2007 Mazda Champ Car Grand Prix of Portland
Encyclopedia
The 2007
Mazda Champ Car Grand Prix of Portland
was the fourth round of the 2007 Champ Car World Series Season
. It was held on June 10 at the Portland International Raceway
, in Portland, Oregon
. It featured the first standing start
in Champ Car
history. Sébastien Bourdais
claimed the victory to make it three wins in four races this season.
Rain on Saturday meant that the pole was effectively decided during the Qualification 1 session on Friday. Robert Doornbos led the wet Saturday session to start second beside Justin Wilson.
Despite worries about stalled cars and carnage, the first standing start in Champ Car history was executed perfectly as all 17 cars got away from the grid. The race was notable for its lack of caution flags. Only two cars failed to finished, with both Katherine Legge and Jan Heylen both running into problems just before the checkered flag.
Pole sitter Justin Wilson lead easily from the start. Sébastien Bourdais was in fifth place as late as lap 25 after stretching his fuel economy. By short-filling his fuel tank during his first pit stop, Sébastien Bourdais came out on track in second place and was then able to run faster than anyone else on the track, finally passing Wilson after the second pit stop. Once in first, he easily drove away to his third consecutive victory and the 100th in Newman/Haas/Lanigan team history.
race held at Portland
, as the 2008
race was not absorbed into the IndyCar schedule
, nor have any rumors surfaced about the race's
return.
2007 Champ Car World Series Season
The 2007 Champ Car season was the 29th and final season of the Champ Car World Series, however only its fourth season under the Champ Car title. It began on April 8, 2007 and ended on November 11 after 14 races...
Mazda Champ Car Grand Prix of Portland
Grand Prix of Portland
The Grand Prix of Portland was a Champ Car World Series race held at Portland International Raceway in Portland, Oregon. The race has not been highly considered as an addition to the Indy Car Series, but is a likely candidate should the league desire a Pacific Northwest venue.For nearly its entire...
was the fourth round of the 2007 Champ Car World Series Season
2007 Champ Car World Series Season
The 2007 Champ Car season was the 29th and final season of the Champ Car World Series, however only its fourth season under the Champ Car title. It began on April 8, 2007 and ended on November 11 after 14 races...
. It was held on June 10 at the Portland International Raceway
Portland International Raceway
Portland International Raceway is located in Portland, Oregon, USA's, Delta Park complex on the former site of Vanport, just south of the Columbia River. It is west of a light rail station and less than a mile west of Interstate 5....
, in Portland, Oregon
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
. It featured the first standing start
Standing start
A standing start is a type of start in auto racing events, in which cars are stationary when the race begins. In a standing start, cars are completely still when a green signal is given to start the race, often preceded by a set of lights...
in Champ Car
Champ Car
Champ 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...
history. Sébastien Bourdais
Sébastien Bourdais
Sébastien Olivier Bourdais is a French race car driver. He is one of the most successful drivers in the history of the Champ Car World Series, having won four successive championships from 2004 to 2007....
claimed the victory to make it three wins in four races this season.
Qualifying results
Pos | Nat | Name | Team | Qual 1 | Qual 2 | Best |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Justin Wilson | RSPORTS RSPORTS RSPORTS was an auto racing team that competed in the Champ Car World Series. It was founded officially in 2007 as a technological partnership, but started out originally as two different teams owned by former race car drivers Carl Russo, who owned RuSPORT, and Paul Gentilozzi who founded... |
58.000 | 1:11.670 | 58.000 | |
2 | Robert Doornbos Robert Doornbos Robert Michael Doornbos is a Dutch racing driver. He has been test and third driver for the Jordan and Red Bull Racing Formula One teams, as well as driving for Minardi and Red Bull Racing in 2005 and 2006. Doornbos then drove for Minardi Team USA in the 2007 and final season of the Champ Car... |
Minardi Team USA | 58.214 | 1:11.629 | 58.214 | |
3 | Sébastien Bourdais Sébastien Bourdais Sébastien Olivier Bourdais is a French race car driver. He is one of the most successful drivers in the history of the Champ Car World Series, having won four successive championships from 2004 to 2007.... |
N/H/L Racing | 58.308 | 1:12.063 | 58.308 | |
4 | Alex Tagliani Alex Tagliani Alexandre 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:... |
RSPORTS RSPORTS RSPORTS was an auto racing team that competed in the Champ Car World Series. It was founded officially in 2007 as a technological partnership, but started out originally as two different teams owned by former race car drivers Carl Russo, who owned RuSPORT, and Paul Gentilozzi who founded... |
58.363 | 1:11.941 | 58.363 | |
5 | Tristan Gommendy Tristan Gommendy Tristan Gommendy is a race car driver. He won the prestigious Macau Grand Prix in 2002. In 2006 Gommendy drove briefly in the GP2 Series for the iSport International team.... |
PKV Racing PKV Racing KV Racing Technology – Lotus is an auto racing team that competes in the IndyCar Series. The team was originally formed as PK Racing before the 2003 season by Australian businessman Kevin Kalkhoven and former Formula One team manager Craig Pollock from the remnants of the PacWest team.The team has... |
58.399 | 1:12.443 | 58.399 | |
6 | Simon Pagenaud Simon Pagenaud Simon Pagenaud is a French race car driver born in Poitiers. He currently races in the IZOD IndyCar Series with Dreyer & Reinbold Racing.-Career:... |
Team Australia Team Australia Team Australia was an Auto racing team competing in the V8 Supercars and Champ Car World Series. It was created in early 2005 when two Australian businessmen bought into Derrick Walker's Walker Racing operation... |
58.448 | 1:12.714 | 58.448 | |
7 | Will Power Will Power William Steven Power is an Australian motorsport driver, who currently competes in the Indy Racing League IndyCar Series, driving for Team Penske.-Australian Racing:... |
Team Australia Team Australia Team Australia was an Auto racing team competing in the V8 Supercars and Champ Car World Series. It was created in early 2005 when two Australian businessmen bought into Derrick Walker's Walker Racing operation... |
58.469 | 1:11.699 | 58.469 | |
8 | Graham Rahal Graham Rahal Graham Rahal is an American race car driver. He currently participates in the IZOD IndyCar Series. He is the son of 1986 Indianapolis 500 winner Bobby Rahal.-Early racing:... |
N/H/L Racing | 58.639 | 1:11.647 | 58.639 | |
9 | Dan Clarke Dan Clarke Dan Clarke is a British auto racing driver born 4 October 1983 in Mexborough, most recently competing in the Firestone Indy Lights series with Walker Racing, having previously competed in the A1GP World Cup of Motorsport and the Champ Car World Series... |
Minardi Team USA | 58.692 | 1:12.327 | 58.692 | |
10 | Neel Jani Neel Jani Neel Jani is a Swiss race car driver of Indian origin. He has achieved his greatest success driving for A1 Team Switzerland in A1 Grand Prix, helping them win the 2007-2008 title and finishing runner-up in 2005-06 and 2008-09. He has been also a GP2 Series race-winner and Formula One tester... |
PKV Racing PKV Racing KV Racing Technology – Lotus is an auto racing team that competes in the IndyCar Series. The team was originally formed as PK Racing before the 2003 season by Australian businessman Kevin Kalkhoven and former Formula One team manager Craig Pollock from the remnants of the PacWest team.The team has... |
58.805 | 1:12.414 | 58.805 | |
11 | Oriol Servia Oriol Servia Oriol Servià i Imbers is a race car driver in the IndyCar Series, originally from Catalonia, Spain. He holds a degree in mechanical engineering from the Polytechnic University of Catalonia.-Early career:... |
Forsythe Racing | 58.926 | 1:14.039 | 58.926 | |
12 | Jan Heylen Jan Heylen Jan Heylen is a Belgian racing driver who most notably competed in the Champ Car World Series.-Early career and F3000:... |
Conquest Racing | 59.181 | 1:13.745 | 59.181 | |
13 | Paul Tracy Paul Tracy Paul Tracy is a professional automobile racer who has competed in CART, the ChampCar World Series and the IndyCar Series... |
Forsythe Racing | 59.418 | 1:12.249 | 59.418 | |
14 | Bruno Junqueira Bruno Junqueira Bruno Junqueira is a Brazilian race car driver that most recently competed in the IRL IndyCar Series. He is a former Formula 3000 champion and three-time runner-up in the Champ Car World Series.-Early career:... |
Dale Coyne Racing Dale Coyne Racing Dale Coyne Racing is a motorsports team in the IndyCar Series owned by former driver Dale Coyne. It was founded in 1986 with Chicago Bears great Walter Payton as Payton/Coyne Racing. The team fields the No. 18 Acorn Stairlifts and No... |
59.696 | 1:12.877 | 59.696 | |
15 | Alex Figge Alex Figge Alex Figge is an American race car driver born in Boulder, Colorado. He started racing professionally in the Star Mazda Championship, capturing one victory at Portland International Raceway in 2000 while driving for World Speed Motorsports.He competed in the US Formula Ford 2000 championship in... |
Pacific Coast Motorsports Pacific Coast Motorsports Pacific Coast Motorsports was a racing team owned by Tyler Tadevic. It was founded by Tadevic in 2003 and has competed in the American Le Mans Series, Champ Car Atlantic Series, and Rolex Grand-Am series. In 2007 it moved to the Champ Car World Series, one of America's premier open-wheel racing... |
59.708 | 1:14.742 | 59.708 | |
16 | Katherine Legge Katherine Legge Katherine Legge is a British auto racing driver, formerly racing in the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters.-Early racing and Atlantics:Prior to joining the Toyota Atlantic series, she raced in several developmental open-wheel series in Britain, including Formula Three, Formula Renault and Formula Ford.... |
Dale Coyne Racing Dale Coyne Racing Dale Coyne Racing is a motorsports team in the IndyCar Series owned by former driver Dale Coyne. It was founded in 1986 with Chicago Bears great Walter Payton as Payton/Coyne Racing. The team fields the No. 18 Acorn Stairlifts and No... |
1:00.421 | 1:13.591 | 59.257 | |
17 | Ryan Dalziel Ryan Dalziel Ryan Dalziel , is a Scottish race car driver. He spent three years in the Toyota Atlantic championship, finishing runner-up twice, before moving to the American Le Mans series in 2005. He also contested one Champ Car race for Dale Coyne Racing at Toronto, finishing 9th. In 2006, he drove a... |
Pacific Coast Motorsports Pacific Coast Motorsports Pacific Coast Motorsports was a racing team owned by Tyler Tadevic. It was founded by Tadevic in 2003 and has competed in the American Le Mans Series, Champ Car Atlantic Series, and Rolex Grand-Am series. In 2007 it moved to the Champ Car World Series, one of America's premier open-wheel racing... |
1:04.275 | 1:15.389 | 1:04.275 |
Rain on Saturday meant that the pole was effectively decided during the Qualification 1 session on Friday. Robert Doornbos led the wet Saturday session to start second beside Justin Wilson.
Race
Pos | No | Driver | Team | Laps | Time/Retired | Grid | Points |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1 | Sébastien Bourdais Sébastien Bourdais Sébastien Olivier Bourdais is a French race car driver. He is one of the most successful drivers in the history of the Champ Car World Series, having won four successive championships from 2004 to 2007.... |
N/H/L Racing | 103 | 1:45:42.774 | 3 | 32 |
2 | 9 | Justin Wilson | RSPORTS RSPORTS RSPORTS was an auto racing team that competed in the Champ Car World Series. It was founded officially in 2007 as a technological partnership, but started out originally as two different teams owned by former race car drivers Carl Russo, who owned RuSPORT, and Paul Gentilozzi who founded... |
103 | +13.5 secs | 1 | 28 |
3 | 14 | Robert Doornbos Robert Doornbos Robert Michael Doornbos is a Dutch racing driver. He has been test and third driver for the Jordan and Red Bull Racing Formula One teams, as well as driving for Minardi and Red Bull Racing in 2005 and 2006. Doornbos then drove for Minardi Team USA in the 2007 and final season of the Champ Car... |
Minardi Team USA | 103 | +35.2 secs | 2 | 26 |
4 | 5 | Will Power Will Power William Steven Power is an Australian motorsport driver, who currently competes in the Indy Racing League IndyCar Series, driving for Team Penske.-Australian Racing:... |
Team Australia Team Australia Team Australia was an Auto racing team competing in the V8 Supercars and Champ Car World Series. It was created in early 2005 when two Australian businessmen bought into Derrick Walker's Walker Racing operation... |
103 | +43.3 secs | 7 | 24 |
5 | 8 | Alex Tagliani Alex Tagliani Alexandre 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:... |
RSPORTS RSPORTS RSPORTS was an auto racing team that competed in the Champ Car World Series. It was founded officially in 2007 as a technological partnership, but started out originally as two different teams owned by former race car drivers Carl Russo, who owned RuSPORT, and Paul Gentilozzi who founded... |
103 | +61.4 secs | 4 | 21 |
6 | 4 | Dan Clarke Dan Clarke Dan Clarke is a British auto racing driver born 4 October 1983 in Mexborough, most recently competing in the Firestone Indy Lights series with Walker Racing, having previously competed in the A1GP World Cup of Motorsport and the Champ Car World Series... |
Minardi Team USA | 103 | +62.0 secs | 9 | 19 |
7 | 22 | Tristan Gommendy Tristan Gommendy Tristan Gommendy is a race car driver. He won the prestigious Macau Grand Prix in 2002. In 2006 Gommendy drove briefly in the GP2 Series for the iSport International team.... |
PKV Racing PKV Racing KV Racing Technology – Lotus is an auto racing team that competes in the IndyCar Series. The team was originally formed as PK Racing before the 2003 season by Australian businessman Kevin Kalkhoven and former Formula One team manager Craig Pollock from the remnants of the PacWest team.The team has... |
102 | + 1 Lap | 5 | 17 |
8 | 15 | Simon Pagenaud Simon Pagenaud Simon Pagenaud is a French race car driver born in Poitiers. He currently races in the IZOD IndyCar Series with Dreyer & Reinbold Racing.-Career:... |
Team Australia Team Australia Team Australia was an Auto racing team competing in the V8 Supercars and Champ Car World Series. It was created in early 2005 when two Australian businessmen bought into Derrick Walker's Walker Racing operation... |
102 | + 1 Lap | 6 | 15 |
9 | 2 | Graham Rahal Graham Rahal Graham Rahal is an American race car driver. He currently participates in the IZOD IndyCar Series. He is the son of 1986 Indianapolis 500 winner Bobby Rahal.-Early racing:... |
N/H/L Racing | 102 | + 1 Lap | 8 | 13 |
10 | 3 | Paul Tracy Paul Tracy Paul Tracy is a professional automobile racer who has competed in CART, the ChampCar World Series and the IndyCar Series... |
Forsythe Racing | 102 | + 1 Lap | 13 | 11 |
11 | 7 | Oriol Servia Oriol Servia Oriol Servià i Imbers is a race car driver in the IndyCar Series, originally from Catalonia, Spain. He holds a degree in mechanical engineering from the Polytechnic University of Catalonia.-Early career:... |
Forsythe Racing | 102 | + 1 Lap | 11 | 10 |
12 | 21 | Neel Jani Neel Jani Neel Jani is a Swiss race car driver of Indian origin. He has achieved his greatest success driving for A1 Team Switzerland in A1 Grand Prix, helping them win the 2007-2008 title and finishing runner-up in 2005-06 and 2008-09. He has been also a GP2 Series race-winner and Formula One tester... |
PKV Racing PKV Racing KV Racing Technology – Lotus is an auto racing team that competes in the IndyCar Series. The team was originally formed as PK Racing before the 2003 season by Australian businessman Kevin Kalkhoven and former Formula One team manager Craig Pollock from the remnants of the PacWest team.The team has... |
102 | + 1 Lap | 10 | 9 |
13 | 19 | Bruno Junqueira Bruno Junqueira Bruno Junqueira is a Brazilian race car driver that most recently competed in the IRL IndyCar Series. He is a former Formula 3000 champion and three-time runner-up in the Champ Car World Series.-Early career:... |
Dale Coyne Racing Dale Coyne Racing Dale Coyne Racing is a motorsports team in the IndyCar Series owned by former driver Dale Coyne. It was founded in 1986 with Chicago Bears great Walter Payton as Payton/Coyne Racing. The team fields the No. 18 Acorn Stairlifts and No... |
102 | + 1 Lap | 14 | 8 |
14 | 28 | Ryan Dalziel Ryan Dalziel Ryan Dalziel , is a Scottish race car driver. He spent three years in the Toyota Atlantic championship, finishing runner-up twice, before moving to the American Le Mans series in 2005. He also contested one Champ Car race for Dale Coyne Racing at Toronto, finishing 9th. In 2006, he drove a... |
Pacific Coast Motorsports Pacific Coast Motorsports Pacific Coast Motorsports was a racing team owned by Tyler Tadevic. It was founded by Tadevic in 2003 and has competed in the American Le Mans Series, Champ Car Atlantic Series, and Rolex Grand-Am series. In 2007 it moved to the Champ Car World Series, one of America's premier open-wheel racing... |
101 | + 2 Laps | 17 | 7 |
15 | 34 | Jan Heylen Jan Heylen Jan Heylen is a Belgian racing driver who most notably competed in the Champ Car World Series.-Early career and F3000:... |
Conquest Racing | 100 | Mechanical | 12 | 6 |
16 | 29 | Alex Figge Alex Figge Alex Figge is an American race car driver born in Boulder, Colorado. He started racing professionally in the Star Mazda Championship, capturing one victory at Portland International Raceway in 2000 while driving for World Speed Motorsports.He competed in the US Formula Ford 2000 championship in... |
Pacific Coast Motorsports Pacific Coast Motorsports Pacific Coast Motorsports was a racing team owned by Tyler Tadevic. It was founded by Tadevic in 2003 and has competed in the American Le Mans Series, Champ Car Atlantic Series, and Rolex Grand-Am series. In 2007 it moved to the Champ Car World Series, one of America's premier open-wheel racing... |
100 | + 3 Laps | 15 | 5 |
17 | 11 | Katherine Legge Katherine Legge Katherine Legge is a British auto racing driver, formerly racing in the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters.-Early racing and Atlantics:Prior to joining the Toyota Atlantic series, she raced in several developmental open-wheel series in Britain, including Formula Three, Formula Renault and Formula Ford.... |
Dale Coyne Racing Dale Coyne Racing Dale Coyne Racing is a motorsports team in the IndyCar Series owned by former driver Dale Coyne. It was founded in 1986 with Chicago Bears great Walter Payton as Payton/Coyne Racing. The team fields the No. 18 Acorn Stairlifts and No... |
99 | Mechanical | 16 | 4 |
Despite worries about stalled cars and carnage, the first standing start in Champ Car history was executed perfectly as all 17 cars got away from the grid. The race was notable for its lack of caution flags. Only two cars failed to finished, with both Katherine Legge and Jan Heylen both running into problems just before the checkered flag.
Pole sitter Justin Wilson lead easily from the start. Sébastien Bourdais was in fifth place as late as lap 25 after stretching his fuel economy. By short-filling his fuel tank during his first pit stop, Sébastien Bourdais came out on track in second place and was then able to run faster than anyone else on the track, finally passing Wilson after the second pit stop. Once in first, he easily drove away to his third consecutive victory and the 100th in Newman/Haas/Lanigan team history.
Attendance
Attendance for the 3 day race weekend was 72,211 with approximately 30,000 people on hand for the Sunday Champ Car main event. This was lower than hoped for by Champ Car and the race organizers leaving the future of the Portland race in doubt as the race's contract with Champ Car expired after the 2007 race. This was the last Champ CarAmerican Championship Car Racing
Since 1916 there has been a recognized United States national automobile racing National Championship for drivers of professional-level, single-seat open wheel race cars. The championship has been under the auspices of several different sanctioning bodies since 1909. Since 1911, the Indianapolis...
race held at Portland
Portland International Raceway
Portland International Raceway is located in Portland, Oregon, USA's, Delta Park complex on the former site of Vanport, just south of the Columbia River. It is west of a light rail station and less than a mile west of Interstate 5....
, as the 2008
2008 Champ Car World Series season
The 2008 Champ Car season was to have been the 30th season of the series. It was scheduled to begin on April 20, 2008 and end on November 9. The season, with the sole exception of the Long Beach Grand Prix , was canceled February 21, 2008 because of the buyout of Champ Car by the rival Indy Racing...
race was not absorbed into the IndyCar schedule
2008 IndyCar Series season
The 2008 IndyCar Series season was the 13th season of the IndyCar Series. Its premier event was the 92nd Indianapolis 500 on May 25. The first race was held March 29 at Homestead. It was the 97th recognized season of top-level American open wheel racing....
, nor have any rumors surfaced about the race's
Grand Prix of Portland
The Grand Prix of Portland was a Champ Car World Series race held at Portland International Raceway in Portland, Oregon. The race has not been highly considered as an addition to the Indy Car Series, but is a likely candidate should the league desire a Pacific Northwest venue.For nearly its entire...
return.