Preview: CART Toyota Atlantic Championship.

Over the past 29 years, racing superstars like Gilles Villeneuve, Bobby Rahal, Jimmy Vasser, Jacques Villeneuve and Patrick Carpentier first made names for themselves in Formula Atlantic competition - now, as CART support series begins its 30th anniversary season in Mexico, a new crop of up-and-coming racers will take their first steps toward building their own names.

Leading the charge in front of his countrymen will be second-year driver Luis Diaz, who returns to Toyota Atlantic for another season with 2002 series champions Dorricott Racing. In his first Toyota Atlantic start last year, Diaz placed his car on pole position in Monterrey, before finishing fifth on wet track conditions in the race. Diaz's team-mate, and eventual series champion, Jon Fogarty claimed the victory, while Diaz went on to claim a second pole position in Portland and victories at Portland and Road America, en route to fourth in the championship standings.

''This year will be tough because I think it is going to be one of the most competitive years in Atlantic history,'' Diaz said, ''I want to make the jump to CART at the end of the year, so I have a lot riding on my doing well.''

Another driver who will be flying the Mexican flag this weekend will be Mexico City's Eduardo Figueroa, who will once again be driving for San Diego-based Scuadra Fortia. The team is looking for bigger things in its second year together after an extensive off-season testing schedule.

One driver who has been chomping at the bit to get back racing after narrowly missing the 2002 CART Toyota Atlantic Championship title is Canadian Michael Valiante, who is competing in his second full season of Toyota Atlantic and third season overall. Valiante tied Ryan Hunter-Reay for the series high in victories last year, with three, and finished second in the season point standings, but, while RHR has moved on to a Champ Car seat in Stefan Johansson's new team, the Canadian is left to look for an improvement on the fourth place result in Monterrey that began his 2002 campaign.

''The lesson we learned from what happened last year is that, if you're going for the championship, you have to go flat out from the first lap of the first race,'' he said of his season's focus, ''We took a conservative approach at the start of last season because I was basically a rookie and, although we knew we could win some races, we weren't really thinking in terms of going for the championship. By the time we saw we could win it, we were already so close to the end of the season that bad luck played a bigger part than it should have. This year, it's already hammer down!''

American Joey Hand returns for a third Toyota Atlantic season in 2003, after missing half of the 2002 season due to a back injury sustained in a crash during testing at the Milwaukee Mile. Hand earned the best result of his abbreviated '02 campaign in last year's Monterrey season opener, taking third place run after qualifying second.

''I think many people have discounted us because of what happened last season,'' Hand admitted, ''By the time the Mexico event is over, however, people will know that we will be a factor in each race.''

Scotland's Ryan Dalziel established a career-best Toyota Atlantic mark when he charged from tenth on the starting grid to claim second place in Monterrey last season. He closed out the 2002 season with a pole position and a second place finish in Denver, and has joined Sierra Sierra Racing for his second tour of duty in the CART Toyota Atlantic Championship.

''I'm looking forward to Monterrey, especially after the strong second place finish I posted there last year,'' Dalziel said, ''I'm really excited about this year's championship, and even more excited about racing for Sierra Sierra Enterprises. We have a great group of guys on the team, full of experience and fight. The car has been really quick in testing and I know that we will be championship contenders.''

Other returnees to the series this weekend will be Jonathan Macri who has joined Polestar Atlantic for his third year of Toyota Atlantic Competition; Alex Figge, who returns for a second year with the newly-formed Pacific Coast Motorsports team; Venezuelan Alex Garcia, who is back for his second year with Transnet Racing; second-generation driver Kyle Krisiloff, who embarks on his first full season after competing in the final six Toyota Atlantic races of 2002; and Eric Jensen, who has made 20 Toyota Atlantic starts since 1997.

While the cast of series veterans is extensive, the 2003 CART Toyota Atlantic Championship also boasts an impressive crop of rookies. Among the drivers expected to lead the battle for BG Products Rookie of the Year will be 2002 Barber Dodge Pro Series champion AJ Allmendinger, who makes his Toyota Atlantic debut this weekend. Allmendinger won six races, had a total of nine podium finishes, and four pole positions in ten BDPS races last year. His lowest finish of the season was a fourth place result - and he shows no sign of abating after his graduation to Atlantics.

''I'm just really excited about the opportunity I have this season with RuSPORT to race in this championship,'' Allmendinger admitted, ''I'm very confident in the team and myself going into the first race in Monterrey. I'm excited about what we can accomplish together - my realistic goal for this year is the championship and nothing less.''

Another promising rookie will be Allmendinger's RuSPORT team-mate Aaron Justus, the 2000 US Formula Ford 2000 national champion. After sitting out much of 2001 and '02, Justus returned to racing in the final three events of the 2002 CART Toyota Atlantic Championship with Performance Development & Racing, posting two top-ten
finishes and a best result of seventh in the finale at Denver. Because he made only three starts last year, Justus is still considered a series rookie in 2003.

Likewise, Sierra Sierra Racing's Marc DeVellis also maintained his 2003 Toyota Atlantic rookie status after making three starts in 2002. DeVellis, like Valiante from Burnaby in British Colombia, had an impressive debut in 2002 by taking third place in his maiden race at Trois-Rivieres. Based on that performance, he remains one to
watch in 2003.

One driver who is certain to get a lot of attention throughout 2003 is Danica Patrick, who is the first full-time female competitor in the 29-year history of the CART Toyota Atlantic Championship. Patrick won the pro division of the 2002 Toyota Pro Celebrity race at Long Beach last year and placed second in the 2000 British Formula Ford Festival, making her the highest finishing American driver in that prestigious race since Danny Sullivan in 1974, and the highest finishing female driver in event history. She joins the newly-formed Team Rahal Toyota Atlantic programme, under the ownership of three-time Champ Car champion Bobby Rahal, and late night television star David Letterman.

''I am sure I will have a few butterflies when I get in the car on Friday but, once I get on track, I will be into the session and everything will be fine,'' Patrick admitted, ''Certainly, anytime you start in a new series, there are some unknown factors and it is difficult to know fully what to expect. I know what my expectations are, however, and I know all the hours of preparation that have been put in. My team and I expect to be successful.''

Two more rookies to watch will be Frenchman Romain Dumas and Montreal's Philip Fayer. Dumas, a veteran of Formula 3000 who also tested the Renault F1 car last year, was recently announced as the second driver for Scuadra Fortia for the Monterrey event. Fayer, meanwhile, has won several races in SCCA competition and joins the two-car Starwood Team Jensen for 2003.

Every driver in the field will wheel Swift 014.a chassis, powered by 1.6-litre, four-cylinder, 16-valve, fuel-injected, dual-overhead cam Toyota 4A-GE engines, capable of producing 240 horsepower at 9500rpm and running speeds in excess of 165mph. All cars will ride on Yokohama ADVAN Racing Slicks.

The opening weekend of the season gets underway on Friday 21 March 21 with a 30-minute practice session and a 30-minute qualifying session. Saturday's activities include further practice and final qualifying, while race day begins with a 15-minute warm-up session before the green flag drops on the Tecate/Telmex Monterrey Grand Prix at 1030hrs. The scheduled race distance is 32 laps, but is subject to a 50-minute time limit.

The time limit may be prescient if conditions mimic those that blighted last year's season-opener. On a rain-soaked track, Dorricott Racing driver Jon Fogarty claimed his first Toyota Atlantic victory in his first series start, beating Scottish rookie Ryan Dalziel to the stripe by 0.884secs. After starting fourth, Fogarty claimed the lead from his team-mate, polesitter Luis Diaz, on the sixth lap and held off a late charge from Dalziel to get the victory. Finishing third was outside polesitter Joey Hand, followed by Lynx Racing's Michael Valiante in fourth. After leading the opening five laps, Diaz claimed fifth place in front of his Mexican countrymen.