Toyota's da Matta quest off
Toyota looks to have failed in its efforts to recruit Champ car title favourite Cristiano da Matta to its Formula 1 squad
The Brazilian was thought to be top of the Japanese manufacturer's list of drivers to join new signing Olivier Panis on its 2003 driver strength, but talks with da Matta's current boss Carl Haas to secure the Brazilian's release from his 2003 contract have foundered. "I think I'm staying in CART," said da Matta. "They [people in F1] don't respect who we are or what we do here. They don't want to pay and they keep talking about me being a test driver instead of a race driver. I don't like what they think."
Toyota is still thought to want a Brazilian driver for marketing reasons. Williams test driver Antonio Pizzonia and Sauber exile Felipe Massa now look likely to move into the equation. Recent Minardi team-mates Anthony Davidson and Mark Webber have also been linked to the drive.
See this week's Autosport, published today, for the full story.
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