So, are Y'all salivating over what thee
answer is to my Questione? A la:
Who was the last German IndyCar driver to race in Indy Cars?
As the name that came most prominently to my
lips immediately was Arnd Meier - swearing he was the Dude I saw racing for
Dale Coyne in Champ Car all those many Moons ago, I mean Y'all do recall as
thee Wurld 'O chumpCarz; Err champ Car Turns, right?
but alas OLD age and the passing of time
plays great tricks upon thee mind, eh?
As it was actually the very unknown Michael
Krumm who made a few scant appearances for Team PRG/Dale Coyne at the beginning
of the new millennium, when I must have watched Krumm at the wheel of one of
Coyne’s Lola/Ford’s in 2001, since all I remember is that the last German drove
for you guessed I-T! The never ending revolving door of aspiring drivers making
'Hay with Dale Coyne Racing...
Whilst another driver from Der Fatherland to
ply his trade in CART was ex-Formula 1 Piloto Christian Danner from 1992-97,
while the most prominent German I know from the Championship Auto Racing Teams
(CART) era is Dominic Dobson, (1985-94) who was recently panned by George
Phillips; YIKES! Easy B-I-G Feller, as I
think you’re somewhat off the mark there, as I was originally gonna comment
upon Oil Pressure’s No. 10 pick for Bad Drivers at Indy, especially since
Dobson holds el Special place in my Heart - since after all he was the very
first local Seattle driver I ever saw race, no less for my original Hometeam
Bayside Racing, so give him a break, wills Yuh George!
And as typical, this story's research is by NO
means conclusive towards potential Germans who've previously raced in Indy Cars
- so if I missed somebody between the aforementioned drivers, then please
forgive me...
Michael Krumm
Team:
Dale Coyne Racing
Year:
2001
For reasons
unknown I recall watching this driver make his two starts for Dale Coyne in his
'Uber short lived CART career, bursting upon the scene at the '01 season
opening race at Monterey, NO! The other Monterey, as in Mexico - running in the
heart of an industrial district. As the few thingys I can find upon him claim
that it was a collabrative effort actually called Coyne Racing/Team PRG of
which I don't recall or have any info upon.
In Monterey, the
team's two drivers were Luiz
Garcia Jr., and Krumm, who both apparently DNF'ed (Did Not
Finish) due to engine maladies, most notably their Ford 'lumps having gone
KUH-BLAMOE!
Next up Krumm made his second and final CART start at Long Beach to which I don't know the outcome... With Krumm then going onto a career of racing in Japan, having married Japanese Tennis Star Kimiko Date-Krumm in Tokyo in 2001, where the couple resides. And ironically, or Karmically? His last major championship was the FIA GT1 crown co-driving with some 'Kat named Luhr! As in Lucas Luhr, as apparently Krumm's Japanese links to Nissan have now helped him to get a day's outing at Winton 'Down Under testing a V8 Supercar, driving the Nissan Ultima before Jetting back to Japan to contest a Super GT race...
Arnd Meier
Teams:
Project Indy; Davis Racing
Years:
1997-98
Have NO clue who Hasseroder/Marcelo/Hawaiian
Tropic was... As this is the entrant's name listed upon Meier's chassis during
his rookie season, albeit I'd ARSE-sume that Marcelo was somehow related to the
late Jovy Marcelo, perhas? As we all know who that
Suntan sponsor is, as I've just learned that Project Indy was an offshoot of
Euromotorsports chief mechanic Andreas Leberle and
ironically it was the previous team that Christian Danner had driven for.
And Meier certainly was NO slouch, having
finished as the meat in the sandwich of the 1996 German Formula 3 championship,
with Formula 1 drivers Jarno Trulli winning the title and Nick Heidfeld third,
as Arnd finished 12th at Michigan in '97
and ironically finished one place ahead (30th) of countryman Danner in that
year's points standings.
And I'm noticing a theme here, as the
European drivers seem to excel at Road America, which is where Meier scored his
best CART result in the '98 season driving the then recalcitrant Lola chassis,
bouncing between the T97/00 & T98/00-spec's for the Minnowesqe and
virtually unknown Davis Racing team when Reynard ruled the roost. With Meier scoring
his career best finish of 10th place at Elkhart Lake before returning to Europe
the following season - having just celebrated turning thee B-I-G 4-Oh this
March 1st...
Christian Danner
Teams:
Euromotorsports; Project Indy; Payton/Coyne Racing
Years:
1993-95, 1997
Christian is the only one of this trio of
past drivers (chronicled) to have contested Formula 1, having graduated to the Pinnacle
of Motorsports in 1986 upon having won the inaugural European F3000 championship
the year prior.
Unfortunately for Danner, he could only find
refuge with the Minnowesqe German Zakspeed team, along with stints at Osella,
Arrows and Rial, the latter culminating with his best finish in F1 - coming at
the inaugural USGP in Phoenix, Arizona, sponsored by Iceberg - which was pretty
ironic since the race was held on June 4, 1989 and it was 104 degrees-f, as
your humble No Fenders scribe was garnering his F1 baptism that day... As
basically Danner was one of the seven drivers to actually finish the race - due
to the oppressive HEAT! As Christian just missed out upon the podium with a
fourth place finish...
Although I noted 1992-97 above, I couldn't
find any data for Christian competing in CART in '92, with his name being
listed as finishing 31st in the 1993 CART Point Standings - driving that year
for Euromotosports/Andrea Moda/AGIP aboard a Lola T92/00-Chevrolet with three
finishes listed, with a best placing of 11th at Road America.
For 1994-95, Danner drove for the
relatively unknown Project Indy team,
running a Lola T93/00-Ford with his only two listed finishes being a pair of
12th places at Detroit & Elkhart Lake - finishing 30th in that year's Drivers
points standings.
The following year (1995) would include both
Christian's highest place finish in a race and the overall points standings, as
although the team had stepped up with a Reynard 94i/Ford for Danner that year,
he'd drive his old Lola T93/00-Ford to a seventh place finish at the season
opening Miami event, which would see him capture 25th in the points standings
that year.
, For his final season in Indy Cars,
apparently having taken a year off from the 'BIG CARZ, Danner joined
Payton/Coyne Racing where he scored another 12th place finish at Detroit in a
fairly blase season's run to 31st in the points standings...
