Samuele Buttarelli (born 2 May 1992 in

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian census, the Province of ...

) is a professional racing driver from

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

Career

Master Junior Formula

Buttarelli began his single–seater career in the

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

–based Master Junior Formula in 2007. He competed in just three of the 21 races and was subsequently classified in 23rd place.

Formula Renault 2.0

The following year, Buttarelli stepped up to Formula Renault, competing in the Italian Formula Renault 2.0 and Swiss Formula Renault 2.0 series with Cram Competition. In the Italian series, he competed in the first ten races of the season before leaving the championship, taking a best result of 10th at Misano, whilst in the Swiss series he took part in six races, with a sixth place at

Hockenheim Hockenheim () is a town in northwest Baden-Württemberg, Germany, about 20 km south of Mannheim and 10 km west of Walldorf. It is located in the Upper Rhine valley on the tourist theme routes "Baden Asparagus Route" () and Bertha Benz M ...

being his best race result.

Formula Three

In 2009, Buttarelli graduated to

Formula Three Formula Three, also called Formula 3, abbreviated as F3, is a third-tier class of open-wheel formula racing. The various championships held in Europe, Australia, South America and Asia form an important step for many prospective Formula One dri ...

, racing in the newly named European F3 Open Championship for the emiliodevillota.com team. He took part in the first six rounds of the season before leaving the series after the Monza round in October, where he had just secured his best race results of the season. He was classified in 18th place in the standings. In June 2009, Buttarelli joined

Carlin Motorsport Carlin, formerly Carlin Motorsport, is a motor racing team based in the United Kingdom. It currently competes in five championships: FIA Formula 2 Championship, FIA Formula 3 Championship, F4 British Championship, BRDC British Formula 3 and ...

to contest the

Masters of Formula 3 The Masters of Formula 3 was a Formula Three race held annually, usually at the Circuit Park Zandvoort in the Netherlands. Due to noise restrictions in the Zandvoort area, the 2007 and 2008 races were held in the Belgian circuit of Zolder. Howe ...

event held at

Zandvoort Zandvoort () is a municipality in the province of North Holland, Netherlands. It is one of the major beach resorts of the Netherlands; it has a long sandy beach. It is bordered by coastal dunes of Zuid-Kennemerland National Park and the Amsterdam ...

. After qualifying on the back row of the grid, he finished as the last classified finisher in 31st position. In September 2009, he also made his debut in the

Italian Formula Three Championship The Italian Formula Three Championship was the Formula Three racing competition in Italy. History Formula Three has traditionally been regarded as the first major stepping stone for F1 hopefuls - it is typically the first point in a driver's care ...

, racing for

RC Motorsport RC Motorsport was an auto racing team based in Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territ ...

Imola Imola (; rgn, Jômla or ) is a city and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Bologna, located on the river Santerno, in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. The city is traditionally considered the western entrance to the historical ...

, where he finished the two races in 18th and 17th places respectively. For the 2010 season, Buttarelli joined

Prema Powerteam Prema Powerteam (competing as Prema Racing in the FIA Formula 2 Championship, the FIA Formula 3 Championship and European Le Mans Series and as Prema Orlen Team in the FIA World Endurance Championship) is a motorsport team from Italy. It mainly ...

to contest the Italian Formula Three Championship. After securing three podium places and a

fastest lap In motorsport, the fastest lap is the quickest lap run during a race. Some racing series, like Formula One, Formula 2 and Formula E award championship points for a driver or team that set the fastest lap. In Grand Prix motorcycle racing no point ...

in the first ten races, Buttarelli split with the team after the fifth round at Varano. He did, however, secure a seat alongside

Daniel Mancinelli Daniel Mancinelli (born 23 July 1988, in San Severino Marche) is a professional racing driver from Italy. Career Karting Mancinelli enjoyed a long karting career prior to stepping up to single-seater racing. In 2003, he finished fourth in the It ...

Team Ghinzani Team Ghinzani is a motor racing team based in Italy, involved in many areas of motorsport. The team was founded in 1992 by Piercarlo Ghinzani, who raced in Formula One between and . History Team Ghinzani have raced in Italian, German and Fo ...

in time for the next round of the series at Vallelunga, where he took a podium in the second race. He eventually finished the season in eighth place.

Formula Le Mans

In July 2009, Buttarelli took part in a one–off round of the

Formula Le Mans The Le Mans Prototype Challenge (shortened to LMP Challenge or LMPC) was a spec sports prototype formula created by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO), organisers of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and sports car constructor Oreca. The formula is inte ...

series in

Portimão Portimão () is a city and a municipality in the district of Faro, in the Algarve region of southern Portugal. The population in 2011 was 55,614, in an area of 182.06 km2. It was formerly known as Vila Nova de Portimão (). In 1924, it was ...

, sharing an

Oreca FLM09 The Le Mans Prototype Challenge (shortened to LMP Challenge or LMPC) was a spec racing, spec sports prototype formula created by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO), organisers of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and sports car racing, sports car constr ...

with

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 Eccles ...

regular

Jérôme d'Ambrosio Jérôme D’Ambrosio (born 27 December 1985) is a Belgian former professional racing driver, motorsport executive and former Team Principal of Venturi Racing in Formula E. He has previously driven for Marussia Virgin Racing and Lotus F1 in t ...

, who was using the weekend to learn the circuit as it would host the final round of the GP2 Series season. The pair dominated the event, winning both races whilst also taking a pole position and fastest lap. However, as they were guest drivers they were ineligible for championship points.

International Formula Master

In the summer of 2009, Buttarelli took part in the

International Formula Master International Formula Master, also known as Formula Super 2000, was a European-based junior single seater formula. The series was conceived as a competitor for Formula Three and made its debut at Valencia in 2007. European television channel Euros ...

events that supported the and , as part of series organiser

N.Technology N.Technology is an Italian auto racing team, founded by Mauro Sipsz and Monica Bregoli. Team history N.Technology (originally named Nordauto Squadra Corse or Team Nordauto) were set up to manage the worldwide sporting activities of the Fiat Gro ...

's Talent Support Program (T.S.P). In his four races in the series he took a best result of ninth in 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 w ...

sprint race.

Racing record

Career summary

† – As Buttarelli was a guest driver, he was ineligible for championship points.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Buttarelli, Samuele 1992 births Living people Sportspeople from Genoa Italian racing drivers Italian Formula Three Championship drivers Euroformula Open Championship drivers International Formula Master drivers Italian Formula Renault 2.0 drivers Formula Renault 2.0 Alps drivers Auto GP drivers FIA Formula Two Championship drivers Prema Powerteam drivers De Villota Motorsport drivers Cram Competition drivers RC Motorsport drivers DAMS drivers Carlin racing drivers