Alex Zanardi:
by Paul Dana.
1998 Gold Coast Indy Official Program.

Like a smouldering streak of black rubber laid down on the asphalt during his trademark victory doughnuts, Alex Zanardi has left an indelible mark on the FedEx Championship Series. The 31-year-old Italian has monopolized the limelight in just three short seasons with a string of new records; and, as quickly as he arrived, he may depart. The reports are unconfirmed as this is written, but Zanardi seems likely to take up a particularly lucrative offer to join the Williams Formula 1 team in '99.

Zanardi's on-track record speaks for itself: Rookie of the Year in '96 with three wins; '97 champion with five wins; and (though he has to clinch as we go to press) almost certainly the '98 champion as well with, well, it was six wins at the season's halfway point and we're still counting. Earlier this year he tied a CART record for most consecutive wins with four. He holds records for most consecutive poles (six) and most consecutive front-row starts (11). By finishing third in the U.S. 500 at Michigan Speedway in July, he stretched a streak of podium finishes to 16 in 19 races. Most impressive, with 14 career victories in just three seasons, he has won nearly one-third of his races. He is the only driver in CART history with a winning percentage above .300.

But Zanardi brings much more to the sport than pure talent. He has a flair for the spectacular and a keen sense of showmanship. He is passionate and controversial. He has star quality. He is the embodiment of the passion that is motor racing. Consider, for instance, the way in which he wins races: his last lap, off-track lunge past Bryan Herta at Laguna Seca in '96; his late-race move on Herta again in Long Beach this year; or his late-race dive inside none other than Michael Andretti in Toronto this past July. If Zanardi smells victory in the closing stages of a race - which he often does, having usually worked with engineer Mo Nunn to nail the setup on his Target / Chip Ganassi Racing Reynard-Honda - you can count on him to reach deep down for that last little bit and make something happen.

Even when Zanardi doesn't win, he raises a ruckus trying. Remember him barging through the field at Vancouver last year like a bull in a china shop, coming from a lap down to finish fourth, on a street circuit that is notoriously difficult for passing? Remember the manner in which he clinched the championship in '97, by finishing second at Laguna Seca after surviving contact with Herta (again) and driving off track on two other occasions? Remember his accident-riddled run at Mid-Ohio this season that saw him drive spectacularly off course once and collide with other cars twice, earning probation and a stiff $US50,000 fine from CART? Or his first-lap punt of Al Unser Jr just one week later at Road America, which ended Unser's day but left Zanardi unscathed? It seems as if Zanardi always treads that blurry line between spectacular and stupid, between inspiration and folly. And he almost seems to get away with murder. The fans, on the whole, love it. His competitors abhor it. But the simple fact remains that his style produces results.

Outside of the car, Zanardi is as entertaining as he is with the helmet on. He once shrugged off criticism of his aggression by saying, "In Italy they have a saying: 'A lot of enemies, a lot of honour'". It is just one example of the stunning frankness with which he conducts himself among the press. Mix in a sharp sense of humour and you have one of the most quotable race car drivers in history. Example: When fielding an endless barrage of enquiries this season about his plans for '99. Zanardi told a packed room of reporters, "(Team Owner) Chip Ganassi and I have been talking and he knows exactly where I stand. For sure if I stay here, I'm going to screw him out of every penny he has".

Describing the popular series of televisiom commercials he and teammate Jimmy Vasser have made with sponsor Target, he says, "Those TV producers make me say the lines 50 times, and even though my English is getting better, they don't want the good lines. They always make me do it over again and say it worse, and then they take the worst cut". Much of Zanardi's accessibility stems from his humble origins. Not born into a racing family, Zanardi's earliest memories of the sport are of an ill-fated attempt at the age of 8 to construct his own chassis out of pipe that his father, a plumber, had lying around the house. "Obviously, I had no success", Zanardi recalls.

After his sisterwas killed on a motor scooter, Zanardi's dad bought him a go-kart to satisfy the youngster's need for speed because he thought it would be safer. Lacking any experience whatsoever, the two travelled around Italy competing, learning as they went and pulling themselves up by their boot straps on many occasions. In particular, Zanardi remembers the time when he was saddled win an uncompetitive chassis and spent the night before an important championship event literally re-designing and rebuilding it himself. The next morning, he went on to win.

Years later, having risen through the formula car ranks in Europe, Zanardi made it to Formula 1 first with Minardi, then as a test driver for Benetton. In '93 he got a break with the Lotus team, where he was schooled in the harsh realities of the sport. His first season was cut short by injuries sustained in an accident in Belgium; the following year, the team went bankrupt, leaving the Italian without a ride. Then Zanardi got lucky. During his formative years in Formula 3000 he had impressed Rick Gorne, managing director of Reynard Racing Cars. Gorne duly recommended Zanardi to Chip Ganassi, setting up the storybook run in Champ Cars that began in '96.

Zanardi recognises that much of his success stems from good fortune. "There are 900,000 things that are beyond control that have goen right for me", he says. "Other drivers have as much talent as I do, but they've never been in the right situation. It doesn't happen very often that a guy who is an unknown like me gets the opportunity to drive a competitive car. I guess I was pretty lucky to meet Chip Ganassi at the right time, when the team had a great package". But Zanardi also believes that sport ultimately measures an athlete's will more than his talent. What has propelled him to such great accomplishments and endeared him to racing fans everywhere is that unquenchable will to succeed, every day, at all costs. His return to Formula 1, assuming it happens, will bless that series with much-needed spark. In CART, he has been more colourful than a box of Crayolas. We're thankful we were given a chance to know him.

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