While Cristiano da Matta is recovering from serious head injuries, his replacement driver is getting a career opportunity.
Homegrown Ryan Briscoe will make his Champ Car debut for the RuSPORT team in Sunday's Indy 300 on the temporary street course at Surfers Paradise, the sixth Australian driver to compete in the 16th version of the event. Da Matta was injured when he hit a deer during Champ Car testing in August.
``It's never the way a driver hopes to land a drive, and my thoughts are still with Cristiano,'' Briscoe said Thursday. ``But the important thing is that he is on the way to what is hopefully a full recovery. In the meantime, it's an honour to take his seat.''
Briscoe, 25, is making his second trip to the Surfers Paradise circuit. His first came in 1997 when he was a 16-year-old go-cart racer and he met driver Alex Zanardi.
Recently, it's been full speed ahead for the Sydney-born North Carolina resident. He served as a test driver for Toyota's Formula 1 program from 2002-2004, competed in the Indy Racing League as a member of Chip Ganassi Racing in 2005 and raced in the Rolex 24 Hours at Daytona in 2005 and 2006, winning the pole in 2005.
Briscoe's career nearly stalled last September. His car clipped Alex Barron's on the third turn of the 20th lap of an IRL race at Chicagoland Speedway.
Briscoe's car flew into the retaining fence, tearing apart the car and forming a massive fireball. Briscoe somehow was released from the separated tub of the car, but not before suffering a concussion, two broken collarbones, a bruised lung and broken foot.
``I remember the initial contact with Alex and thought that we might get away with not hitting the wall, but suddenly I was airborne and the rest is a little fuzzy,'' Briscoe said.
Two months later, he was back testing both Formula 1 and Champ cars.
Briscoe is under no illusion about the difficulty he faces in Sunday's race, regardless of the local support. The demanding 2.8-mile circuit usually features several collisions, particularly on the chicane at the end of the straightaway at the beginning of the race.
``From what I've heard from the other drivers, Surfers Paradise is the biggest and most exciting event on the calendar,'' Briscoe said. ``I'm hoping we can get to a quick start and get some good results right away.''
Sebastien Bourdais, who won last year's race, needs to finish ninth or better in Sunday's race to clinch his third straight series championship. He has a 58-point lead over American A.J. Allmendinger with two races to go.
Qualifying begins Friday with a second session Saturday.
© The Canadian Press, 2007
