The page you were looking for doesn't exist. You may have mistyped the address or the page may have moved.

MAY 18, 2002

Da Matta tries Toyota F1 car

CART series frontrunner Cristiano da Matta has always wanted to race in Formula 1 and thanks to Toyota was able to have his first runs in an F1 car on Friday at Paul Ricard. The Brazilian did 100 laps of the Paul Ricard circuit, working alongside regular racer Allan McNish.

Da Matta reported that the car was much lighter to drive than a CART car and a lot more demanding on the neck and head because of the higher G-forces involved.

Cristiano was also impressed by the amount of grip from the grooved tires.