Some championship racecars are winners right out of the box, stunning the field with novel engineering or a wunderkind driver.

Conversely, others take time to mature into championship-winning machines, having benefited from years of development and accrued experience.

The latter approach is the story of this significant Lola B02/00, which served as a workhorse in the Newman/Haas Racing stable between 2002 and 2006, along the way scoring seven victories among 18 podium finishes.

As one of a small handful of B02/00 examples delivered new to Newman/Haas for the 2002 season, chassis number HU 03 was initially equipped with a Toyota RV8 engine, a choice that was largely prompted by the 2001 addition of driver Cristiano da Matta.

While the talented Brazilian would go on to win the 2002 championship, largely driving chassis number HU 20 (also offered in this sale), this car was piloted by his teammate and fellow countryman Christian Fittipaldi, the nephew of the legendary champion driver ...