Bryan Herta
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| Bryan Herta | |
| Nationality |  United States |
| Date of Birth | May 23, 1970 |
| Place of Birth | Warren, Michigan |
| Indy Racing League IndyCar Series | |
| Years active | 2003-2006 |
| Teams | Andretti Green Racing |
| Starts | 58 |
| Wins | 2 |
| Poles | 3 |
| Best finish | 8th in 2005 |
| CART Championship Car | |
| Years active | 1994-2001, 2003 |
| Teams | A. J. Foyt Enterprises Chip Ganassi Racing Team Rahal Walker Racing Mo Nunn Racing Zakspeed/Forsythe Racing PK Racing |
| Starts | 121 |
| Wins | 2 |
| Poles | 7 |
| Best finish | 8th in 1996 & 1998 |
| Previous series | |
| 2005-2006 1992-1993 1990-1991 |
A1 Grand Prix Indy Lights Barber Saab Pro Series |
| Championship titles | |
| 1993 1991 |
Indy Lights champion Barber Saab Pro Series champion |
Bryan Herta (b. May 23, 1970, Warren, Michigan) is an American race car driver. He currently drives for Andretti Green Racing, which is co-owned by former CART and IRL driver Michael Andretti, in the American Le Mans Series, although his career has primarily been spent in open-wheel cars in CART and the Indy Racing League.
Contents |
[edit] Racing career
[edit] CART/ChampCars/IndyCars
Herta enjoyed considerable success in the lower formulae, winning the Barber Formula Ford and Barber Saab series championships, and dominating the 1993 Indy Lights championship with Tasman Motorsports.
He graduated to IndyCar racing in 1994 with team owner A.J. Foyt, where he had several promising races before suffering a season-ending injury at Toronto.
In 1995, Herta was hired to drive for Chip Ganassi Racing. Despite a pole at Phoenix, the association was unsuccessful, with Herta managing only a 20th place in the series standings while his teammate Jimmy Vasser finished 8th. Even so, Herta landed a top ride with Team Rahal for the 1996 season.
During the next few years, Herta developed a reputation for his prowess on road courses, especially at Laguna Seca. In 1996, he was the leader until the last lap, when Alex Zanardi made the spectacular pass through the "Corkscrew" chicane and took the victory. Herta, who rarely qualified below the first row at Laguna Seca, finally won two events on the twisty road course in 1998 and 1999. At the height of Herta's career, fan interest in the Shell-sponsored driver was dubbed by team owner David Letterman as "Hertamania."
In the opening laps of the 1998 event at Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin's Road America circuit, Herta was involved in one of the scariest incidents in the history of North American motor racing. In the 4-mile road course's fifth turn, Herta got too close to the back of the car of co-owner Rahal, and spun out into a paved runoff area, facing oncoming traffic. A few seconds later, an ESPN camera that had zoomed in on Herta's head pulled back when Herta clenched his fists and put them against the sides of his head. As course workers scattered, Alex Barron slid into the front of Herta's car and rode up on top of it. Both drivers were okay. Herta reported that Barron's car had actually hit his hands, only inches from his face.
From 2000 to 2003, Herta drove for a variety of Champ Car teams including Forsythe Championship Racing, Mo Nunn Racing, and PK Racing, but never quite regained his form from the late 1990s.
[edit] IRL IndyCar Series
After dabbling in sports cars, he revitalized his open-wheel racing career by substituting for an injured Dario Franchitti halfway through the 2003 IRL season.
In just his third IRL start, Herta picked up his first IndyCar Series win at Kansas Speedway for Andretti Green Racing. He was retained in an expanded four-car squad in 2004, usually running development engines. On July 31, 2005, Herta took his second IndyCar Series win, defeating AGR teammate Dan Wheldon in a close finish in the Firestone Indy 400 at the Michigan International Speedway.
In early 2006, he drove at Laguna Seca and Fundidora Park for A1 Team USA in the A1 Grand Prix series before returning to Andretti Green for the IRL season.
As of 2006, Herta has started in the Indianapolis 500 five times (1994-1995, 2004-2006) with three top ten finishes, including a best of 3rd in 2005. Bryan has his helmets painted by AliveDesignCo.com
[edit] Sports cars
On October 31, 2006, Herta was confirmed as a driver for Andretti Green Racing's new Acura Le Mans prototype program for the 2007 American Le Mans Series season. He shared the car with Marino Franchitti, brother of his former teammate Dario Franchitti. On January 3, 2007, it was announced that Dario would also drive a limited ALMS programme with both Marino and Herta. Herta finished the season 7th in driver points with 1 class win. He also drove for A1 Team USA. At the event in Australia, Herta scored a 10th-place finish.
[edit] CART career results
| Year | Team | Wins | Points | Championship Finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | A.J. Foyt Enterprises | 0 | 11 | 23rd |
| 1995 | Chip Ganassi Racing | 0 | 30 | 20th |
| 1996 | Team Rahal | 0 | 86 | 8th |
| 1997 | Team Rahal | 0 | 72 | 11th |
| 1998 | Team Rahal | 1 | 97 | 8th |
| 1999 | Team Rahal | 1 | 84 | 12th |
| 2000 | Forsythe/Walker/Mo Nunn | 0 | 26 | 18th |
| 2001 | Forsythe Championship Racing | 0 | 28 | 22nd |
| 2003 | PK Racing | 0 | 2 | 25th |
2 wins, Best championship result: 8th
[edit] IRL IndyCar career results
| Year | Team | Wins | Points | Championship Finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Andretti Green Racing | 1 | 277 | 13th |
| 2004 | Andretti Green Racing | 0 | 362 | 9th |
| 2005 | Andretti Green Racing | 1 | 397 | 8th |
| 2006 | Andretti Green Racing | 0 | 289 | 11th |
2 wins, best championship result: 8th
[edit] Indy 500 results
| Year | Chassis | Engine | Start | Finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Lola | Ford-Cosworth | 22nd | 9th |
| 1995 | Reynard | Ford-Cosworth | 33rd | 13th |
| 2003 | Dallara | Honda | Injured | |
| 2004 | Dallara | Honda | 23rd | 4th |
| 2005 | Dallara | Honda | 18th | 3rd |
| 2006 | Dallara | Honda | 16th | 20th |
[edit] External links
- Herta's official site
- Herta's profile from IndyCar.com
- Bryan Herta on A1 TEAM USA Official Site
- Bryan Herta's helmet painter
| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Rob Wilson |
Barber Saab Pro Series Champion 1991 |
Succeeded by Robert Amren |
| Preceded by Robbie Buhl |
Indy Lights Champion 1993 |
Succeeded by Steve Robertson |
|
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