Yep, the team of Andretti (Mario and Micheal) and Nigel Mansell finally folds after 29 years. Blame the economy, the death of Paul Newman, the new Dallara chassis, and any number of things that make it sad to see this once great team fold from IndyCar.
Unfortunately, the team thought it had a sponsor lined up for 2012, but the deal fell through at the last minute and the decision was made to close the doors. It is thought the team needed to put about $4-million on the table in the next couple of weeks and decided that outlay wasn’t going to happen without a sealed agreement from a backer.
That decision ended the team’s 29-year run in North American open wheel racing which began back in 1983 when Andretti brought the team success almost immediately. The 1978 Formula One world champion won twice in Newman/Haas’ maiden season before delivering the team’s first championship in its sophomore year.
In all, Newman/Haas’ open wheel adventure saw the team score 107 wins, 109 poles, and take home eight championships. The other titles came from Michael Andretti (1991), Nigel Mansell (1993), Cristiano da Matta (2002) and four from Sébastien Bourdais (2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007).
I used to have a poster of the KMart Micheal Andretti Lola/Ford on my walls as a kid. I miss those days of open wheel racing.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe...2261784/page1/
Newman/Haas folds after 29 years...
