 Patrick Racing downsized their effort to a single car, while Forsythe Racing shut down their third car driven by Bryan Herta in 2001 for lack of sponsorship.1996 series champion Jimmy Vasser, one of two former champions in the 2002 field (the other being Michael Andretti), left Patrick Racing for Team Rahal.Joining him at Rahal was Michel Jourdain, Jr. who left Herdez Competition.