CART prospects drivers in Miami source: CART.com One of the more interesting sidelights at the recent Grand Prix Americas might have been determining which drivers were in the paddock to visit old friends and which drivers were seeking rides for the future in the CART FedEx Championship Series. Although former CART champions Jacques Villeneuve and Juan Montoya were there to visit, a number of other drivers were there reportedly looking for Champ Car rides. CART.com Writer John Oreovicz looks at some of the interesting spectators in the Miami paddock. Meet a few of the men you might see in the CART FedEx Championship Series field in 2003. JUSTIN WILSON--26, England: Wilson won the 2001 Formula 3000 championship in record-breaking style--and that's saying something, because most of the records he broke (including most points and most podiums) belonged to a gentleman named Montoya. Prior to F3000, Wilson won the underrated Formula Palmer Audi championship. The biggest hurdle Justin has had to overcome throughout his racing career is his height--he's about 6 feet 4 inches. That caused him to miss out on a chance to sub for the Minardi Formula One team this summer. But the lanky Brit fits better in a Champ Car, and he impressed Newman/Haas Racing over the course of 400 miles at Homestead-Miami Speedway last week--his first oval experience. RYAN HUNTER-REAY--21, USA: Hunter-Reay advanced through the Skip Barber system and landed this year in the CART Toyota Atlantic Championship, where he made an immediate impression. His fortunes faded in the second half of the season, but he still posted three poles, three wins and led the series in laps led. He is considered one of America's top prospects. TOMAS SCHECKTER--21, South Africa: Son of 1979 Formula 1 champion Jody Scheckter, Tomas' career has taken him all over the world. He had a plum job as the Jaguar F1 team's test driver until he landed in the Indy Racing League, where he led more laps than anyone this season. He also won a race, but crashed a lot and eventually walked out on his job for Team Cheever. Scheckter has made a name for himself quickly in America is highly coveted by several racing series right now and it would be interesting to see him return to his road racing roots. DARREN MANNING--27, England: Manning has a leg up on most of these other candidates because he's already run a Champ Car race. And he ran it well, leading 18 laps on the way to ninth place at Rockingham Motor Speedway. Manning, who raced formula cars before switching to the ASCAR stock car series in 2002, is likely to get another chance to show his Champ Car abilities in the 500-miler coming up in a few weeks at California Speedway.
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