Bruno Junqueira, who won the inaugural 2002 Grand Prix of Denver and won again in 2003, limps into the Denver street race this weekend with more than a surgically repaired back and foot nagging him.
His confidence and swagger haven’t been the same since he suffered injuries in a horrific accident at the 2005 Indianapolis 500. Junqueira fractured his T-12 and L-1 vertebrae and shattered his left ankle, which became exposed by the violent crash caused by former Indy Racing League driver A.J. Foyt IV.
The injuries forced Junqueira, who finished second in the Champ Car standings in 2002, 2003 and 2004, to miss last year’s final 11 races.
This year, the 29-year-old is winless in nine races and a disappointing 12th in the standings.
He has just one top-three result and finished 15th and 17th in the past two races because of mechanical failure and an accident. He has more DNFs (five) than complete races (four).
That’s highly usual for a Newman/Haas driver, particularly one who used to be regarded as one of the most talented in the North American open-wheel ranks.
“It’s been a very difficult season,” Junqueira said. “For sure, I’m happy to be racing after the accident. I didn’t know what to expect. I came out at Long Beach and qualified good (third), and I’ve been able to go fast since, qualify well, get a couple good results, but most of the races I’ve been hit by someone, ran out of fuel, or had mechanical problem. … The results just aren’t there.”
He said putting the wreck behind him hasn’t been a big problem. Overcoming his bad luck is what he’s trying to conquer.
“Maybe in the first few races, I was thinking about that,” he said of the accident. “But I don’t think it’s anything related to the accident. I’m driving as normal as usual, but things just aren’t falling into place.”
Junqueira’s teammate is two-time defending series champion Sebastien Bourdais, who has five victories and a commanding lead in the standings.
“He’s been just as fast, but at some point you lose your confidence,” Bourdais said of Junqueira. “He’s just not having the best weekends. If something doesn’t go right he can’t see it through as much as he used to. He’s putting quite a bit of pressure on himself. He wants to turn his season around. And one race after another, it not happening. It’s tough. It’s gone from bad to worse, race after race.”
Junqueira and Bourdais, the two-time defending champion at Denver, are Champ Car’s only winners around the 1.65-mile course at the Pepsi Center. Both have won two times in three starts.
“I like the Denver race,” Junqueira said. “I’ve won a couple times and had a couple times on the pole. I’ve had success. I like the track and, from Denver on, I’m going to get wins and poles and turn it around.”
Staff writer Mike Chambers can be reached at 303-820-5453 or mchambers@denverpost.com.
Bad luck Bruno
Two-time Grand Prix of Denver winner Bruno Junqueira is a disappointing 12th in the standings with a career-high five DNFs this season. His 2006 results:
Race Start Finish Status
Long Beach 3 15 Accident
Houston 7 10 Running
Monterrey 4 10 Fuel
Milwaukee 2 15 Accident
Portland 1 4 Running
Cleveland 7 2 Running
Toronto 9 8 Running
Edmonton 9 15 Mechanical
San Jose 7 17 Accident
Source: Champ Car
