Who Is This Guy Anyway?
CART - the US's premier open wheel auto racing series - crowned a new champion last week.
He's a Brazilian, born in Paris, France, a resident of Florida who drove an British chassis powered by a Japanese engine.
But he's the US Champ Car champion ...
He smiles a lot. His demeanor is pleasant. He's known in the racing paddock as a friendly interview, always entertaining and articulate. Like most race car drivers, he doesn't have the size or bulk of a professional basketball or football player. Meet him on the street, and you'd probably think he's an average good natured guy.
Meet Gil de Ferran, first-time series champion of CART, proudly holding the newly-named Vanderbilt Cup.
The new champioin, who will turn 43 in a few days, is one of three children raised in Sao Paulo, Brazil, where his family moved when he was an infant.
A CART Championship is a long way from the kart tracks of Sao Paolo, Brazil, where de Ferran first strapped on a helmet and went racing. But, in most respects other than the ability to tighten down his nerves and go very, very fast, de Ferran seems to be just another guy -- a guy who likes movies, music from classical to rock, swimming, running in the woods, and exercising with weights -- who likes to go fast.
"To be quite honest with you, when I first signed up with Roger, in fact, that was the very reason why I signed up with him. I had no doubt in my mind that we were going to succeed. I certainly had enough confidence in my own ability that I thought I was capable of achieving some success," from an interview with Seventhgear. |
He has his heroes - Emerson Fittipaldi and Ayrton Senna, as you might expect, but also Jackie Stewart and Mario Andretti.
And he's a family man. His wife Angela is from a motor sports publishing family, and the two are parents of Anna Elizabeth, now 5 years old.
Unlike many of his compatriots, de Ferran chose CART over F-1. He had his chance to move up to that circuit, for he was champion of the British Formula 3 series in 1992 and then moved on to finish third in the F3000 championship in 1994.
Most successful F3000 drivers lust after an F-1 seat, but in 1995 de Ferran signed up for a ride with a CART team owned by the legendary Jim Hall and promptly earned the IndyCar Rookie of the Year title and won the season finale at Laguna Seca.
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