Cristiano da Matta remained in intensive care Saturday while the driver he replaced at Loveland-based RuSport pulled out of the open test where da Matta suffered his freak accident with a wandering deer Thursday.
Thornton’s A.J. Allmendinger, now with Indianapolis-based Forsythe Championship Racing, returned home Saturday after bowing out of Friday’s final test session at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wis.
Forsythe teammate Paul Tracy also declined to test in a show of support for da Matta, the 2002 series champion who is in serious but stable condition with head injuries at Theda Clark Medical Center in Neenah, Wis.
“It’s a very tough situation when a member of the Champ Car family gets hurt,” Allmen- dinger said in a release. “I’ve never driven a Champ Car here before and our laps (Thursday) really helped, but my thoughts are with Cristiano and his family, and we are all pulling for him.”
Said Tracy, “It’s a decision made out of respect for Cristiano.”
Da Matta, 32, underwent emergency surgery after being flown to the hospital by helicopter from Road America, a 4-mile, 14-turn road course in a heavily wooded area surrounded by farmland. The deer he struck near turn six collapsed into the open-air cockpit – inwhich the driver’s head is the only fully exposed body part – and then da Matta, apparently knocked unconscious from the impact with the deer, ran into a tire barrier.
A track spokesman said the facility has never had problems with deer on the track, although officials are aware deer have jumped the 8-foot fence that surrounds the property.
“It was obviously a freak accident, but there are definitely some safety issues that should be addressed,” Tracy said.
Dr. Chris Pinderski, Champ Car director of medical affairs, said da Matta is heavily sedated and battling brain swelling.
“Repeat CT scans show no further bleeding, but Cristiano does have some cerebral adema, which is swelling of the brain itself,” Pinderski said Saturday in a release. “This is common with significant head injuries and was expected in this situation.”
RuSport, which also fields a car for British-born Justin Wilson, who lives in Longmont, will not replace da Matta in this week’s Grand Prix of Denver.
RuSport is asking fans that, instead of sending flowers and gifts to its Loveland headquarters, to show support for da Matta’s recovery by making a donation in his name to Hole in the Wall Camps, Champ Car’s official charity, founded by team owner and actor Paul Newman. For information, visit www.holeinthewallcamps.org or call 203-562-1203.
