Zanardi Racing Again

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"Zanardi will make his racing come-back
At Monza in ETCC

Zanardi will fulfil his dream

BMW announced today at the Frankfurt International Motorshow that Alessandro Zanardi will make his racing come-back on 19 October in the last round of the European Touring Car Championship (ETCC).

This announcement comes in just over 2 years after Zanardi lost his two legs in an horrific accident during a CART race organised on the German circuit of Lausitzring.

Mario Theissen made the official announcement that Alex Zanardi will be back in competition in ETCC at the wheel of a BMW 320i. “It’s an honour for us that Alex is able to make his dream come true in a BMW," said Theissen on BMW Motorsport's official web site. "We are extremely happy to provide him with the support of all our expertise and engineering skills. His project reflects the BMW Motorsport philosophy of always searching for new frontiers. Whatever the result of the race, Alex has already won through as far as I’m concerned.”

Alex Zanardi will be the third driver in the Ravaglia team, alongside Fabrizio Giovanardi and Antonio Garcia. “Two years ago I escaped death by a whisker,” mentioned Zanardi. “Although the situation was really bad at the time, I set myself the goal of leading a normal life again at some time in the future. Today, I can walk, I swim, I go skiing, and on 19 October I will complete my vision by competing seriously in a race. I believe that sometimes in life it’s difficult to regain your courage after a stroke of bad luck. If I manage to keep pace in Monza in October, I shall have reaffirmed my faith in myself: where there’s a will, there’s a way.”

Alex's car for the event is adapted with only one pedal for braking, while all the other commands are operated on the steering wheel.

Alessandro Zanardi was born on 23 October 1966 and started in Formula One at Jordan in 1991. After that he drove for Minardi and Lotus before heading to North America. Alex became a star in the CART series by winning the championship in 1997 and 1998. The Italian made his come-back in F1 the following year at Williams but the season didn't turn out well for him and he was dropped by the team before the end of his contract. After a one-year sabbatical, Alex was back in the CART championship until he had his terrible accident in Germany near the end of the season. Since then Alex has been dreaming of making a come-back in racing. His dream will come through on 19 October at Monza this year.

Hugo GIGUERE
CAPSIS International"

Wow. This guy continues to amaze me. Those looking for heros need look no further.
 
Zanardi a real hero

in other articles, there's mention of some of his other plans, including a possible stint at Daytona.

From other article:
Zanardi has no plans to return to top class driving but may race "low pressure" events like the Daytona 24-hour race.
 
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