Wheel Might Be Taken Out of Herta’s Hands

Bryan Herta’s strange odyssey in the Championship Auto Racing Teams series took another bizarre twist this week, when it was revealed that two-time series champion Alex Zanardi has been given the chance to replace Herta as the substitute for injured Tony Kanaan in the Reynard-Mercedes owned by Mo Nunn.

Nunn, who was Zanardi’s chief engineer when the Italian native won consecutive championships for Chip Ganassi in 1997 and 1998, did not bring a car or driver to CART’s open test Thursday and today at Chicago Motor Speedway, although Herta, from Valencia, drove the car to ninth place in the Marconi Grand Prix of Cleveland at Burke Lakefront Airport on Sunday and finished 16th a week earlier in the Freightliner/G.I. Joe’s 200 at Portland International Raceway.

Instead, Nunn and Zanardi will conduct closed tests Saturday and Sunday at Sebring International Raceway in Florida.

Nunn said he is hoping to enter a second car for Zanardi in 2001, and added that Zanardi can have the seat in Kanaan’s car for the Molson Indy Toronto on July 16.

“If all goes well [this] weekend, and Alex is totally comfortable and agrees to it, we just might see him before Tony is fit to resume as our full-time driver,” Nunn said.

Herta said losing the seat to Zanardi is not a done deal, despite reports to the contrary.

“What [Nunn] told me is that this is a test they have had planned for a long time,” Herta said. “If Alex decides he wants to do the race, Mercedes and Morris would like him to do the race, but I think a lot of people have jumped the gun on it by assuming that Alex will do the race.”

Herta, who drove two races in Derek Walker’s Reynard-Honda while regular driver Shinji Nakano was injured, is in the first year of a multiyear contract with Gerald Forsythe.

The role of substitute is not something Herta relishes, although that was the only opportunity left once Forsythe withdrew Herta’s Swift-Honda before the season opener March 26 at Homestead-Miami Speedway in a franchise dispute with CART.

“I’ve said all along that I don’t want to be a ‘Super-Sub,’ but the fact is that it’s a compliment that when teams need somebody, they call me first,” said Herta, who is 19th in the points standings despite missing five of nine races. “I was more negative toward the idea at first, because I didn’t want to look at myself as a substitute driver. I wanted to see myself as a full-time guy.”

Roberto Moreno, who won at Cleveland and leads the points standings, drove seven races as a substitute in 1999, which he parlayed into a full-time job with Pat Patrick this year.

“I’m Roberto’s biggest cheerleader right now,” Herta said.

Forsythe has said publicly he intends to reenter his team in a series next year, although not necessarily CART. Herta’s preference is to remain in CART, but Forsythe’s lack of a deal leaves him in limbo.

“I think I’ve made the most out of every opportunity I’ve had,” Herta said. “With the different chassis and engines they have out there, I guess for sure I’ve got more recent experience with the different combinations than anybody.”

Herta said his contract with Forsythe gives him the flexibility to do what he needs to further his career. He acknowledged having been contacted by a couple of CART teams, and he attended the Coca-Cola 600 NASCAR Winston Cup race at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Charlotte, N.C., Memorial Day weekend.

The uncertain status of the Forsythe team for 2001 and the trip to Charlotte have made Herta a subject of the CART rumor mill.

“I’ve never even sat in a stock car of any kind,” said Herta, who attended stock car races at Saugus Speedway as a youth. “All [the rumors] are normal for this time of year. They call it ‘Silly Season’ for a reason. Believe me, what really goes on is far less interesting than all of the rumors going around.”

Herta is not dismissing the idea of a jump to NASCAR either. Indy Racing League veteran Tony Stewart had a stellar rookie season after walking away from a successful open-wheel career, while CART veterans Robbie Gordon and Scott Pruett have shown potential as Winston Cup rookies this year.

“I’d try it, even though I’ve never done it before,” said Herta. “Maybe I’d love it, maybe I’d hate it.”

Herta became interested in NASCAR while watching a Winston Cup telecast from Bristol, Tenn.

“They had ‘happy hour’ on TV, and there were 100,000 people there watching practice,” Herta said. “That really impressed me, so I watched the race the next day, and they had a capacity crowd of something like 160,000 people.”

Despite the uncertainty, Herta has remained upbeat.

“I don’t think I’ve been one of those unreasonably positive people,” said Herta. “These types of things happen to everybody, as far as ups and downs. You either have to learn to deal with it, or go find something else to do, because it will make you crazy if you let it.”