Hamad Al Fardan ( ar, حامد الفردن; born June 29, 1987 in

Manama Manama ( ar, المنامة ', Bahrani Arabic, Bahrani pronunciation: ) is the capital and largest city of Bahrain, with an approximate population of 200,000 people as of 2020. Long an important trading center in the Persian Gulf, Manama is h ...

), is a

Bahrain Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an ...

i racing driver and musician. He is the first Bahraini to drive at

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 Eccle ...

level.

Racing career

Formula BMW

Al Fardan is the son of

rally Rally or rallye may refer to: Gatherings * Demonstration (political), a political rally, a political demonstration of support or protest, march, or parade * Pep rally, an event held at a United States school or college sporting event Sports ...

driver Ahmed Al Fardan. His first experience of

formula racing Formula racing (known as open-wheel racing in North America) is any of several forms of open-wheeled single-seater motorsport. The origin of the term lies in the nomenclature that was adopted by the FIA for all of its post-World War II single- ...

came in 2004, when he drove in the

Formula BMW Asia In science, a formula is a concise way of expressing information symbolically, as in a mathematical formula or a ''chemical formula''. The informal use of the terminology, term ''formula'' in science refers to the Commensurability (philosophy o ...

series. In 2005, he undertook a full season in the championship with the

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

n team Meritus and finished third overall. He also raced in the Formula BMW World Final, finishing in eighteenth position. For 2006, he returned to the series for two races only due to commitments in other championships, winning both of them.

Formula Renault

Al Fardan competed in the Formula Asia V6 Renault championship in

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...

, finishing the championship in sixth place with one win despite missing the last four races of the season. He again raced for the Meritus team. He returned to the series for

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...

and won the opening four races before the remainder of the season was cancelled, leaving him champion by default.

Toyota Racing Series

Al Fardan also drove in the

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

-based

Toyota Racing Series The Formula Regional Oceania Championship is New Zealand's premier formula racing category. The series includes races for every major trophy in New Zealand circuit racing including the New Zealand Motor Cup and the Denny Hulme Memorial Trophy. ...

for 2006, again employed by Meritus. Scoring one race victory, the

New Zealand Grand Prix The New Zealand Grand Prix, sometimes known as the New Zealand International Grand Prix, is an annual motor racing event held in New Zealand. First held in 1950, it is best known for hosting rounds of the Tasman Series in the 1960s and 1970s. It ...

, he finished thirteenth in the championship. He remained in the formula for 2007, although he switched teams to

Mark Petch Motorsport Mark Petch Motorsport was a motor racing team that competed in Australian and New Zealand motorsport. History Mark Petch Motorsport was formed in 1985 by former New Zealand National Championship winner Mark Petch who by 1985 had become a wealth ...

. In this year he won two races and moved up to eleventh place in the championship. It was a hectic season for Al Fardan, as he also competed in

British Formula 3 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 seate ...

on the other side of the world.

Formula Three

Al Fardan moved to the National Class of 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 seat ...

for

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...

(in addition to his TRS commitments), where he established himself as a frontrunner in the series. He finished third in the championship for the

Performance Racing Performance Racing is a Swedish racing team based in Great Britain, involved in many areas of motorsport. The team has been managed since 1999 by Bobby Issazadhe. History The Performance Racing business was founded in Sweden, in 1999, to conc ...

team, despite not winning a race. Over the winter of 2007–08, he moved to the

Asian Formula Three Championship The Asian Formula Three Championship was a single-seater racing series based in South East Asia. It is one of a number of national and international Formula Three championships that form part of an established "career ladder" below Formula One. I ...

, driving for a national team sponsored by the Arabian bank Gulf House Finance. He won both rounds of the season-opener at the

Sepang Pekan Sepang is a small border town and also a mukim in Sepang District, Selangor, Malaysia. The Sepang International Circuit in the western part of the town, where the Malaysian F1 Grand Prix was and Malaysian MotoGP Grand Prix is held. Mal ...

circuit in Malaysia, and two further races, but then accused the team of fastest man,

Frédéric Vervisch Frédéric Vervisch ( ; born 10 August 1986 in Kortrijk) is a Belgian racing driver who currently races in the GT World Challenge Europe. Career Early career A winner of numerous karting championships, Vervisch moved to auto racing in 2003 m ...

, of cheating. He declined to make a protest preferring to walk away. He finished fourth in the championship. Following his performance in 2007,

Toyota F1 Panasonic Toyota Racing was a Formula One team owned by the Japanese automobile manufacturer Toyota Motor Corporation and based in Cologne, Germany. Toyota announced their plans to participate in Formula One in 1999, and after extensive testin ...

test driver

Kamui Kobayashi is a Japanese professional racing driver who competes in the FIA World Endurance Championship for Toyota Gazoo Racing (GR) and in the Super Formula Championship for KCMG . He previously competed in Formula One, Formula E, the GP2 Series, and the ...

tipped him to become the first

Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...

ern driver to make it to

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

. Al Fardan moved to the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

ATS Formel 3 Cup The German Formula Three Championship was the national Formula Three championship of Germany, and the former West Germany, from 1950 to 2002, then as Formel 3 until 2014. In 2003, the series had merged with the French Formula Three Championship to ...

for 2008, where he was placed eleventh in the final standings, although his season was disrupted by injury.

GP2 Series

Al Fardan signed for the

iSport International iSport International was a British motor racing team that competed in the GP2 Series. The team was founded by Paul Jackson, Gavin Bickerton-Jones and Richard Selwin, former members of the Petrobras Junior Team in 2004, ahead of the inaugural ...

team to compete in the 2008–09 GP2 Asia Series season, becoming the first Bahraini and

Arab The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...

ian driver to race at this level. His backing from

Gulf Finance House GFH Financial Group, previously known as Gulf Finance House, is an Islamic investment bank with headquarters in Bahrain Financial Harbour, Bahrain. One of its most notable investments is a 25% stake in the UK Football Premier League club Leeds ...

also meant that the team changed its name to GFH Team iSport for the duration of the championship. He finished 20th in the championship standings, scoring two points. He has not raced since, despite being linked to a 2010 Auto GP drive with DAMS.

Racing record

Career summary

Complete GP2 Asia Series results

(

key Key or The Key may refer to: Common meanings * Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm * Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock * Key (map ...

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

References

Career statistics
from ''driverdb.com''. Retrieved on September 26, 2008.

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fardan, Hamad 1987 births Living people Bahraini racing drivers German Formula Three Championship drivers Asian Formula Three Championship drivers British Formula Three Championship drivers Formula V6 Asia drivers Formula BMW Asia drivers Speedcar Series drivers Toyota Racing Series drivers GP2 Asia Series drivers Sportspeople from Manama Bahraini hip hop musicians Team Meritus drivers Performance Racing drivers ISport International drivers Durango drivers