Da Matta hopeful of return
Cristiano da Matta made a welcome return to Champ Car racing on Friday, arriving at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez with manager Fernando de Paiva in tow.

It's no secret that da Matta is considering a return to the Newman/Haas Racing with which he won the 2002 Champ Car World Series. The Brazilian has revealed that a deal could be sealed with the team, but it's down to issues of sponsorship.
"I think we still have a chance to put a car together, but it depends on sponsorship," da Matta said. "It's difficult to say now what the percentage chance of it happening are. I think there is a good chance for it to happen but with these deals you never know until everything is signed. I have other options for next year, but what I want to do is run here with Newman/Haas."
With Sebastien Bourdais and Bruno Junqueira expected back next season, Newman/Haas would have to add a third car for da Matta. Carl Haas admits that that wouldn't be a problem, however.
"I like Cristiano," Haas said. "We had a great relationship for a couple of years. He won the championship with us in 2002. He and I got along very well, and we still do.
"I spoke with his manager on and off in the last month or so, and no one is against doing (a three-car team): Paul Newman, myself, the engineers are all for it. Our people would love to have Cristiano back with us. There's no real animosity to the idea from our current drivers . . . which is kind of surprising (because) they're very competitive guys."
Haas agreed that the deal would be down to sponsorship. "If we can make it work I'd like to do it," he says. "But we don't have it together yet. It's not a one per cent chance (of happening) and it's not 100 per cent. We're working on it, somewhat. Forget somewhat. We're working on it."
Latest news
Ellis named as replacement for injured Auer in Bathurst 12 Hour
DTM race-winner Philip Ellis will make his Bathurst 12 Hour debut this week as a stand-in for the injured Lucas Auer.
Winning MSR Acura "super lucky" with Daytona 24 gearbox scare
The Meyer Shank Racing Acura team was "super lucky" to win the Daytona 24 Hours despite its malfunctioning gearbox for most of the race, according to team boss Michael Shank.
Bourdais “surprised” Cadillac was beaten on pace in Daytona 24 Hours
Chip Ganassi Racing Cadillac driver Sebastien Bourdais said he was surprised that the victorious Acura ARX-06 outperformed his new V-LMDh in the Daytona 24 Hours IMSA SportsCar Championship season opener.
Daytona 24: MSR Acura opens GTP era with win, Proton snatches LMP2 by 0.016s
Meyer Shank Racing scored its second consecutive victory in the Daytona 24 Hours in the first race for the IMSA SportsCar Championship's new GTP regulations, leading an Acura 1-2 finish.
The 2022 Autosport Awards winner using Esports as a launchpad
A trail blazed in Esports has inspired a revamp of the annual prize that aims to discover the best young engineering talent. Autosport met Autosport Williams Engineer of the Future winner Michael Preston
The plug in and play stand-ins who got their timing just right
Nyck de Vries’s Italian GP exploits weren’t the first post-eleventh-hour call-up in motorsport history, and won’t be the last either. Here are some offbeat tales from the past
Porsche’s hopeful Le Mans future meets its illustrious past
Rising sportscar star Adam Smalley had to pinch himself when offered the chance to drive the car that won the world’s most famous enduro in 1987
Why romanticism isn't the key factor in Lola’s racing return
The iconic Lola name is being relaunched after it was taken over by new ownership. Part of that reboot is a planned return to racing, though the exact details of this are still to be finalised - though its new owner does have a desire to bring the brand back to the Le Mans 24 Hours. But romanticism doesn't appear to be the driving force behind this renewed project...
Rating the best drivers of the century so far
Autosport's Top 50 feature has been a staple of the magazine for the past two decades since its first appearance in 2002. Here are the drivers that have featured most prevalently during that time
The best motorsport moments of 2021
Motorsport produced one of its greatest years of all-time in 2021 despite a backdrop of ongoing COVID-19 challenges and an ever-changing racing landscape. Through the non-stop action Autosport has collected the finest moments from the past 12 months to highlight the incredible drama and joy motorsport generates
The racing comeback artists who resurrected long-dormant careers
Making it in motorsport can be tough, and sometimes drivers move elsewhere before their best chance arrives. Here are some of those who made it back
The hidden racing gem attracting ex-F1 heroes
It’s rarely mentioned when it comes to assessing the best national contests, but the Brazilian Stock Car series that reaches its climax this weekend has an ever-growing appeal. Its expanding roster of ex-Formula 1 names has helped to draw in new fans, but it's the closeness of competition that keeps them watching
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.