:26.394	1:26.394
5		Jimmy Vasser	Team Rahal	1:26.703	—	1:26.703
6		Kenny Bräck	Target Chip Ganassi Racing	1:27.147	1:26.786	1:26.786
7		Patrick Carpentier	Team Player's	1:26.904	1:27.322	1:26.904
8		Paul Tracy	Team KOOL Green	1:26.971	1:27.573	1:26.971
9		Mario Domínguez	Herdez Competition	1:27.344	1:26.975	1:26.975
10		Michael Andretti	Team Motorola	1:27.355	1:27.053	1:27.053
11		Tora Takagi	Walker Racing	1:27.144	1:27.150	1:27.144
12		Cristiano da Matta	Newman/Haas Racing	1:27.174	1:27.405	1:27.174
13		Shinji Nakano	Fernández Racing	1:27.245	1:27.919	1:27.245
14		Alex Tagliani	Team Player's	1:27.483	1:27.437	1:27.437
15		Scott Dixon	Target Chip Ganassi Racing	1:27.525	1:27.447	1:27.447
16		Oriol Servià	Patrick Racing	1:29.659	1:27.727	1:27.727
17		Michel Jourdain Jr.	Team Rahal	1:27.923	1:27.807	1:27.807
18		André Lotterer	Dale Coyne Racing	1:28.058	1:27.898	1:27.898
19		Luis Díaz	Fernández Racing	1:27.992	1:27.969	1:27.969

Race

Pos	No	Driver	Team	Laps	Time/Retired	Grid	Points
1	12	Kenny Bräck	Target Chip Ganassi Racing	73	1:56:48.475	6	20
2	1	Cristiano da Matta	Newman/Haas Racing	73	+3.987 secs	12	16
3	4	Bruno Junqueira	Target Chip Ganassi Racing	73	+5.073 secs	1	16
4	32	Patrick Carpentier	Team Player's	73	+10.842 secs	7	12
5	27	Dario Franchitti	Team KOOL Green	73	+12.548 secs	3	10
6	5	Tora Takagi	Walker Racing	73	+16.762 secs	11	8
7	44	Scott Dixon	Target Chip Ganassi Racing	73	+23.622 secs	15	6
8	10	Tony Kanaan	Mo Nunn Racing	73	+25.846 secs	4	6
9	20	Oriol Servià	Patrick Racing	73	+28.034 secs	16	4
10	33	Alex Tagliani	Team Player's	73	+29.949 secs	14	3
11	8	Jimmy Vasser	Team Rahal	73	+30.628 secs	5	2
12	19	André Lotterer	Dale Coyne Racing	73	+31.426 secs	18	1
13	9	Michel Jourdain Jr.	Team Rahal	73	+32.055 secs	17	0
14	52	Shinji Nakano	Fernández Racing	73	+50.219 secs	13	0
15	11	Christian Fittipaldi	Newman/Haas Racing	67	Engine	2	0
16	26	Paul Tracy	Team KOOL Green	61	Suspension	8	0
17	39	Michael Andretti	Team Motorola	50	Contact	10	0
18	55	Mario Domínguez	Herdez Competition	16	Suspension	9	0
19	51	Luis Díaz	Fernández Racing	1	Engine	19	0

Caution flags

Notes

• New Track Record Bruno Junqueira 1:25.941 (Qualification session #1)
• New Race Record Kenny Bräck 1:56:48.475
• Average Speed 104.468 mph

External links

• Friday Qualifying Results
• Saturday Qualifying Results
• Race Results

This page was last edited on 5 July 2022, at 22:34