Koiranen Kemppi Motorsport, formerly also known as Koiranen bros. Motorsport and Koiranen GP, is a Finnish
auto racing
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 ...
team based in
Lahti
Lahti (; sv, Lahtis) is a city and municipality in Finland. It is the capital of the region of Päijänne Tavastia (Päijät-Häme) and its growing region is one of the main economic hubs of Finland. Lahti is situated on a bay at the southern e ...
,
Finland
Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...
. The team currently fields a one car entry in the LMP3 class of
Asian Le Mans Series
The Asian Le Mans Series is an Asian sports car racing endurance series created by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO) and based in Asia. It is the successor to the defunct Japan Le Mans Challenge which folded in 2007 after its second season. ...
and
Prototype Cup Germany and also acts as a promoter of the
Formula Academy Finland
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 term ''formula'' in science refers to the general construct of a relationship betwee ...
. Formerly the team was a promoter of the
SMP F4 Championship
The SMP F4 Championship (also known as the F4 NEZ Championship by SMP Racing) was a racing series regulated according to FIA Formula 4 regulations. It was based in the FIA's North European Zone and the Netherlands, and was only open to drivers fr ...
from 2015 to 2018 and the
F4 Spanish Championship
The F4 Spanish Championship ( es, Campeonato de España de Fórmula 4) is an FIA Formula 4 racing series. The championship was planned to launch in 2015, though the inaugural season was cancelled and delayed until 2016. Koiranen GP was the promot ...
from 2016 to 2017.
History
Finnish Junior Formulas
The team was founded in 1997 by brothers Marko and Jari Koiranen. They joined the Finnish Formula 4 championship the same year, and also competed in Nordic and Finnish Formula Three championships until 2005.
Formula Renault
2003 saw Koiranen Motorsport join the
German Formula Renault Championship, before expanding their
Formula Renault
Formula Renault are classes of formula racing popular in Europe and elsewhere. Regarded as an entry-level series to motor racing, it was founded in 1971, and was a respected series where drivers can learn advanced racecraft before moving on to hig ...
programme to include a
Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0
Formula Renault Eurocup was a Formula Renault motor racing championship. Eurocup raced only on European circuits.
It served as a support series to the Formula 3.5 V8, Formula Renault 3.5 Series as part of the World Series by Renault from 2005 to ...
campaign.
They experienced their first real success when
Valtteri Bottas
Valtteri Viktor Bottas (; born 28 August 1989) is a Finnish racing driver currently competing in Formula One for Alfa Romeo, having previously driven for Mercedes from to and Williams from to . Bottas has scored race wins and podiums. H ...
finished third in the
Formula Renault 2.0 Northern European Cup
The Formula Renault Northern European Cup (formerly Formula Renault 2.0 NEC) was a Formula Renault, Formula Renault 2.0 championship originally held in Northern Europe (Germany, Netherlands and Belgium), but has expanded over the years to the whol ...
in 2007. The team won their first title in 2010, when
Kevin Korjus
Kevin Korjus (born 9 January 1993) is an Estonian racing driver.
Career
Karting
Kevin Korjus was born in Tallinn, the son of former sidecarcross racer Aivar Korjus. He made his pan-European karting début in 2006, competing in the Rotax Max Euro ...
won the
Eurocup title.
In 2011,
Red Bull Junior Team
The Red Bull Junior Team is a driver development program run by the energy drink company Red Bull GmbH in an attempt to identify potential future racing stars in open wheel racing. The similar Red Bull Driver Search, now ended, was an American ...
started collaboration with the Finnish team.
Daniil Kvyat
Daniil Vyacheslavovich Kvyat ( rus, Дании́л Вячесла́вович Квят, p=dənʲɪˈil vʲɪtɕɪˈslavəvʲɪtɕ ˈkvʲat; born 26 April 1994) is a Russian professional racing driver who competed in Formula One between 2014– ...
and
Carlos Sainz Jr.
Carlos Sainz Vázquez de Castro (; born 1 September 1994), otherwise known as Carlos Sainz Jr. or simply Carlos Sainz, is a Formula One drivers from Spain, Spanish racing driver currently competing in Formula One for Scuderia Ferrari. He is th ...
joined the team for
Eurocup and
NEC
is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational information technology and electronics corporation, headquartered in Minato, Tokyo. The company was known as the Nippon Electric Company, Limited, before rebranding in 1983 as NEC. It prov ...
campaign. In Northern European Cup Sainz, Jr. achieved drivers' title and with help of Kvyat they both claimed teams' championship. They also claimed teams' trophy in Eurocup. Kvyat remained with the team for the next year and brought drivers' title in new
Formula Renault 2.0 Alps series for the team.
In 2012, Koiranen Motorsport was one of eighteen teams to make a bid for one of the vacant grid positions in the
Formula Renault 3.5 Series
The World Series Formula V8 3.5, formerly the World Series by Nissan from 1998 to 2004, the Formula Renault 3.5 Series from 2005 to 2015 and the Formula V8 3.5 in 2016 and 2017, was a motor racing series promoted by RPM Racing (1998–2004) and R ...
, the highest tier of the Formula Renault championships. The team was unsuccessful, losing out to
DAMS
A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use, ...
and
Arden
Arden may refer to:
Places
;Australia
*Arden, an area in North Melbourne, Victoria near the Arden Street Oval
;Canada
* Arden, Ontario
;Denmark
* Arden, Denmark, a town
**Arden Municipality, a former municipality, including the town of Arden
; ...
Caterham
Caterham () is a town in the Tandridge District of Surrey, England. The town is administratively divided into two: Caterham on the Hill, and Caterham Valley, which includes the main town centre in the middle of a dry valley but rises to equal ...
, but were placed on a reserve list, granting them automatic entry to the grid in the event that any of the existing thirteen teams failed to be ready in time.
2015 was the team's last season with Formula Renault. From 2016 onwards Koiranen will focus on GP3 and running two F4 series.
GP3 Series
Koiranen GP replaced
Ocean Racing Technology
Ocean Racing Technology (ORT) was a racing team that took part in both the GP2 Main Series and the GP2 Asia Series Championships. The team, owned by Tiago Monteiro and José Guedes, was formed at the end of the 2008 season after being purchased f ...
in the
GP3 Series
The GP3 Series, or GP3 for short, was a single-seater motor racing series launched in 2010 as a feeder series for the GP2 Series, introduced by GP2 organiser Bruno Michel. GP3 followed the entire European leg of the Formula One series and the ...
, starting in
2013
File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...
.
Their drivers at the start of the season were
Patrick Kujala
Patrick Kujala (born 15 May 1996 Marbella, Spanish) is a Spanish-born Finnish professional racing driver, who lives in city of Mäntsälä, Finland and races under a Finnish racing licence. His favorite circuit is Belgium SPA-Francorchamps. Pat ...
and
Aaro Vainio
Aaro Vainio (born 2 October 1993 in Espoo
Espoo (, ; sv, Esbo) is a city and municipality in the region of Uusimaa in the Republic of Finland. It is located on the northern shore of the Gulf of Finland, bordering the cities of Helsinki, ...
from Finland and
Kevin Korjus
Kevin Korjus (born 9 January 1993) is an Estonian racing driver.
Career
Karting
Kevin Korjus was born in Tallinn, the son of former sidecarcross racer Aivar Korjus. He made his pan-European karting début in 2006, competing in the Rotax Max Euro ...
from Estonia. Vainio was replaced by former
FIA F2-champion
Dean Stoneman
Dean Colin Stoneman (born July 24, 1990) is a British racing driver. Stoneman was the 2010 Formula Two champion.
Career
Like many drivers, Stoneman began his career in karting. He made his first steps in single-seaters in 2006 when he compete ...
for the last two races of the 2013 season. Koiranen GP finished their inaugural season with third place in the team's championship.
For their second season in the
GP3 Series
The GP3 Series, or GP3 for short, was a single-seater motor racing series launched in 2010 as a feeder series for the GP2 Series, introduced by GP2 organiser Bruno Michel. GP3 followed the entire European leg of the Formula One series and the ...
Koiranen changed their whole driver line-up. New drivers were
Carmen Jordá from
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
,
Jimmy Eriksson
Jimmy Eriksson (born 14 March 1991 in Tomelilla) is a Swedish race car driver who drove in the GP2 Series for Arden International in the 2016 GP2 Series
Career
Karting
Eriksson made his karting debut in 2005, at the age of fourteen. In 2008 he ...
from
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
and
Santiago Urrutia
Santiago Urrutia Lausarot (born 30 August 1996) is an Uruguayan racing driver. He currently competes in the World Touring Car Cup, driving for Cyan Performance Lynk & Co. He formerly competed in Indy Lights, and was the 2015 Pro Mazda series ch ...
from
Uruguay
Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...
.
Dean Stoneman
Dean Colin Stoneman (born July 24, 1990) is a British racing driver. Stoneman was the 2010 Formula Two champion.
Career
Like many drivers, Stoneman began his career in karting. He made his first steps in single-seaters in 2006 when he compete ...
was once again brought in mid-season after
Marussia Manor Racing
Manor Motorsport Ltd, currently trading as Manor Endurance Racing Ltd is a British motor racing company that was formed in 1990 by former single-seater champion John Booth. Manor has participated as a team in many motorsport disciplines since ...
folded before the race weekend in
Sochi
Sochi ( rus, Со́чи, p=ˈsotɕɪ, a=Ru-Сочи.ogg) is the largest resort city in Russia. The city is situated on the Sochi River, along the Black Sea in Southern Russia, with a population of 466,078 residents, up to 600,000 residents in ...
. Stoneman replaced Jordá for the remaining four races of the season. Koiranen GP placed 4th in the team's championship.
Koiranen retained Eriksson for the
2015 season and paired him with
Adderly Fong
Adderly Fong Cheun-yue (Traditional Chinese: 方駿宇; Pinyin: ''Fāng Jùnyǔ''; born March 2, 1990) is a Canadian-Hong Kong racing driver. His career started in 2004. He is currently competing in the Blancpain GT World Challenge Asia racing se ...
and
Formula Renault
Formula Renault are classes of formula racing popular in Europe and elsewhere. Regarded as an entry-level series to motor racing, it was founded in 1971, and was a respected series where drivers can learn advanced racecraft before moving on to hig ...
graduate
Matt Parry
Matthew Parry (born 14 January 1994) is a British racing driver.
Career
Karting
Born in Cardiff, Parry entered karting in 2006, when he finished second in the Hoddesdon Kart Club Championship Minimax. His biggest success was in the last year ...
. Koiranen brought in Russian
Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup
Formula Renault Eurocup was a Formula Renault motor racing championship. Eurocup raced only on European circuits.
It served as a support series to the Formula 3.5 V8, Formula Renault 3.5 Series as part of the World Series by Renault from 2005 to ...
driver
Matevos Isaakyan
Matevos "Matos" Isaakyan (russian: Матевос "Матос" Исаакян; born 17 April 1998) is a Russian racing driver. He is a current member of the SMP Racing driver programme.
Career
Karting
Born in Moscow, Isaakyan began karting in h ...
to replace Fong for last four races of the season. Koiranen repeated last season's results finishing fourth in the teams championship.
Koiranen retained Parry and Isaakyan
for the
2016 season. They were teamed up with
Mahaveer Raghunathan
Mahaveer Raghunathan (born 17 November 1998) is an Indian racing driver who last competed in the 2019 FIA Formula 2 Championship with MP Motorsport.
Career
Lower formula
Raghunathan started his racing career in karting in 2012, where he re ...
and
Ralph Boschung
Ralph Boschung (born 23 September 1997) is a Swiss racing driver set to compete in the FIA Formula 2 Championship for Campos Racing. He is a race winner in the GP3 Series and has previously competed in Formula 2 from to , for Campos, MP Motors ...
. Boschung and Parry claimed victories for the team in the rounds at the
Red Bull Ring
The Red Bull Ring is a motorsport race track in Spielberg, Styria, Austria.
The race circuit was founded as Österreichring (translation: Austrian Circuit) and hosted the Austrian Grand Prix for 18 consecutive years, from to . It was later sh ...
and the
Hungaroring
The Hungaroring is a motorsport racetrack in Mogyoród, Pest County, Hungary where the Formula One Hungarian Grand Prix is held. In 1986, it became the location of the first Formula One Grand Prix behind the Iron Curtain. Bernie Ecclestone wan ...
respectively and the team finished fifth in the teams' championship.
In 2017, the team withdrew from the sport.
Asian Le Mans Series
In 2022, Koiranen Kemppi Motorsport entered
Asian Le Mans series
The Asian Le Mans Series is an Asian sports car racing endurance series created by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO) and based in Asia. It is the successor to the defunct Japan Le Mans Challenge which folded in 2007 after its second season. ...
fielding a one car entry in the LMP3 class with a
Duqueine M30-D08 car driven by Russian Nikita Alexandrov and Finns Jesse Salmenautio and Tomi Veijalainen. Team finished the season 8th overall in their class with 16 points.
Prototype Cup Germany
In 2022, team also entered the
Prototype Cup Germany with a one-car entry driven by Swedish Sebastian Arenram and Finn Jesse Salmenautio.
Complete series results
GP3 Series
(
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)
Asian Le Mans
Prototype Cup Germany
Timeline
References
External links
*
{{s-end
Finnish auto racing teams
GP3 Series teams
Formula Renault Eurocup teams
Auto racing teams established in 1997
1997 establishments in Finland