Robbie Buhl (born September 2, 1963) is an American former race car driver who competed in the

Indy Racing League The IndyCar Series, currently known as the NTT IndyCar Series under sponsorship, is the highest class of regional North American open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars in the United States, which has been conducted under the auspices of ...

. He was a color commentator for the IndyCar races on Versus. In 2016, Robbie, along with his brother Tom Buhl, starte
Buhl Sport Detroit
a motorsports marketing company, professional race team, and teen driving program based in

Detroit, MI Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at the ...

. Buhl's current race team, Racing4Detroit, is the first professional race team based in Detroit, and most recently ran in the

2019 Americas Rallycross Championship The 2019 Americas Rallycross Championship was the second and final season of the Americas Rallycross Championship, a feeder championship to the FIA World Rallycross Championship representing North America. The season consists of six rounds across ...

. He also created and acts as lead instructor o
Teen Street Skills
an advanced teen driver training program also based and operating in Detroit. He won the 1992

Indy Lights Indy NXT, previously Indy Lights, is an American developmental automobile racing series sanctioned by IndyCar, currently known as Firestone Indy NXT Series for sponsorship reasons. Indy Lights is the highest step on the Road to Indy, a program ...

championship and caught the eye of John Menard's

Team Menard Team Menard was an auto racing team that competed in the Indianapolis 500, CART, Indy Racing League, NASCAR Cup Series, and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. The team was owned by Menards founder, John Menard Jr.. Founded in 1980 to compete in CAR ...

in 1996, running as team mate to

Tony Stewart Anthony Wayne Stewart (born May 20, 1971), nicknamed Smoke, is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver, current NASCAR team co-owner of Stewart-Haas Racing, and current co-owner of the Superstar Racing Experience. He is a ...

for two seasons succeeding the late

Scott Brayton Scott Everts Brayton (February 20, 1959 – May 17, 1996) was an American race car driver on the American open-wheel circuit. He competed in 14 Indianapolis 500s, beginning with the 1981 event. Brayton was killed in practice after qualifying ...

. He scored his first win in what was once the closest finish in series history when he beat ex-

MasterCard Lola The MasterCard Lola Formula One Racing Team, often known as MasterCard Lola or simply Lola, was a British Formula One team that contested only one race in the 1997 Formula One World Championship. It quickly withdrew from the sport after failing ...

F1 driver

Vincenzo Sospiri Vincenzo Sospiri (born 7 October 1966) is an Italian former racing driver. Early career In 1981, at the age of 15, Sospiri started racing in the Italian 100cc karting championship. In a karting career described by Michael Schumacher as 'dominati ...

by 0.064 seconds at the

New Hampshire International Speedway New Hampshire Motor Speedway is a oval speedway located in Loudon, New Hampshire, which has hosted NASCAR racing annually since 1990, as well as the longest-running motorcycle race in North America, the Loudon Classic. Nicknamed "The Magic Mil ...

Personal life

Buhl's wife Becky is the widow of former racer

. Buhl was born in

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

but his home is

Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan Grosse Pointe Farms is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 9,479 at the 2010 census. As part of the Grosse Pointe collection of cities, it is a northeastern city of Metro Detroit and shares a small wester ...

. He is a graduate of Cranbrook School (now

Cranbrook Kingswood School (''In The Right Way Quickly'') , established = , closed = , type = Independent , religious_affiliation = Methodist , president = , head_label = Headmaste ...

) in

Bloomfield Hills Bloomfield Hills is a small city (5.04 sq. miles) in Oakland County, Michigan, Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is a northern suburb of Metro Detroit and is approximately northwest of Downtown Detroit. Except a small southern bo ...

. His family's wealth stems from 19th/early 20th century manufacturing and real estate development and the industrialization of Detroit in the period 1850-1950. Family holdings included Buhl Stamping,

Buhl Aircraft Company CA-6 Airsedan ''Spokane Sun God'' The Buhl Aircraft Company was a US aircraft manufacturer founded in Detroit in 1925 which remained in operation until 1933. Buhl designed and manufactured the Buhl-Verville CA-3 Airster, the first aircraft to re ...

, development of vast real estate holdings (including the landmark

Buhl Building The Buhl Building is a skyscraper and class-A office center in Downtown Detroit, Michigan. Architect Wirt C. Rowland designed the Buhl in a Neo-Gothic style with Romanesque accents. Constructed in 1925, it stands at 26 stories in the Detroit ...

in downtown Detroit),

Parke-Davis Parke-Davis is a subsidiary of the pharmaceutical company Pfizer. Although Parke, Davis & Co. is no longer an independent corporation, it was once America's oldest and largest drug maker, and played an important role in medical history. In 1970 ...

(now part of drug giant

Pfizer Pfizer Inc. ( ) is an American multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology corporation headquartered on 42nd Street in Manhattan, New York City. The company was established in 1849 in New York by two German entrepreneurs, Charles Pfizer ...

), Buhl Steel (now part of

U.S. Steel United States Steel Corporation, more commonly known as U.S. Steel, is an American integrated steel producer headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with production operations primarily in the United States of America and in severa ...

), Copper and Brass Sales, Inc, (by marriage) and many other holdings. Relatives include former Detroit mayors

Christian H. Buhl Christian H. Buhl (May 9, 1810 – January 23, 1894) was a businessman and industrialist from Detroit, Michigan. He served as the city's mayor in 1860-61. Biography Christian Henry Buhl was born in Zelienople, Pennsylvania on May 9, 1810. ...

and

Frederick Buhl Frederick Buhl (November 27, 1806 – May 12, 1890) was a businessman from Detroit, Michigan. He served as the city's mayor in 1848. Biography Frederick Buhl was born in Zelienople, Pennsylvania on November 27, 1806, the second of eleven ch ...

. His parents reside in Grosse Pointe Farms,

Harbor Springs, Michigan Harbor Springs is a city and resort community in Emmet County, Michigan. The population was 1,194 in the 2010 census. Harbor Springs is in a sheltered bay on the north shore of the Little Traverse Bay on Lake Michigan. The Little Traverse Ligh ...

, and

Hobe Sound, Florida Hobe Sound is an unincorporated area and census-designated place (CDP) in Martin County, Florida, United States, located along Florida's Treasure Coast. The population was 13,163 at the 2020 census, up from 11,521 in 2010. Geography Hobe Sound ...

. Robbie is a Founder and key Supporter of "Racing for Kids", a charitable foundation established to assist chronically ill children. Robbie makes a point of visiting sick children at hospitals on each stop of the circuit, bringing a bit of cheer to their lives in the process. In 2007, he began a broadcasting career, joining the broadcast booth for the

Indy Pro Series Indy NXT, previously Indy Lights, is an American developmental automobile racing series sanctioned by IndyCar, currently known as Firestone Indy NXT Series for sponsorship reasons. Indy Lights is the highest step on the Road to Indy, a program ...

, now the Firestone Indy Lights Series, alongside veteran broadcaster

Bob Jenkins Robert F. Jenkins (September 4, 1947 – August 9, 2021) was an American television and radio sports announcer, primarily calling Indy car and NASCAR telecasts for ESPN/ABC and later Versus/NBCSN. Jenkins was the radio "Voice of the Indianapoli ...

. He would join Jenkins and

Jon Beekhuis Jon Beekhuis (; born March 31, 1960) is an American former race car driver. Beekhuis was born in Zurich, Switzerland while his American father was studying at ETH Zurich, and grew up in California. The 1988 ARS (Indy Lights) champion, Beekhuis d ...

in the Versus broadcast booth for the 2009 IndyCar Series. It was announced on the Izod Indycar Series website he was let go by Versus for the network's IndyCar coverage and will be replaced by Wally Dallenbach Jr., who is also a color commentator for TNT's NASCAR coverage.
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Career results

American Open Wheel Racing results

( Template:American Open Wheel driver results legend, key) (Races in bold indicate pole position)

American Racing Series / Indy Lights

CART

IRL IndyCar Series

Indianapolis 500

References

External links

Driver DB Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Buhl, Robbie 1963 births Living people Champ Car drivers Cranbrook Educational Community alumni IndyCar Series drivers Indianapolis 500 drivers IndyCar Series team owners Indy Lights champions Indy Lights drivers SCCA Formula Super Vee drivers Motorsport announcers Trans-Am Series drivers Racing drivers from Detroit Barber Pro Series drivers People from Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan Dreyer & Reinbold Racing drivers Dale Coyne Racing drivers A. J. Foyt Enterprises drivers RFK Racing drivers