Newman/Haas: End of an era

The voice on the phone is typical Oriol Servia. Cheerful, upbeat, playful. "Oriol?" the caller asks. Long pause. "Yes, it is him. He is me." He's being Servia just days after losing his job.

There are reasons he's in a good mood despite the demise of Newman/Haas Racing, the legendary American team founded in 1983 by Carl Haas and Paul Newman that fielded championship cars for legends like Michael and Mario Andretti, Nigel Mansell, Cristiano da Matta and Sebastien Bourdais and remained surprisingly strong even into its sudden farewell. Servia was fourth in the 2011 IndyCar Series for NHR; his team-mate James Hinchcliffe was the championship's Rookie of the Year.

The team announced suddenly last week that it would not field cars for the 2012 season. A sponsorship deal fell through at the last minute, and Servia got the call - not unexpected but still devastating - shortly after a flight from Chicago to Barcelona. Welcome home. You're unemployed.

Today though, Servia is in a good mood because of the periphery. Earlier in the day, he completed a photoshoot/road test for a magazine. The theme of the piece was hot supercars, and he got to drive and critique four of the best. You simply cannot be in a foul mood after torturing the asphalt with a McLaren MP4-12C, a Ferrari 458, a Lamborghini Aventador LP700-4 and a Porsche 911 Turbo.

Employment be damned. Carpe diem. Foot to the floor.

Servia remains philosophical despite the news © LAT

Besides, he's still hopelessly positive about Newman/Haas, still convinced that it's not the ultimate end for one of the best teams in the history of North American single-seater racing. Team officials made it clear that the decision is a suspension of 2012 activities, but they insist the doors have not closed at the Lincolnshire, Illinois shop, no matter how dire it appears.

"In their hearts they want to continue," Servia says. "It's what they've done all their lives. But from the marketing side they couldn't pull it off for 2012. I knew it was on the cards when I got on the plane, but I just had hope. It was 50-50 at that point, but I thought the team was going to make it happen. With the new cars coming in, you have to have millions for leases, chassis and spare parts. If you don't have a major sponsor willing to commit to all of that, you can't continue."

The issue of IndyCar's new formula - a spec Dallara chassis and turbocharged engines from Honda, Chevrolet and Lotus - is about to hit the fan. The end-of-times crowd is predicting disaster when the cars are delivered to teams later this month. Those riding the optimism train are convinced the transition will work.

You get one guess regarding Servia's allegiance.

"The situation at Newman/Haas was a little bit different than other teams," he says. "Other teams will have to stretch their dollars. It was hard already last year to get a full sponsorship deal, and it's going to be a stretch for some teams next year, but each team is in a different position, and most of those teams are in better positions than we were. Newman/Haas had a great run. If a good sponsor had come in at the right time, they'd still be up and running. But it just made no sense to climb the hill from where we were."

Haas and Newman achieved huge success in Champ Car, like here with Bourdais © LAT

The truth is that what happened to Newman/Haas is likely permanent, and that it's probably not the last of IndyCar's small operators to turn off the lights because of the expense of the new car. There are rumblings that some teams are threatening to refuse delivery of the Dallara, and that others are on the verge of shutdown. The naysayers are predicting 15 cars at the season opener March 25 at St Petersburg. The naysayers would give you dates for the rest of the 2012 schedule, but the series has yet to release it, a peculiarity not lost on anyone, yay or nay.

The supporters of Randy Bernard and his leadership insist that all is well, that the recent decision to pull Brian Barnhart from his role as race steward was a positive step, and that most teams are well-prepped financially for the transition. They admit the process has been painful, and that the tragedy of the Las Vegas finale further compounded the difficulties of selling the sport to corporations looking to advertise, but they're solidly behind the change and insist it will work.

That's where Servia stands. The only negative for him is the falling of a storied race team that endured (and came back from) tragedy during the past four years. Once the toast Champ Car (and the carrier of logos of Texaco, K-mart and McDonald's), the team lost its immutable leader, Paul Newman, in 2008, mourned the death of mechanic Davey Evans during a bizarre attack at an Indianapolis bar that same year, and struggled recently as Haas's health declined. Through that, and on a fraction of the budget of higher-flying teams, NHR continued to be quite competitive. Right up to the end.

Mansell won the 1993 Champ Car title with Newman/Haas © LAT

"We were the surprise of the [2011] season in a good way," Servia says, still upbeat while turning sentimental. "We did something that only one of the Penskes and two of the Ganassis could top. It wasn't much of a budget, but they did it. But when you're introducing an expensive new car and you lose a sponsorship deal, it's simply not going to continue."

Servia and Hinchcliffe will move forward, naturally, as the clamour begins for their services. Servia is one of the best in the game, and what he accomplished in 2011 only reiterated that. He finished first in laps completed, so his reputation for precision is intact. Servia rarely crashes. He's consistent. He's never had the luxury of a long-term deal with an A-list team, but he's good enough for one. He'll land on his feet.

But his former team? And the series itself? Even the most optimistic among us can't muster the holiday cheer to think this will turn out all roses and butterflies. At best, it's going to be a long, trying transition. At worst, Newman/Haas won't be the last to go.

"Every cycle has an end," Servia says quietly. "When something is good, you never want it to end. I won't ever get tired of saying this: it was one of the best teams I ever worked for. It was a tight and motivated group. They made things happen that didn't happen in other teams. But they had to stop. That's very sad, but we all have to carry on."

Moments after the conversation, there's a knock on my door. FedEx delivers a box, and instantly I know what it is. Every year, Carl Haas sends a holiday gift to people in the business. It's grapefruit from Texas, sensational as always, though particularly bittersweet this time.

End of the world? Hardly. End of an era? Definitely.