CHRISTIAN FITTIPALDI Dumps CART To Join Petty Enterprises As NASCAR Driver

PETTY ENTERPRISES WILL FIELD TEAMS FOR DRIVER CHRISTIAN FITTIPALDI IN 2003, PREPARING THE BRAZILIAN NATIVE FOR A FULL NASCAR WINSTON CUP SEASON IN 2004. FITTIPALDI WILL RUN WINSTON CUP, BUSCH GRAND NATIONAL AND ARCA NEXT YEAR.

FITTIPALDI WILL BE THE FIRST DRIVER TO RUN FOR THE WINSTON CUP CHAMPIONSHIP AFTER COMPETING FOR CHAMPIONSHIPS IN FORMULA ONE AND CART.

HOW MANY RACES IN EACH NASCAR DIVISION WILL DEPEND GREATLY ON SPONSORSHIP. THE TEAM IS STILL TALKING WITH POTENTIAL SPONSORS REGARDING NEXT YEAR AND THE YEARS AFTER THAT.

FITTIPALDI HAS TESTED SEVERAL TIMES, MOST RECENTLY AT THE 1.522-MILE ATLANTA MOTOR SPEEDWAY. HE HAS OTHER TESTS SCHEDULED THIS SEASON.

HERE IS WHAT SOME PETTY ENTERPRISES PARTICULARS HAD TO SAY:

CHRISTIAN FITTIPALDI:

"Our time is being spent getting ready for next season. The closer we get to the end of the year, I can put more thought and greater time into stock cars. Everyone at Petty Enterprises, including myself, is very serious about what we are doing, not just next year but well into the future.

"With the limitations of a lot of the (NASCAR) rules, these guys are a lot more advanced technically than an outsider might think. They have to think outside of the box, while staying within some pretty stringent rules in order to be successful. An outsider might think the rules would stifle creativity; in fact, it encourages creativity. From a technical aspect, you have to be creative in order to be successful.

"Moving from open wheel racing to stock car racing is a challenge but I like to be challenged. It all comes down to competition and trying to be faster than anyone else and trying to beat everyone else. Whether it is a Formula One car or a go-kart, if I’m driving it, I want to be the best at it. My goal, and Petty Enterprises’ goal, is to be the best at what we do.

"When you talk about motor racing in this country, the highest form is NASCAR. I like living here (in U.S.). If I live here and want to be at the top level in this country, then I have to try NASCAR. To be the best in the United States, you have to be the best in NASCAR. If you want to be the best in NASCAR, you need a team like Petty.

"The racing and the competition is so close, so tight. If you are off just a little bit, you are off a whole lot. If you are just a little bit better than someone, you are a lot better. It is amazing to

see these guys work to pick up just a very little bit, knowing it can be the difference between success and failure.

"Communication between driver and crew is crucial. That is an area we are working on but it is an area where I believe we are already seeing some success. What I feel and what the car is doing, I have to be able to relate it to them in order to make the car go faster. We are learning that."

ROBIN PEMBERTON, VICE-PRESIDENT, PETTY ENTERPRISES:

"Christian is very impressive in his approach and very impressive in his quick progress. He has obviously been very successful in every other form of motorsports he has driven, and he is going to be successful in NASCAR too.

"If you can run well in Formula One and CART, then you should be able to run well in NASCAR too. There are a lot of tricks to the different forms of motorsports and there are a lot of differences in the cars, but the objective is still the same.

"Add that in to the fact that you need a tremendous amount of desire, you have to have that ‘hunger’ to be successful, and Christian has that too. He wants to win in NASCAR. This isn’t some ‘stopping-off’ point for him. It’s a place where he plans on running and winning. And I can’t see anything that will stop him from doing just that.

"He brings something to the Petty Enterprises table too. He has a lot of good technical experience as well as a lot of good driving mechanics and experience. He has been in a wide variety of racing. You don’t get to Formula One without having something, and we’re starting to see what that ‘something’ is. Believe me, it’s pretty incredible."

KYLE PETTY, CEO, PETTY ENTERPRISES:

"We wanted a good young talent behind the wheel, and Christian is everything we were looking for. He has tremendous talent and tremendous ability, and his potential is off the charts. He got in a Formula One car and was successful. He got in a CART car and was successful. We fully expect - and he expects - to get into a NASCAR car and be successful.

"No, he isn’t going to reel off three or four wins right off the bat but what he will do is learn the sport from the NASCAR side, and we’ll learn about him. 2003 is going to be a learning year for him. I’m not saying he won’t win races because I believe he will in 2003. And I’m not saying he won’t run up front because I believe he will in 2003. What I am saying is everything he learns in 2003 will make him an even better driver in 2004 and on down the road.

"We’re talking to a lot of companies right now but we’re ready to talk to more. I think somebody is going to jump all over this. It’s a tremendous opportunity for a sponsor, to grow with a young driver and to be part of a pretty rich heritage all at the same time. I don’t know of any other place you can go where you have that combination. This is a great opportunity for someone, and we’re going to do everything we can to make it an incredible experience for them."