Nelson Piquet Jr.
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| Nelson Angelo Piquet | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Nationality |  Brazilian |
| Car # | 6 |
| Current team | Renault |
| Formula One World Championship career | |
| Races | 7 |
| Championships | 0 |
| Wins | 0 |
| Podium finishes | 0 |
| Pole positions | 0 |
| Career points | 0 |
| Fastest laps | 0 |
| First race | 2008 Australian Grand Prix |
| Latest race | 2008 Canadian Grand Prix |
| 2008 position | |
Nelson Ângelo Tamsma Piquet Souto Maior[1] (born July 25, 1985, Heidelberg, Germany), also known as Nelson Piquet Junior or Nelsinho Piquet, is a Brazilian race car driver. He is the son of three-time Formula One world champion Nelson Piquet, one of Brazil's most successful F1 drivers. In the 2005 and 2006 seasons he raced in the GP2 Series, taking a win in Belgium in 2005 and claiming 2nd place in the series in 2006[2]. He was signed as test driver for Renault Formula One team for the 2007 season, and has been promoted to the race team for 2008 [3]. Piquet currently resides in Oxford, England.
Contents |
[edit] Personal Details
His parents separated soon after he was born and he lived in Monaco with his Dutch mother Sylvia Tamsma until he was eight years old when he moved to live in Brazil with his father. "They kind of swapped me. My mother wanted me to get to know my father, she wanted me to know Brazil and the language, and she realised life in Brazil would be better for a child." [4] He has two sisters, Kelly and Julia, and four brothers, Geraldo, Laszlo, Pedro and Marco.
[edit] Career
[edit] Before F1
Piquet's racing career started in 1993 in Brazilian karting, where he would stay until 2001 when he moved to Formula Three Sudamericana [5]. His father's wealth enabled him to race for his own team, a practice he continued until he left GP2 Series. He raced in part of the 2001 season there, staying for 2002 winning the championship[6] with four races to go. In 2002 he also raced one race of Brazilian Formula Renault.
In 2003, Piquet moved to the UK where he joined the British Formula 3 Championship and formed the Piquet Sports team. He went on to finish the championship in 3rd place with six wins [7], five podiums and eight pole positions. A test with the Williams F1 team followed.[8]
In 2004, Piquet won the British Formula 3 Championship. He became the youngest driver to have ever won the championship at 19 years and 2 months [9]. He also did further running for Williams.
In 2005, Piquet took part in the A1 Grand Prix for A1 Team Brazil, winning both the Spring and Main races at the first event of the season at Brands Hatch [10], as well as scoring a point for the fastest lap. He also drove for the HiTech/Piquet Sports in the GP2 Series, winning his first race at Spa Francorchamps in Belgium, and tested for the BAR-Honda Formula 1 team.[11]
In 2006, Piquet gained second place in the championship to British driver Lewis Hamilton in his second year of GP2.
[edit] Formula One
[edit] 2007: Renault
During the 2007 season he was the official test and reserve driver for the Renault Formula One team.[12]
[edit] 2008: Renault
The 2008 season has seen Piquet promoted to the Renault Formula One race team to drive alongside returning double World Champion Fernando Alonso.[13] It is reported that he gained preference for the seat over Heikki Kovalainen as Kovalainen was seen as a potential rival to Alonso and such a challenge to Alonso could damage the team.[14]
The first race of the season in Australia saw Piquet start 21st and damage his car in a collision on the opening lap before and ultimately retiring on lap 31.[15] This was exactly the same result as his father achieved in his first race. At the Malaysian Grand Prix he started from 13th on the grid and went on to finish 11th.[16] He started the Bahrain Grand Prix from 14th but retired with a gearbox problem after his second pit stop. Piquet qualified in 10th for the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona, taking part in the first top 10 qualifying session of his career.[17] However his race ended on lap 7 after colliding with Sébastien Bourdais in an attempt to overtake. A disappointing time in Turkey saw him qualify 17th[18] and finish the race 15th.[19] His problems were further compounded with a pair of non finishes when he crashed out of Monaco after failing to get to grips with the damp conditions[20], and spinning off while chasing team-mate Alonso in Canada before ultimately retiring on lap 42[21] with brake failure.[22]
Piquet has come under increasing pressure from his Renault team over the course of the 2008 season, and there has been speculation that Piquet will lose his race seat if he does not up his game.[23][24][25] Renault have done nothing to quell the rumours by publicly urging him to improve after the Turkish Grand Prix[26] and suggesting after Monaco that he lacks confidence.[27]
[edit] Racing record
[edit] Career summary
| Season | Series | Team Name | Races | Poles | Wins | Points | Final Placing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Formula Three Sudamericana | Piquet Sports | 7 | 1 | 1 | 77 | 5th |
| 2002 | Formula Three Sudamericana | Piquet Sports | 17 | 16 | 13 | 296 | 1st |
| 2003 | British Formula Three | Piquet Sports | 23 | 8 | 6 | 231 | 3rd |
| Macau Grand Prix | ? | 1 | 0 | 0 | N/A | 8th | |
| Masters of Formula Three | Piquet Sports | 1 | 1 | 0 | N/A | 2nd | |
| F3 Korean Superprix | HiTech Racing | 1 | 0 | 0 | N/A | 3rd | |
| 2004 | British Formula Three | Piquet Sports | 24 | 5 | 6 | 282 | 1st |
| European Formula Three Cup | Piquet Sports | 1 | 1 | 0 | N/A | 4th | |
| Macau Grand Prix | Piquet Sports | 1 | 0 | 0 | N/A | 10th | |
| Masters of Formula Three | Piquet Sports | 1 | 0 | 0 | N/A | 8th | |
| Bahrain F3 Superprix | Piquet Sports | 1 | 0 | 0 | N/A | NC | |
| Porsche Supercup | Porsche AG VIP Team | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | NC | |
| 2005 | GP2 Series | HiTech-Piquet Sports | 22 | 0 | 1 | 46 | 8th |
| 2005-06 | A1 Grand Prix | Brazil | 14 | 2 | 2 | 71* | 6th* |
| 2006 | GP2 Series | Piquet Sports | 21 | 6 | 4 | 102 | 2nd |
| Le Mans 24 Hours | Russian Age Racing (GT1) | 1 | 0 | 0 | N/A | 4th | |
| Mil Milhas Brasil | Cirtek Motorsport (GTP1) | 1 | 0 | 1 | N/A | 1st | |
| 2007 | Formula One | Renault | Test driver | ||||
| 2008 | Formula One | Renault | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19th** |
* Includes points scored by other Team Brazil drivers.
** Season in progress
[edit] Complete Formula One results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Entrant | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | WDC | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | ING Renault F1 Team | Renault R28 | Renault RS27 2.4 V8 | AUS Ret |
MAL 11 |
BHR Ret |
ESP Ret |
TUR 15 |
MON Ret |
CAN Ret |
FRA |
GBR |
GER |
HUN |
EUR |
BEL |
ITA |
SIN |
JPN |
CHN |
BRA |
19th* | 0* |
* Season in progress
[edit] References
- ^ Biography for Nelson Piquet Jr.
- ^ http://www.planet-f1.com/story/0,18954,14257_3079816,00.html
- ^ http://www.ing.com/group/showdoc.jsp?docid=198855_EN&menopt=spr%7Cone
- ^ Nelson Piquet Jr Tells Stephen Moss How He Intends to Become a Grand Prix Legend, Just Like His Father
- ^ http://www.planet-f1.com/story/0,18954,14257_3079816,00.html
- ^ http://en.f1-live.com/f1/en/drivers/piquet.shtml
- ^ http://en.f1-live.com/f1/en/drivers/piquet.shtml
- ^ http://en.f1-live.com/f1/en/drivers/piquet.shtml
- ^ http://www.planet-f1.com/story/0,18954,14257_3079816,00.html
- ^ http://en.f1-live.com/f1/en/drivers/piquet.shtml
- ^ http://en.f1-live.com/f1/en/drivers/piquet.shtml
- ^ F1 News > Renault re-aligns aspirations
- ^ http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/64336
- ^ BBC SPORT | Motorsport | Formula One | Alonso opts for return to Renault
- ^ http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/65885
- ^ http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/66046
- ^ BBC SPORT | Motorsport | Formula One | Raikkonen denies Alonso home pole
- ^ http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/67308
- ^ http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/67356
- ^ http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/67739
- ^ http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/68131
- ^ http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/68136
- ^ http://www.grandprix.com/ns/ns20392.html
- ^ http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/16052008/23/piquet-replaced-sato-renault.html
- ^ http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/27052008/23/doornbos-drive-renault-piquet-under-pressure.html
- ^ http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/67436
- ^ http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/67800
[edit] External links
| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Juliano Moro |
Formula Three Sudamericana Champion 2002 |
Succeeded by Danilo Dirani |
| Preceded by Alan van der Merwe |
British Formula Three Champion 2004 |
Succeeded by Álvaro Parente |
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