2002 Sure for Men Rockingham 500
Race
Race
----

[left\|thumb\|The start of the race.](/wiki/File:2002_Sure_For_Men_Rockingham_500_start_of_race.jpg "2002 Sure For Men Rockingham 500 start of race.jpg")

The weather at the start was cloudy with an air temperature between  and a track temperature from . An estimated 30,000 people attended the event. CART set the mandatory pit stop window to a maximum of 47 laps, requiring every driver to make at least four pit stops. Grace commanded the drivers to start their engines. The race began at 1:36 p.m. local time. Bräck maintained the lead into the first turn. Tagliani drove alongside his teammate Carpentier and overtook him for ninth place. Serviá moved from 14th to tenth by the end of the first lap, but fell to eleventh when another car passed him. He returned to tenth soon after. Junqueira was passed by Tagliani for seventh on lap three. After starting from 12th, Fittipaldi dropped to the rear of the field and was slower than the leading drivers. Tracy slowed without warning on lap 13 in the second turn with a [power steering](/wiki/Power_steering "Power steering") issue, and the first caution of the race was displayed two laps later when he stopped under the white line on the back straight with a gearbox problem requiring course officials to remove his car from the track. His engine's [telemetry](/wiki/Telemetry "Telemetry") stopped working indicating a [crank sensor](/wiki/Crankshaft_position_sensor "Crankshaft position sensor") failure, possibly caused by his gearbox problem.

[thumb\|[Christian Fittipaldi](/wiki/Christian_Fittipaldi "Christian Fittipaldi") retired on lap 44 due to engine problems.](/wiki/File:Christian_Fittipaldi_-_2002_Sure_For_Men_Rockingham_500_%281%29.jpg "Christian Fittipaldi - 2002 Sure For Men Rockingham 500 (1).jpg")

Some drivers elected to make pit stops under caution. Fittipaldi had his [engine control unit](/wiki/Engine_control_unit "Engine control unit") and spark box changed on lap 17 after he reported a problem with his car. Bräck remained the leader at the lap\-21 [restart](/wiki/Rolling_start "Rolling start") and pulled away from the rest of the field. Andretti began to reduce the gap between Bräck and himself between laps 31 and 33\. Tagliani reduced his pace between the second and third turns on lap 42, and was ordered by his engineer to enter the pit lane. His crew removed his car's left sidepod and retired on the next lap with a [battery](/wiki/Automotive_battery "Automotive battery") problem. A second caution was necessitated on the 46th lap when debris was located in turn two. The leaders made their pit stops because of the mandatory pit stop window. Fittipaldi's car problem re\-emerged on the 44th lap despite having his vehicle's coils and springs changed; he drove to the pit lane to retire because his team's mechanics could not rectify the issue. Franchitti [stalled](/wiki/Stall_%28engine%29 "Stall (engine)") his car because of a clutch issue. Bräck maintained the lead at the lap\-52 restart, followed by Takagi. Nine laps later, Takagi attempted to overtake Bräck on the [outside](/wiki/Racing_line "Racing line") for the lead but was unsuccessful due to the presence of slower cars.

[left\|thumb\|[Shinji Nakano](/wiki/Shinji_Nakano "Shinji Nakano") crashed after completing 61 laps.](/wiki/File:Shinji_Nakano_crash_-_2002_Sure_For_Men_Rockingham_500_%281%29.jpg "Shinji Nakano crash - 2002 Sure For Men Rockingham 500 (1).jpg")

Nakano lost [grip](/wiki/Grip_%28auto_racing%29 "Grip (auto racing)") in the front of his vehicle and went straight into the turn four wall on the same lap. He heavily damaged his car's right\-hand side prompting a third caution. Nakano slid through the infield and stopped unhurt on the frontstretch. Bräck led the field back up to speed at the lap\-70 restart, with Takagi in second. Green\-flag pit stops began on lap 94, with Bräck stopping on the same lap and Franchitti became the leader. It was part of Franchitti's strategy, devised by his team manager Kyle Moyer, to drive in [clean air](/wiki/Glossary_of_motorsport_terms%23C "Glossary of motorsport terms#C"). Andretti was required to serve a stop\-and\-go penalty, which he took on the 103rd lap, after he was observed speeding in the pit lane. Franchitti made his pit stop four laps later and Manning took the lead. Manning made his pit stop on lap 114 and Bräck reclaimed the lead. After starting from 16th, Dixon was running in sixth by the 126th lap. He served two stop\-and\-go penalties because he was twice observed exceeding the pit lane speed limit, while Domínguez was similarly penalised.

[thumb\|[Dario Franchitti](/wiki/Dario_Franchitti "Dario Franchitti") clinched his third victory of the season, and his first on an [oval track](/wiki/Oval_track_racing "Oval track racing").](/wiki/File:Dario_Franchitti_-_2002_Sure_For_Men_Rockingham_500_%2818%29.jpg "Dario Franchitti - 2002 Sure For Men Rockingham 500 (18).jpg")

The third round of green\-flag pit stops commenced fifteen laps later when Bräck became the first driver to stop. Franchitti inherited the lead until he made his pit stop on lap 143, handing it to Manning. This meant Manning became the first driver to lead on his début CART race twice. The fourth caution was necessitated on the 155th lap when Manning's right\-hand rear wing endplate detached and landed on the track between the first and second turns. Manning made a pit stop but his crew elected not to repair his rear wing. It assisted in making his car develop less understeer and slightly improved its balance. Racing resumed on lap 163 with Bräck leading a single\-file restart. The left side of Kanaan's car collided heavily with the wall on the backstraight six laps later, triggering the fifth (and final) caution. All drivers including Bräck made pit stops under caution. A crew member on Bräck's team dropped a left\-rear [wheel nut](/wiki/Lug_nut "Lug nut") dropping him to ninth. Fernández was observed speeding and was required to move to the rear of the field. Da Matta's team were slow to fit his right\-rear tyre preventing him from taking the first position and he emerged in second.

Franchitti gained the lead and held it at the lap\-180 restart. Junqueira attempted to pass Servià on the inside for fourth but was unsuccessful. Carpentier attempted to pressure da Matta towards the end but found it difficult to overtake and he did not want to be aggressive by going off the racing line. Vasser set the race's [fastest lap](/wiki/Fastest_lap "Fastest lap") during the 210th (and penultimate) lap, competing a circuit of 25\.217 seconds. Franchitti maintained the lead for the remainder of the race and crossed the start\-finish line after 211 laps to take his third victory of the season, his first win on an oval track in CART, and the tenth of his career. Da Matta was second, ahead of Carpentier in third, Servià was fourth and Junqueira fifth. Takagi, Vasser, Bräck, Manning, and Andretti rounded out the top ten finishers. Jourdain, Dixon, and Domínguez were the final classified finishers. There were nine lead changes in the race; four drivers reached the front of the field. Bräck's total of 134 laps led was the highest of any competitor. Franchitti led three times, for a total of 58 laps.

### Post\-race

[left\|thumb\|Franchitti celebrating winning the event.](/wiki/File:Dario_Franchitti_celebrating_victory_-_2002_Sure_For_Men_Rockingham_500_%284%29.jpg "Dario Franchitti celebrating victory - 2002 Sure For Men Rockingham 500 (4).jpg")
The top three drivers appeared on the podium to collect their trophies and spoke to the media at a press conference. Franchitti was happy with the victory, saying that he did not believe that it would be different to win at the track but that it was "very, very special". He said that after his first pit stop he did not think that he would be able to win the race. Da Matta stated that he was worried about his advantage in the points standings and felt he had the car to win the event. He added that he could not relax because other drivers still had a mathematical chance of clinching the championship, though he was pleased with the result. Third\-place finisher Carpentier said he was happy with his position and that it was a good day for his team. He revealed that changes made to his aerodynamic setup worked on the rolling restarts although it slowed him on the backstraight. Franchitti's race engineer Allen McDonald praised his driver, saying his first victory on an oval track was one that he would remember and that it was an "unbelievable day".

Manning said while his ninth\-place result in his début race was one his team felt was a "fantastic result", he spoke of his disappointment that he was unable to get practice runs before qualifying as he felt that he could have started in a higher position. Bräck stated that he lost the chance of victory when a crew member dropped a wheel nut on his final pit stop, saying: "There is something hanging over us. I do my part, they do their part. When everyone is having a good day you win. If not, you lose." Fernández was angry with the pit lane speeding penalty, saying he felt he could have achieved a better finishing position and that the rule on pit lane speeding could "ruin your day". After the race, he spent several hours discussing the penalty with race officials. John Lopes, the CART Vice President of Racing Operations, later stated that the series would investigate the rules regarding pit lane speeding penalties but affirmed that no action could be taken until after the season's end.

Rick Broadbent, writing in *[The Times](/wiki/The_Times "The Times")*, said that due to his victory, Franchitti should have become "a household name" and felt that his future career prospects would be unhindered. Mike Nicks in *[The Observer](/wiki/The_Observer "The Observer")* called Franchitti's win "the greatest of his career", while Jim McGill of *[Scotland on Sunday](/wiki/Scotland_on_Sunday "Scotland on Sunday")* noted that while Formula One was promoted as the fastest and most glamorous motorsport, he wrote of his feeling that Franchitti's victory allowed CART to showcase its more "dramatic" action. Grace remarked on the possible implications of Franchitti's success on the promotion of CART in the United Kingdom, "If that doesn't sell this sport to Britain then I don't know what will." The [*Stamford Mercury \& Citizen*](/wiki/Stamford_Mercury "Stamford Mercury") said the sound of the cars at the circuit was "one of those sporting moments which stand up the hairs on the back of your head."

The result increased da Matta's advantage over Junqueira in the Drivers' Championship by five points. Franchitti remained in third place but decreased his deficit to sit seven points behind Junqueira. Carpentier kept fourth place with 115 points, and Fittipaldi remained in fifth on 98 points. Toyota extended their lead over Honda in the Manufacturers' Championship to be 32 points ahead. Ford Cosworth maintained third position on 192 points, with four races left in the season. Highlights of the event were shown the day after in the United Kingdom on the [BBC Two](/wiki/BBC_Two "BBC Two") sports programme [*Sunday Grandstand*](/wiki/Grandstand_%28TV_series%29 "Grandstand (TV series)") with commentary provided by former racing drivers [Johnny Herbert](/wiki/Johnny_Herbert "Johnny Herbert") and [Charlie Cox](/wiki/Charlie_Cox_%28racing_driver%29 "Charlie Cox (racing driver)"). A total of 60 million television viewers in 190 countries watched the race. The event was the last to be held at the Rockingham Motor Speedway as it was announced in December 2002 that the United Kingdom race would be moved to [Brands Hatch](/wiki/Brands_Hatch "Brands Hatch"), Kent.

### Race classification

[thumb\|[Cristiano da Matta](/wiki/Cristiano_da_Matta "Cristiano da Matta") started from third and finished in second place to increase his Drivers' Championship advantage.](/wiki/File:Cristiano_da_Matta_-_2002_Sure_For_Men_Rockingham_500_%281%29.jpg "Cristiano da Matta - 2002 Sure For Men Rockingham 500 (1).jpg")

| \+ Race results |
| --- |
|  |  | Driver | Team |  | Time/Retired |  | Points |
| 1 | 27 |  

 Team Green |
 211 |
  |
 5 |
 **20** |
| 2 | 6 |  

 Newman/Haas Racing |
 211 |
  |
 3 |
 **16** |
| 3 | 32 |  | Forsythe Racing | 211 |  | 10 | **14** |
| 4 | 20 |  

 Patrick Racing |
 211 |
  |
 14 |
 **12** |
| 5 | 4 |  

 Chip Ganassi Racing |
 211 |
  |
 6 |
 **10** |
| 6 | 5 |  

 Walker Racing |
 211 |
  |
 4 |
 **8** |
| 7 | 8 |  

 Team Rahal |
 211 |
  |
 13 |
 **6** |
| 8 | 12 |  

 Chip Ganassi Racing |
 211 |
  |
 1 |
 **7** |
| 9 | 19 |  

 Team St. George |
 211 |
  |
 17 |
 **4** |
| 10 | 39 |  

 Team Green |
 209 |
  |
 2 |
 **3** |
| 11 | 9 |  

 Team Rahal |
 209 |
  |
 19 |
 **2** |
| 12 | 44 |  

 Chip Ganassi Racing |
 209 |
  |
 16 |
 **1** |
| 13 | 55 |  

 Herdez Competition |
 209 |
  |
 18 |
 **0** |
| 14 | 51 |  

 Fernández Racing |
 186 |
  |
 11 |
 **0** |
| 15 | 10 |  

 Mo Nunn Racing |
 167 |
  |
 8 |
 **0** |
| 16 | 52 |  

 Fernández Racing |
 61 |
  |
 15 |
 **0** |
| 17 | 11 |  

 Newman/Haas Racing |
 44 |
  |
 12 |
 **0** |
| 18 | 33 |  

 Forsythe Racing |
 42 |
  |
 9 |
 **0** |
| 19 | 26 |  

 Team Green |
 12 |
  |
 7 |
 **0** |
|

|


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