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Thursday, April 5
Web helps Fittipaldi keep fans informed
By Christian Fittipaldi
Special to ESPN.com
When the Internet became the rage, I decided to get in on it and create a site that would inform fans about my racing and myself. We started the website with the help of Mike Ellis and his boys at a company called Cybertrack in 1998.
Initially the name was christianfittipaldi.net, which was very obvious but a little bit too long of a name and not user friendly for the race fans. The site had a very nice layout and was also easy to navigate. We had a lot of literature on the site and, to be quite honest, zero Christian Fittipaldi interaction.
|  | | Christian Fittipaldi and Paul Newman are all smiles after winning the Marlboro 500. The suit that Fittipaldi wore was given to a lucky fan as part of a web site promotion. |
As the season progressed and the Internet kept growing, I felt that there was a lot of room for improvement. I met with Mike at the end of 1999 and gave him a bunch of new ideas that I really felt could make the site better, plus I wanted to participate and be able to share parts of my life outside the track with the fans.
After about 60 days, Mark came back to me with a couple of my ideas that he would be able to put in practice. Based on our interaction, we developed and tried to make a site that was really enjoyable and user friendly for the fan. As soon as the new version of the site was up and running, we went from 1,500 visitors a month to between 35,000-40,000 visitors per month.
In my opinion, a big boost in those numbers was due to the fact that I ran a promotion for all of the people that subscribe to the site. I flew the winners to the season-ending Marlboro 500. As soon as the race was over, I handed my helmet to the winner from Phoenix and my suit to the other winner, a Brazilian from Campinas. They were really lucky to get these things since I won the Marlboro 500!
The part of the site that I like most is the personal pictures. It's the best way I can share my experiences with the fans, outside the racetrack and very enjoyable for me as I love taking pictures. I have already taken some pictures since I arrived to Long Beach for the Toyota Grand Prix this weekend. Cristiano and I went to a press lunch for the race but really didn't get to eat so we stopped at a fast food place to get a quick bite to eat before a photo shoot at the track. I had a picture taken and posted it to the site.
For the 2001 season, we basically did an upgrade of the 2000 site and changed a couple of areas and make it easier to navigate. We also added a merchandising section, which is where I sell only race worn products, a carbon fiber pen and a Momo watch. All of these items come with my Fittipaldionline.com alien logo.
I really enjoy developing the site to try and make it better for the fans. It will never affect my performance on the track, but at least it'll help people see things through my perspective. I also update it throughout race weekends so, log on to www.fittipaldionline.com and hopefully you'll have a blast!!
Newman Haas Racing competitors Christian Fittipaldi, who drives the No. 11 Kmart Toyota/Lola car, and Cristiano da Matta, who pilots the No. 6 Texaco/Havoline/Kmart Toyota/Lola ride, will provide regular diaries to ESPN.com throughout the 2001 season. You can check out Christian's web site at http://Fittipaldionline.com . Send this story to a friend | Most sent stories
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