Paul Tracy

Paul Tracy ( born December 17, 1968 in Scarborough, Ontario, Canada ) is a Canadian racing driver. He was from 1991 to 2007 in the Champ Car series active and won the 2003 championship title. He participated in 261 races and scored 31 victories. From 2008 to 2011, he stepped up to the individual to race in the IndyCar Series.

• 3.1 Career stations
• 3.2 Individual results in the IndyCar Series

Career

Beginnings in motorsport

Tracy was active in his childhood in karting. In 1984 he moved to Formula racing in the Canadian Formula Ford in 1600. Having become fourth in 1984, he won in 1985 as the youngest driver to date, the Canadian Formula Ford Championship. In addition to his involvement in the Canadian Formula Ford 2000 Championship, the Tracy 1986 to the fourth and 1987 finished in 15th place, he took part in the two years also in sports car racing. His only race in the Canadian - American Challenge Cup ( Can- Am), he became the youngest driver until then. He also drove in 944 Cup Canadian Porsche.

1988 Tracy focused on his formula racing career and joined the American Racing Series to Hemelgarn Racing. He won a race and finished the season on top of the ninth overall. In his second season, in which he took for Maple Leaf Racing, he remained without victory, but improved to eighth place in the driver standings. After his move to Landford Racing Tracy decided in 1990, nine out of fourteen races for themselves and won the championship with 214 to 135 points, ahead of Ted Prappas.

ICWS / CART / Champ Car

1991 Tracy gave Dale Coyne Racing for its debut in the Indy Car World Series ( ICWS ). He started for the team in Long Beach. At the middle of the season he moved to Penske Racing. He made his debut for the team at the Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn. In this race he broke his left leg and fell for several races from. For the last two races of the season, he returned to the cockpit and closed the season with a seventh place as the best result onto the 21st place overall. 1992 Tracy denied for Penske 11 of 16 races of the season and made his debut at the Indianapolis 500 in some races he replaced the injured Rick Mears. Two second places in Brooklyn and Lexington were his best results and he was twelfth in the championship.

1993 graduated from Tracy his first full season in the Indy Car World Series for Penske. After five losses and one win in Long Beach he vorwies after the first six races, he won in the rest of the season the race in Cleveland, Toronto, Elkhart Lake and Laguna Seca. In addition, Tracy was in this season of the pilot with the most laps led. Still in the championship he had to his teammate Emerson Fittipaldi and Nigel Mansell Master beaten and finished third. 1994 Tracy remained at Penske, who used a third driver this season with Al Unser, Jr.. After Tracy won the first 14 races only in Detroit, he decided the last two races of the season in Nazareth, and Laguna Seca for themselves. He graduated from The championship again in third place. This time he had to admit defeat to his teammates Fittipaldi and Prayer. In September, Tracy also took part in Formula 1 test driving for Benetton. According to media reports him a three -year contract was offered, but he declined.

In 1995, Tracy Newman / Haas Racing and was teammate of Michael Andretti. Tracy won the race in Surfers Paradise and West Allis and finished the season in sixth place in the championship. Although he had a victory over Andretti, he lost to him within the team with 115 to 123 points. 1996 Tracy went back to Penske. Both Tracy and his teammate Our ​​decision in this season not a race for themselves. While our finished the season in fourth, Tracy was the one that started because of a back injury two races, 13th in the championship. His best finish was a third place. 1997 Tracy played his final season for Penske. The racing series had been renamed between seasons in CART. Tracy won three consecutive races in Nazareth, Jacarepaguá and Madison. Although only the later champion Alex Zanardi had won more races than Tracy, Tracy finished the season from only fifth. Team Intern, he sat down with 121 to 67 points clearly against our by.

In 1998, Tracy for Team KOOL Green, where he was teammate Dario Franchitti. While Franchitti with three wins championship was third, Tracy never came across a fifth place out and finished the season off on the 13th place overall. Since Tracy was by several incidents on and noticed next to the track, he was suspended for the season opener in 1999. Later in the season, Tracy was seven times on the podium and was with victories in West Allis and Houston third in the drivers' standings. Unlike his teammates, who eventually was runner-up behind Juan Pablo Montoya, he had no realistic chances for the title this season.

2000 Tracy denied his tenth CART season. In Long Beach, Elkhart Lake and Vancouver, he decided the race for himself and finished the season with six podium finishes off in fifth place overall. For the first time, he succeeded his Green teammate Franchitti, who was 13 to make the end of the season behind them. Over the next two seasons Franchitti Tracy subject and came in the standings never in the top ten. The 2001 season, he finished on the 14th, the 2002 season in 11th place in the championship. In total he achieved in those two years, six podium finishes and a win in West Allis 2002. Moreover Tracy debuted in 2002 in the Indy Racing League (IRL ). He went to only to the Indianapolis 500 and finished the race second behind Hélio Castroneves. About the race result, there were discussions after the race, since shortly before Tracy was driven past Castroneves, a yellow flag was thrown. From the available camera angles could not be clearly determined which driver was in the lead.

After the team Green was dropped out of CART, Tracy moved in 2003 to Forsythe Racing, and together with his compatriot Patrick Carpentier a purely Canadian driver duo. Tracy started with three wins in St. Petersburg, Monterrey and Long Beach well into the season. After he had remained six races without a win, decided the consecutive races in Toronto and Vancouver itself. With further successes in West Allis and Mexico City, he finally decided the championship with 226 points to 199 against Bruno Junqueira for themselves. In the following two seasons Tracy were each fourth in the championship, which was called since 2004 Champ Car World Series. In 2004 he won in Long Beach and Vancouver, 2005 in West Allis and Cleveland. While Tracy Carpentier was defeated in 2004, he won against his new team-mate Mario Domínguez.

2006 should be a year of transition for Tracy. In the Champ Car he remained winless with three second places as the best results and was seventh in the championship, while his teammate AJ Allmendinger won five races. In addition, Tracy started in the NASCAR Busch Series and participated in six races. At the end of the season, Tracy decided against a change in NASCAR and he extended his contract with Forsythe Racing. Tracy started in 2007 with a third place in the season. In training for the second race in Long Beach, Tracy suffered a lumbar fracture. The injury forced him to pause a few weeks and two races. In the fourth race, he finally made ​​his comeback and 14 days later, he managed to win the race in Cleveland. It was Tracy's last Champ Car victory. The championship he finished in eleventh place.

IndyCar Series

Following the unification of the single-seater racing series Champ Car and IndyCar Series, Tracy was in 2008, initially without cockpit, as Forsythe only took part in the race in Long Beach and did not change in the IndyCar Series. This race ended Tracy eleventh. In the further course of the season he finally took still in the race in Edmonton in part. He went there in a supervised by Walker Racing cars at the start, which officially became the team Vision Racing counted. He came in this race in fourth place finish. In the IndyCar Appreciation Tracy was 33 He also began a race the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.

In 2009, Tracy participated in six IndyCar races. Four times sat KV Racing Technology is a an additional car for Tracy in the other two races he once represented Vitor Meira AJ Foyt Enterprises at once and Mario Moraes at KV Racing Technology. Tracy finished three races in the top ten pilots and finished the season in 23rd place in the drivers' standings from. 2010 Tracy signed with KV Racing Technology signed a contract for the Indianapolis 500, for which he did not qualify, as well as for the two Canadian races. In addition, Tracy for the injured Mike Conway for three races with Dreyer & Reinbold Racing. With a sixth place in Edmonton for the best result he was 27th in the championship.

2011 was Tracy close to contract with KV Racing Technology over the entire IndyCar season. The team, however, decided to Tony Kanaan. Tracy then signed a contract with Dreyer & Reinbold Racing for the Indianapolis 500 before this race was found for Tracy also have the opportunity to further IndyCar race. For Dragon Racing, he participated in five events. Team manager of Dragon 's Jay Penske, son of Roger Penske, was tested for the Tracy at the beginning of his career. The season ended Tracy at the 29th place overall.

Personal

Tracy lives in Las Vegas. He is married and father of two children.

Statistics

Career stations

• 2004: Champ Car (4th place )
• 2005: Champ Car (4th place )
• 2006: Champ Car ( 7th place)
• 2006 NASCAR Busch Series (No. 76)
• 2007: Champ Car ( # 11 )
• 2008: IndyCar Series ( No. 33 )
• 2008 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (No. 84)
• 2009: IndyCar Series ( No. 23 )
• 2010: IndyCar Series ( No. 27 )
• 2011: IndyCar Series (No. 29)

Individual results in the IndyCar Series

( Legend)