Dion von Moltke (born July 27, 1990 in

The Woodlands, Texas The Woodlands is a special-purpose district and census-designated place (CDP) in the U.S. state of Texas in the Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land metropolitan statistical area. The Woodlands is primarily located in Montgomery County, with por ...

) is an American-born

race car driver Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. Auto racing has existed since the invention of the automobile. Races of various sorts were organise ...

who has participated under a

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

n racing license for the majority of his career. Von Moltke currently competes in the IMSA WeatherTech Championship GTD class with Paul Miller Racing in the #48 Audi R8 LMS with co-driver Christopher Haase. His early career involved an upbringing in karts and the Skip Barber National Championship.

Early life

Von Moltke was born on July 27, 1990 in

. His parents are both from South Africa, and he has lived in

Sydney, Australia Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and List of cities in Oceania by population, Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metro ...

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, and

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County w ...

, before moving to

Miami, Florida Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

. While enrolled in a laptop-based school following their move to Miami in 2003, von Moltke's father offered him a choice of a gaming computer or a go kart to make up for the relocation, which led to the start of von Moltke's racing career. He later went on to attend

Florida International University Florida International University (FIU) is a public university, public research university with its main campus in Miami-Dade County. Founded in 1965, the school opened its doors to students in 1972. FIU has grown to become the third-largest uni ...

and began his professional career in 2008.

Racing career

Karts

Von Moltke's karting career began in 2004, when he finished second in the EasyKart 100 cc Summer Championship Series. His first victory came at the Cope DeLas America's karting championship in San Carlos, Venezuela. In 2005, von Moltke won the EasyKart 100 cc Winter Championship Series and the WKA Florida State Regional Championship.

Skip Barber

Von Moltke moved to the Skip Barber National Championship in 2007 after completing

formula car An open-wheel single-seater (often known as formula car) is a car with the wheels outside the car's main body, and usually having only one seat. Open-wheel cars contrast with street cars, Sports car racing, sports cars, Stock car racing, stock ca ...

schooling at the

Skip Barber Racing School The Skip Barber Racing School is an American racing and driving school. Skip Barber founded the school in 1975. History In 1975, Skip Barber started the Skip Barber School of High Performance Driving at Riverside International Raceway. In 1976, ...

. He earned several podium finishes over the course of the season, and was named the most improved driver at the school in 2007. In 2008 von Moltke won the inaugural Skip Barber Mazda Speed Challenge at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.

Sports Car Racing

Von Moltke signed with APR Motorsports to drive a

Volkswagen GTI The Volkswagen GTI models may refer to: * Volkswagen Gol GTI, a performance-oriented B-segment/supermini/subcompact hatchback produced between 1989 and 1994 * Volkswagen Golf/Rabbit GTI, a performance-oriented C-segment/small family car/compact hat ...

in the Grand-Am Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge in 2008. He also made his Grand-Am

Rolex Sports Car Series The Rolex Sports Car Series was the premier series run by the Grand American Road Racing Association. It was a North American-based sports car series founded in 2000 under the name Grand American Road Racing Championship to replace the failed ...

debut at

New Jersey Motorsports Park New Jersey Motorsports Park is a road course "Motorsports Entertainment Complex" located in Millville, Cumberland County, New Jersey, United States. It has hosted races since opening in 2008 and currently hosts a schedule including MotoAmerica P ...

with Racers Edge Motorsports. In 2009, von Moltke remained with APR in the Challenge Series, while also competing in Rolex with MCM Racing

Porsche Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, usually shortened to Porsche (; see #Pronunciation, below), is a German automobile manufacturer specializing in high-performance sports cars, SUVs and sedans, headquartered in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany ...

. He earned his first victory in Challenge at

Watkins Glen International Watkins Glen International, nicknamed "The Glen", is an automobile race track located in the town of Dix just southwest of the village of Watkins Glen, New York, at the southern tip of Seneca Lake. It was long known around the world as the hom ...

co-driving with Mike Sweeney, followed by victories at

Mid-Ohio Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course is a road course auto racing facility located in Troy Township, Morrow County, Ohio, United States, just outside the village of Lexington. Mid-Ohio has also colloquially become a term for the entire north-central regio ...

and Miller Motorsports Park. In 2010, von Moltke participated in the Daytona Prototype class of the Rolex Series with Doran Racing for the full season and earned the Rookie of the Year title. Von Moltke returned to the GT category in 2011, driving for the German Mühlner Motorsport

team at the Rolex 24 at Daytona, backed by PR Newswire and South African Airways. He also began racing in the

American Le Mans Series The American Le Mans Series (ALMS) was a sports car racing series based in the United States and Canada. It consisted of a series of endurance and sprint races, and was created in the spirit of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The American Le Mans' hea ...

' GTC category for Porsches with

The Racer's Group The Racer's Group, or TRG, is a WeatherTech SportsCar Championship racing team located in Petaluma, California, owned by Kevin Buckler and his wife Debra. TRG has competed professionally in road racing since 1995. The team formerly competed in NA ...

. He completed the American Le Mans Series season with a win at Lime Rock Park and was fifth in the championship standings. For 2012, von Moltke returned to APR Motorsport as the team moved into the Rolex GT category with an Audi R8 LMS, partnered with Jim Norman. A switch to the

Alex Job Racing Alex Job Racing is a former professional sports car racing team based in the United States. The team, which is noted for its long-time association with Porsche, has competed in the American Le Mans Series, the IMSA GT3 Cup Challenge series, and the ...

team in the American Le Mans GTC category earned von Moltke a class victory at the

12 Hours of Sebring The 12 Hours of Sebring is an annual motorsport endurance race for sports cars held at Sebring International Raceway, on the site of the former Hendricks Army Airfield World War II air base in Sebring, Florida, US. The event is the second round ...

with co-drivers Townsend Bell and Bill Sweedler. Dion von Moltke Flying Lizard

In 2013, Dion von Moltke took the GT-class win at the

24 Hours of Daytona The 24 Hours of Daytona, also known as the Rolex 24 At Daytona for sponsorship reasons, is a 24-hour sports car endurance race held annually at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is run on the Sports Car Course layou ...

then a GTC class win at Sebring and followed it up with another GTC class win at the Grand Prix of Baltimore. In 2014, Dion von Moltke signed with the

Flying Lizard Motorsports The Flying Lizard Motorsports group is a motorsport team from Sonoma, California, formed by Seth Neiman in early 2003. The team competed in the full American Le Mans Series season, as well as the 24 Hours of Daytona, and the 24 Hours of Le Mans. T ...

team for the full 2014 TUDOR

United SportsCar Championship The IMSA SportsCar Championship, currently known as the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship under sponsorship, is a sports car racing series based in the United States and Canada and organized by the International Motor Sports Association (IMS ...

season behind the wheel of the No. 35 Audi R8 LMS. Although the #35 kicked off the season with three top five finishes, bad luck and Balance of Performance issues plagued the team, finishing 9th in the GTD championship standings. 2015 Paul Miller Racing Audi

In January 2015, it was announced von Molkte would join Paul Miller Racing for the entirety of the race season, again competing in the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship's GTD class. Von Moltke earned his first career TUDOR United SportsCar Championship pole position at the Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix, where he and co-driver Christopher Haase finished 3rd in the GTD class. He earned his second pole position three races later at Lime Rock Park. Von Moltke led his entire stint, but the car was later taken out by another competitor, ending their race. The Paul Miller Racing duo finished 3rd in the GTD class championship, with von Moltke earning a total of four pole positions.

Personal life

Von Moltke currently attends

while participating in motorsport. He is a member of one of the university's fraternities. Von Moltke is also involved in a training program for new drivers in motorsport. He is also involved with the

Best Buddies International Best Buddies International is an American nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization. It consists of volunteers that create opportunities for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). The program's main purpose is to allow volunteers ...

charity. In November 2014, von Moltke spoke at a TEDx Talk night of Fearless Journeys at Florida International University.

Results

Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge

Rolex SportsCar Series

American Le Mans Series The American Le Mans Series (ALMS) was a sports car racing series based in the United States and Canada. It consisted of a series of endurance and sprint races, and was created in the spirit of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The American Le Mans' hea ...

TUDOR United SportsCar Championship

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:von Moltke, Dion 1990 births American people of South African descent Florida International University people Living people South African racing drivers American Le Mans Series drivers 24 Hours of Daytona drivers Rolex Sports Car Series drivers WeatherTech SportsCar Championship drivers Starworks Motorsport drivers Audi Sport drivers Michelin Pilot Challenge drivers People from The Woodlands, Texas