Antônio Reginaldo Pizzonia Júnior (born 11 September 1980) is a Brazilian professional racing driver who has raced in

Formula One Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...

and the

Champ Car World Series Champ Car World Series (CCWS) was the series sanctioned by Open-Wheel Racing Series Inc., a sanctioning body for American open-wheel car racing that operated from 2004 to 2008. It was the successor to Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART), ...

. Born in

Manaus Manaus () is the List of capitals of subdivisions of Brazil, capital and largest city of the States of Brazil, Brazilian state of Amazonas (Brazilian state), Amazonas. It is the List of largest cities in Brazil, seventh-largest city in Brazil, w ...

, he started his car racing career in the Formula Vauxhall Junior series in 1997 and then progressed through various junior formulae, winning the Formula Vauxhall Junior Winter Festival in 1997, the Formula Vauxhall Junior and Formula Renault Winter Festival in 1998, the Formula Renault 2.0 UK in 1999, and the

British Formula 3 Championship The British Formula Three Championship was an international motor racing series that took place primarily in the United Kingdom with a small number of events in mainland Europe. It was a junior-level feeder formula that used small single sea ...

in 2000. For 2001 and 2002, he entered the

Formula 3000 Formula 3000 (F3000) was a type of open wheel, single seater formula racing, occupying the tier immediately below Formula One and above Formula Three. It was so named because the cars were powered by 3.0 L engines. Formula 3000 championship ...

, with his best championship finish being sixth in 2001. In 2003, he was signed by the

Jaguar The jaguar (''Panthera onca'') is a large felidae, cat species and the only extant taxon, living member of the genus ''Panthera'' that is native to the Americas. With a body length of up to and a weight of up to , it is the biggest cat spe ...

Formula One team, but following poor results, was released during the season. In 2004, he replaced the injured

Ralf Schumacher Ralf Schumacher (born 30 June 1975) is a German former racing driver and sports broadcasting, broadcaster, who competed in Formula One from to . Schumacher won six Formula One Grands Prix across 11 seasons. Born and raised in North Rhine-Westp ...

at Williams in several events, securing his first Formula One points in the process. In 2005, he replaced Nick Heidfeld at Williams, but was released from his contract at the end of the season. Since then, he has competed in multiple series, such as the Champ Car World Series, the

Superleague Formula Superleague Formula was an Open wheel car, open wheel single seater Formula racing, motor racing formula, which started in 2008, at Donington Park in the United Kingdom. The league introduced team sponsorship by association football clubs. It u ...

Stock Car Brasil The BRB Stock Car Pro Series, formerly known as Stock Car Brasil, is a touring car racing, touring car auto racing series based in Brazil organized by Vicar. It is considered the major Brazilian and South American motorsports series. Starting in ...

, and the

FIA GT1 World Championship The FIA GT1 World Championship was a world championship sports car racing series, developed by the Stéphane Ratel Organisation, SRO Group and regulated by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), that was held from 2010 to 2012. I ...

Racing career

Pre-Formula One

From 1991 to 1996 he competed in various karting series. In 1997 he moved to

Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...

and competed in Formula Vauxhall Junior; Pizzonia placed second, and won the Winter Festival. In 1998, in addition to taking the Championship in Formula Vauxhall Junior, he won the

Formula Renault Formula Renault are classes of formula racing popular in Europe and elsewhere. Regarded as an entry-level series to auto racing, motor racing, it was founded in 1971, and was a respected series where drivers can learn advanced racecraft before mov ...

Winter Festival. His 1999 season was even more successful, winning the Formula Renault 2.0 UK series and finishing second in the Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup. In 2000, Pizzonia took five wins on his way to winning the

. For 2001, Pizzonia switched to the

series, winning one race and finishing sixth in the championship.

Formula One

2002 The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...

, Pizzonia was hired as test driver for Williams, but also continued in F3000, placing 8th. After impressive testing performances, he was signed by the

team to partner Mark Webber for

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

, replacing the axed Pedro de la Rosa
''Autosport'' 1 November 2002 . However, following a string of poor results, he was dropped late in the season and replaced by

Minardi Minardi was an Italian automobile racing team and constructor founded in Faenza in 1979 by Giancarlo Minardi. It competed in the Formula One World Championship from 1985 until 2005 with little success, nevertheless acquiring a loyal following ...

's Justin Wilson. In

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

he returned to Williams as test driver. Before the

German Grand Prix The German Grand Prix () was a motor race that took place most years since 1926, with 75 races having been held. The race has been held at only three venues throughout its history: the Nürburgring in Rhineland-Palatinate, Hockenheimring in B ...

, it was announced that Pizzonia would take over from

Marc Gené Marc Gené i Guerrero (born 29 March 1974) is a Spanish professional racing driver. He is best known as a tester for Williams Grand Prix Engineering, Williams and Scuderia Ferrari, Ferrari in Formula One, Minardi Formula One driver and factory ...

, who had been filling in for the injured

. At the German Grand Prix, he finished 7th to take his first 2 career points; he repeated the feat at the Hungarian Grand Prix. In

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

, he briefly led an F1 race for the first time, but failed to finish the race due to a gearbox problem, whilst running in 3rd place. He claimed a further 2 points in

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

(during which he achieved the fastest ever recorded top speed in a F1 race at the time, 369.9 km/h, until Juan Pablo Montoya eclipsed this record the following year), but with the announcement of Ralf Schumacher's return for the Chinese Grand Prix, Pizzonia's racing was over for the year. Prior to the 2005 season, Pizzonia was in a virtual shoot-out with

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

Nick Heidfeld for the second race seat at Williams alongside Webber. Despite Pizzonia's experience with the team and financial support from

Petrobras Petróleo Brasileiro S.A., better known by and Trade name, trading as the portmanteau Petrobras (), is a Brazilian state-owned enterprise, majority state-owned multinational corporation in the petroleum industry headquartered in Rio de Janeiro. ...

, Heidfeld was given the seat. Pizzonia was still employed at Williams as a test driver, and when Heidfeld complained of headaches after being concussed in a crash during the Friday Practice Session at

Monza Monza (, ; ; , locally ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) on the Lambro, River Lambro, a tributary of the Po (river), River Po, in the Lombardy region of Italy, about north-northeast of Milan. It is the capital of the province of Mo ...

, Pizzonia gained the chance to race. Having not entered an F1 race since the 2004 Italian Grand Prix, the Brazilian qualified 16th, coming through the field to emulate his 2004 race result — picking up 7th place and 2 points. He then raced in the Belgian Grand Prix. where he incurred a fine for taking out 2nd placed

Juan Pablo Montoya Juan Pablo Montoya Roldán (; born 20 September 1975) is a Colombian racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to , IndyCar between 1999 and 2022, and the NASCAR Cup Series between 2006 and 2024. Montoya won seven Formula One Grand ...

just a few laps from the end. Pizzonia also took the drive in the

Brazilian Grand Prix The Brazilian Grand Prix (), currently held under the name São Paulo Grand Prix (), is a Formula One championship race which is currently held at the Autódromo José Carlos Pace in Interlagos neighborhood, Cidade Dutra, São Paulo. The in ...

, but his race was over before the first corner after taking out his own teammate Mark Webber resulting from a collision with

David Coulthard David Marshall Coulthard (born 27 March 1971) is a British former racing driver and sports broadcasting, broadcaster from Scotland who competed in Formula One from to . Nicknamed "DC", Coulthard was runner-up in the Formula One World Drivers' ...

. Despite some speculation that GP2 champion

Nico Rosberg Nico Erik Rosberg (born 27 June 1985) is a German and Finnish former racing driver and entrepreneur, who competed under the German flag in Formula One from to . Rosberg won the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in with Mercedes, and w ...

would be given an opportunity in the last two races of the season, Pizzonia completed the season for Williams. He retired from the Japanese Grand Prix early after spinning off, and retired from (but was classified as a finisher in) the Chinese Grand Prix after a puncture. Having been replaced by

for

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

and failing to find a seat elsewhere, Pizzonia's Formula One career was over.

Post-Formula One

In 2006, he drove for Paul Gentilozzi's Rocketsports team in the

Long Beach Grand Prix The Grand Prix of Long Beach (known as Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach since 2019 for naming rights reasons) is an IndyCar Series race held on a street circuit in Downtown Long Beach, downtown Long Beach, California. It was the premier race on the ...

and returned to the team towards the end of the season for races where

Tõnis Kasemets Tõnis Kasemets (born March 17, 1974) is an Estonian racing driver and a former competitor in the CART Champ Car World Series. He won the 2022 IMSA Prototype Challenge championship. Career Kasemets started racing karts in 1982, winning the Bal ...

did not have sponsorship to race. In 2007, Pizzonia was racing for

Fisichella Motor Sport Fisichella Motor Sport is a motorsport team, founded by Italian Formula One driver Giancarlo Fisichella and his manager Enrico Zanarini. Racing history Euroseries 3000 Fisichella Motor Sport had a team, run by Scuderia Coloni, racing in the ...

in the

GP2 series The GP2 Series was a form of open wheel motor racing introduced in 2005 following the discontinuation of the long-term Formula One feeder series, Formula 3000. The GP2 format was conceived by Bernie Ecclestone and Flavio Briatore, while Ecc ...

. In May, he was dropped in favour of Adam Carroll after only scoring 1 point in 5 races. After that, he returned to Brazil and entered into competition in

, a Brazilian national championship, from July. He has competed in the series every year since then, and has also raced in

( SC Corinthians) and the

. In 2012, Pizzonia made a one-off guest appearance in the Auto GP World Series when the championship visited the Brazilian

Curitiba Curitiba () is the capital and largest city in the state of Paraná (state), Paraná in Southern Brazil. The city's population was 1,773,718 , making it the List of cities in Brazil by population, eighth most populous city in Brazil and the larg ...

circuit. Driving for the Ombra Racing team, he won both races, immediately slotting himself into ninth position in the championship. In 2014 and 2015, Pizzonia competed in the Auto GP series, with Zele Racing. Pizzonia returned to open-wheel racing in 2023, in the

BOSS GP The BOSS GP Racing Series is a motor racing series in Europe. The category originated in 1995 as the BOSS Formula series and evolved into the EuroBOSS Series. BOSS is an acronym that stands for Big Open Single Seaters. History The BOSS serie ...

series, with HS Engineering in a Gibson-engined Dallara T12, winning both races overall at the season-opener at

Paul Ricard Paul Louis Marius Ricard (; July 9, 1909 – November 7, 1997) was a French industrialist and creator of an eponymous pastis brand which merged in 1975 with its competitor Pernod to create Pernod Ricard. Ricard was also an environmentalist and t ...

. He has subsequently won every race in his class. He won the Open class title at

TT Circuit Assen The TT Circuit Assen is a motorsport race track built in 1955 and located in Assen, Netherlands. Host of the Dutch TT, it is popularly referred to as "The Cathedral of Speed" by motorcycle racing fans. The venue has the distinction of holding th ...

Racing record

Career summary

Complete British Formula Three Championship results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

Complete International Formula 3000 results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

Complete Formula One results

( key) Driver did not finish the Grand Prix, but was classified as he completed over 90% of the race distance.

American open wheel Racing

( key)

Complete Champ Car results

IndyCar

¹ ''Run on same day''
² ''Non-points-paying, exhibition race''

Complete GP2 Series results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

Superleague Formula

2008–2009

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

2009 Super Final Results

*Super Final results in 2009 did not count for points towards the main championship.

2011

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

Brazilian competitions

Stock Car Brasil

^† Ineligible for championship points.

Complete Auto GP results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap) ^‡ Position when season was cancelled.

Complete FIA World Endurance Championship results

Complete BOSS GP Series results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in ''italics'' indicate points for the fastest lap of top ten finishers)

References

External links

News of Antônio Pizzonia (Article)Antonio Pizzonia on YouTube
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pizzonia, Antonio 1980 births Living people Sportspeople from Manaus Brazilian people of Italian descent British Formula Renault 2.0 drivers Brazilian Formula One drivers Jaguar Formula One drivers Williams Formula One drivers Brazilian Champ Car drivers Brazilian IndyCar Series drivers GP2 Series drivers Brazilian GP2 Series drivers International Formula 3000 drivers Superleague Formula drivers British Formula Three Championship drivers Stock Car Brasil drivers FIA GT1 World Championship drivers Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in the United Kingdom Auto GP drivers FIA World Endurance Championship drivers Rolex Sports Car Series drivers American Le Mans Series drivers Manor Motorsport drivers Ombra Racing drivers Scuderia Coloni drivers EuroInternational drivers Alan Docking Racing drivers Conquest Racing drivers Rocketsports Racing drivers Brazilian racing drivers