Bourdais won his second CART race of 2003 at EuroSpeedway Lausitz, fending off a late charge from Dominguez in the final stint of a superspeedway race that ended the series' German visits.
From pole, Sebastien Bourdais held off Mario Dominguez by 0.084 seconds over 154 laps at Lausitz on 11 May 2003. Michel Jourdain Jr. took third, and the race marked the end of CART's trips to the venue.
Sebastien Bourdais won the 2003 German 500 at EuroSpeedway Lausitz, the fifth round of the Champ Car World Series. He beat Mario Dominguez by 0.084 seconds in a race that was CART's last visit to the venue. Michel Jourdain Jr. completed the podium in a contest that was largely decided in the final stint.
Who won the 2003 German 500?
Sebastien Bourdais won the 154-lap race on 11 May 2003 for Newman/Haas Racing. It was his second CART victory, following his win at the London Champ Car Trophy the week before. Mario Dominguez finished second and Michel Jourdain Jr. completed the podium for Team Rahal.
Bourdais had started from pole, which he had taken at 37.000 seconds in qualifying. He had traded the lead repeatedly with Junqueira and Dominguez, and he was pressed hard in the closing stint by Dominguez, who attempted several passes before the flag.
A superspeedway race that ended with 0.084 seconds between the winner and the runner-up, and CART's last visit to Lausitz.
Why did the race matter at Lausitz?
The German 500 was the second and final running of the event, which ran at EuroSpeedway Lausitz, a three-turn 2.023 mi (3.256 km) superspeedway near Klettwitz. It was the fifth of 18 scheduled open-wheel races in 2003 and the second race of CART's European swing, after Brands Hatch.
The event carried historical weight. CART's previous visit came four days after the September 11 attacks in 2001, and that race was overshadowed by the crash that cost Alex Zanardi both legs. The race was dropped from the 2002 schedule after the track promoters filed for insolvency.
The race returned for 2003 after CART's president and chief executive, Chris Pook, and the track's chief executive, Hans-Jorg Fischer, announced the revival on 10 January 2003. Tickets for the cancelled 2002 event were honoured for the new date.
How did the championship stand before the race?
Paul Tracy led the Drivers' Championship with 65 points, eleven ahead of Bruno Junqueira in second. Michel Jourdain Jr. held third on 42 points, with Adrian Fernandez fourth on 29 and Patrick Carpentier fifth on 28. In the Constructors' Cup, Lola led Reynard with 88 points to 34.
Bourdais had won the London race the week before, which had lifted him from sixth to fourth in the standings. He had underestimated how demanding oval racing would be until a preseason test at Phoenix International Raceway.
Tracy admitted that switching from the road-course setup at Brands Hatch to the superspeedway was a challenge, but he expected to finish well. Junqueira believed Forsythe Racing's heavy use of downforce might leave Tracy and Carpentier at a disadvantage, while Jourdain Jr. pointed to Team Rahal's success on superspeedways in recent years.
How did practice and qualifying unfold?
Bourdais took the single practice session on Saturday morning at 36.794 seconds, almost a tenth of a second quicker than Junqueira. Mario Dominguez, Alex Tagliani and Jourdain Jr. completed the top five. The session was broken up by stoppages for Darren Manning, Rodolfo Lavin and Tagliani, and by debris from the cars of Tracy and Oriol Servia.
Qualifying took place on Saturday afternoon, with each driver allowed up to four warm-up laps before two timed laps. Bourdais took pole at 37.000 seconds, the third of his career. Junqueira qualified second, two tenths slower, and the Newman/Haas pair took the first two places on the grid.
Dominguez, Servia, Lavin, Tagliani and Lemarie filled sixth through tenth. Tracy and Carpentier, struggling in qualifying, started 16th and 17th, and Joel Camathias and Fernandez took the last two grid positions. Many drivers who qualified outside the top ten complained of excessive drag.
Why was Jourdain's grid position disputed?
Jourdain Jr. qualified third, but officials found a modification to the air inlet on his car during technical inspection. That breach of the rules meant he should have started at the back, and Team Rahal was fined $10,000. The team protested, and the judges ruled in its favour, so the penalties were revoked and Jourdain Jr. kept third on the grid.
Team Rahal's protest was accepted, so the grid stood as qualified, with Jourdain Jr. third behind the Newman/Haas pair.
What happened before the race started?
Warm-up took place on Sunday morning for 30 minutes, under cloudy conditions. Oriol Servia was fastest at 37.344 seconds, quicker than his qualifying lap, and Jourdain Jr. was eight hundredths slower in second. Lavin and Junqueira both slowed on the circuit, causing two red flags in the session.
Before the start, Alex Zanardi completed 13 ceremonial laps around Lausitz. Each lap stood for one of the laps he failed to complete at the 2001 American Memorial, and he had also run 40 laps on the Friday evening to test the car. He drove a modified Reynard-Ford fitted with hand controls, with a livery matching his 2001 season.
Zanardi's 13th lap was his fastest, at 37.487 seconds, which would have put him fifth on the grid. He thanked the fans and drivers for their support and talked about the Alex Zanardi Foundation he had set up in Michigan. Series starter J. D. Wilbur then waved the green flag at 2:15 p.m. to begin the race.
How did the race open?
Air temperatures were 21 to 23 degrees Celsius at the start, with track temperatures between 29 and 39 degrees Celsius. Approximately 68,000 people watched the race, which opened with Junqueira diving past pole sitter Bourdais at turn two to take the lead.
Tracy made a rapid move from 16th to ninth by the third lap, using the outside line. Bourdais used Junqueira's draft on the back straight and reclaimed the lead on lap four. Jourdain Jr. tried to pass Junqueira on lap 12, failed and was then passed by Dominguez for third.
The first caution came for debris at turn two on lap 23, and all the leaders pitted under it. Jourdain Jr. knocked Lavin into Lemarie as he left his pit stall, and Lemarie hit the inside wall with damage to his suspension. Tagliani retired on lap 28 with a gearbox failure.
How did the lead battle develop?
Dominguez passed Bourdais for second on the 28th lap restart, and he then charged past Junqueira to take the lead. Bourdais fell to fourth briefly before Servia passed him in turn two, and he quickly recovered to third.
Dominguez held the lead and was warned by officials for blocking Bourdais at the second round of pit stops on lap 53. Jourdain Jr. received a 15-second penalty for hitting Lavin and Lemarie on an earlier stop, and Dominguez was made to wait five extra seconds in his stall for aggressive blocking at the third round on the 81st lap.
Bourdais then took the lead, but Dominguez stayed close, having earlier nearly pushed him into the inside wall on the front straight. The second caution on the 83rd lap came for debris, and Yoong retired with mechanical trouble. Most of the remaining drivers stayed out under that yellow flag.
Junqueira passed Servia for second on the restart. He drew alongside Bourdais on the 99th lap, and the two drivers ran side by side until Bourdais took the lead on lap 102, then Junqueira retook it on 103 before backing off and dropping to fourth.
How did the closing laps decide the race?
Bourdais led most of the field into pit road on lap 109, letting Carpentier take the lead. Jourdain Jr. got out ahead of Bourdais but lost third again soon after. Bourdais later took the lead as Vasser and Carpentier suffered problems during their stops on the 112th lap.
Dominguez moved past Jourdain Jr. for second on the 129th lap, while both were working around lapped cars. Bourdais gave up the lead to Carpentier on lap 138 when he made his final stop, but he passed both Jourdain Jr. and Dominguez to retake the lead by the 142nd lap as Carpentier pitted.
For the last six laps Dominguez tried to pass Bourdais on the outside line again and again. Bourdais defended the position, and he crossed the line 0.084 seconds clear to claim his second CART victory of the season. Junqueira passed Servia on lap 153 to finish fourth.
What were the final results?
Sebastien Bourdais won from Mario Dominguez and Michel Jourdain Jr. Junqueira finished fourth and Oriol Servia fifth. The top ten was completed by Manning, Carpentier, Vasser, Lavin and Moreno.
| Position | Driver | Note |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sebastien Bourdais | Newman/Haas Racing; won from second on the grid |
| 2 | Mario Dominguez | Herdez Competition; 0.084 seconds behind |
| 3 | Michel Jourdain Jr. | Team Rahal; third after the protest |
| 4 | Bruno Junqueira | Newman/Haas Racing; passed Servia on lap 153 |
| 5 | Oriol Servia | Visteon/Patrick Racing; fifth place |
How did the drivers react after the race?
Bourdais performed a burnout in front of the crowd and described the racing as fun. He said he had learned from racing Dominguez in traffic, and that the last stint had taught him how to get through slower cars better. He said the team had worked hard to get the result.
Dominguez thanked his crew for fast pit stops but felt his early penalty had been unfair. He said he had done nothing wrong and that Bourdais had been doing exactly the same thing when he was behind. Jourdain Jr. admitted that he had not had enough speed to challenge the leaders.
Junqueira felt his car was not quick enough, noting that the spec engines still produced different power levels and that Bourdais and Dominguez had the advantage. Servia said his team was capable of winning and of contending for the title, and Tracy blamed his aero package for a lack of competitiveness on the superspeedway.
What changed in the championship after Lausitz?
Tracy and Junqueira finished the day tied for the lead of the Drivers' Championship on 66 points each. Jourdain Jr. was ten points behind in third. Bourdais climbed to fourth, while Dominguez moved to fifth and Carpentier to sixth.
Lola extended its lead in the Constructors' Cup to 110 points, and the race was the last CART event held at Lausitz. Organisers could not afford to keep staging races in Europe, so the German venue left the calendar.
