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Nick Lars Heidfeld (born 10 May 1977) is a German professional racing driver.
Despite scoring regular podium finishes in with Williams Grand Prix Engineering, Williams, and in and with BMW in Formula One, BMW Sauber, Heidfeld never won a race after debuting in Formula One in . Heidfeld currently holds two Formula One records; most podium finishes without a Grand Prix win (13), and the most second-place finishes without a win (8).
In 2011, Heidfeld raced in Formula One for the Renault in Formula One, Renault team as a replacement for the injured Robert Kubica, his former BMW in Formula One, BMW Sauber teammate, before being replaced by Bruno Senna. He last drove for the Rebellion Racing team in the FIA World Endurance Championship and for Mahindra Racing Formula E Team in FIA Formula E Championship, Formula E.
Heidfeld was born in Mönchengladbach, West Germany on 10 May 1977, and began racing Kart racing, karts at the age of 11 in 1988. In 1994 he moved into the German Formula Ford series, gaining widespread attention by winning 8 of the 9 races to take the title that season. In 1995 he won the German International Formula Ford 1800 Championship, and came second in the Zetec, Zetec Cup. This led to a drive in the German Formula Three Championship for 1996, where he finished third overall, after taking 3 wins. He entered the end of the season Macau Grand Prix and won the first heat of the race, attracting the attention of compatriot Norbert Haug, who later signed him up for the West Competition team.
During the winter of 2004–2005, Heidfeld tested with the Williams Grand Prix Engineering, Williams team, in a 'shootout' against Antônio Pizzonia for the second race seat alongside Mark Webber (racing driver), Mark Webber. At the Williams launch on 31 January 2005, it was announced that Heidfeld would be the race driver for the team in 2005 Formula One season, 2005, replacing the McLaren-bound Juan Pablo Montoya.
He performed well throughout the season, often finishing ahead of teammate Webber. At the seventh race of the 2005 season at the Nürburgring circuit, his home Grand Prix, Heidfeld took his first and only pole position. In 2005 Monaco Grand Prix, Monaco he finished second, which he equalled at the Nürburgring in the same season.
Heidfeld missed the 2005 Italian Grand Prix, Italian and 2005 Belgian Grand Prix, Belgian Grands Prix due to injuries suffered in a testing accident. Scheduled to come back for 2005 Brazilian Grand Prix, Brazil, he was injured again when hit by a motorbike when out cycling, and therefore forced to sit out the rest of the season.
During 2006 Heidfeld scored points several times for his new team. At Melbourne he ran as high as second until the safety car came out. He eventually finished fourth. At Indianapolis, he was eliminated in a spectacular first lap accident which saw fellow drivers Scott Speed, Jenson Button, Kimi Räikkönen and Juan Pablo Montoya also go out. Heidfeld's car was launched into a quadruple barrel roll, but he and the other drivers all walked away unharmed. The 2006 Hungarian Grand Prix, Hungarian Grand Prix saw Heidfeld give BMW Sauber their first podium finish and best result of the year, when he finished third, even though he had only qualified tenth on the grid.
At the end of 2006, Heidfeld was quoted attacking the media's saturation coverage of his teammate Robert Kubica, who had scored fewer points than him. This has happened two other times in the German's career; in 2001 when he was teammates with Kimi Räikkönen (whom he beat twelve points to nine) and in 2002, when he was teammates with Felipe Massa (whom he beat by seven points to four). Räikkönen and Massa later formed the 2007 Scuderia Ferrari, Ferrari driver line-up.
Heidfeld started the 2007 Formula One season, 2007 season strongly. In 2007 Bahrain Grand Prix, Bahrain, he chased down and overtook reigning world champion Fernando Alonso around the outside, finishing half a minute ahead of his BMW teammate Kubica. He scored three fourth places in the opening three races, a sixth in 2007 Monaco Grand Prix, Monaco, and a second place at the 2007 Canadian Grand Prix, Canadian Grand Prix, where he also out-qualified both Scuderia Ferrari, Ferraris, equalling his best ever Grand Prix finish. After retiring from fifth place at Indianapolis, he was outscored by teammate Kubica at both Magny-Cours and Silverstone. At an eventful 2007 European Grand Prix, European Grand Prix at the Nürburgring, Heidfeld's home circuit, where he collided with Kubica on the opening lap, he recovered and overtook Kubica on the final lap to finish sixth, despite making six pitstops during the race. Heidfeld returned to form in Hungary, qualifying second and finishing third to score his and BMW's second podium of the season. He finished fourth at the 2007 Turkish Grand Prix, Turkish and 2007 Italian Grand Prix, Italian Grand Prix, and fifth in the 2007 Belgian Grand Prix, Belgian Grand Prix. He eventually finished a career-best fifth in the championship with 61 points, outpointing Kubica by 22 points.
On 28 April 2007, Heidfeld drove three demonstration laps around the Nürburgring's legendary 14 mile Nordschleife track, which made him the first driver in 31 years to pilot a current F1 car there. About 45,000 spectators attended the event, which was held after a four-hour VLN endurance race.
After several months of negotiations, BMW confirmed that Heidfeld would stay with the team for .
Heidfeld began the 2008 season strongly, finishing second in 2008 Australian Grand Prix, Australia after qualifying fifth. In 2008 Malaysian Grand Prix, Malaysia, he qualified fifth but dropped down to tenth at the first corner after being pushed wide by Jarno Trulli. He got back up to sixth, also setting his first ever fastest lap in the process. In 2008 Bahrain Grand Prix, Bahrain he started from sixth place but he did not gain a place at the start, but passed Trulli and Heikki Kovalainen to climb up to fourth. He finished there and this fourth gave him second in the championship.
After a few disappointing qualifying sessions and races in the following weeks (after which the German press started to call him "Leidfeld", with "Leid" meaning "misery" in German), Kubica and Heidfeld made BMW Sauber history by securing the third-year team's first victory, and first one-two finish respectively in 2008 Canadian Grand Prix, Canada. Heidfeld was positioned eighth on the grid and after losing a place at the start, before gaining it back, was sitting comfortably in eighth place once again before a safety car situation saw the top 7 cars enter the pits in what was to soon become a bizarre series of errors that left Heidfeld and Kubica battling for the top two places. Heidfeld was switched to a one-stop fuel strategy and came out of his stop ahead of Kubica, but considerably heavier on fuel. Not long afterwards, Heidfeld moved off the racing line allowing Kubica to make an easy pass, which then allowed the lighter BMW Sauber to build up a considerable lead on Heidfeld, who was occupied with preventing Fernando Alonso, also in a lighter car, from chasing Kubica. The gap built by Kubica allowed him to rejoin the race comfortably in the lead after his final pitstop with no threats behind him. Heidfeld finished the race second, solidifying his fifth-place position in the driver's points although his post-race body language suggested he was unhappy to have ceded a potential win for the benefit of the team. Heidfeld had a disappointing race in 2008 French Grand Prix, France, failing to score any points. He came back strongly at the 2008 British Grand Prix, British Grand Prix, starting fifth and finishing second in the wet conditions. Another strong performance, where he set the fastest lap of the race for the second time this season, was his home grand prix at the Hockenheimring showed that, for the time being, he had reversed the performance deficit to his teammate. Another second-place finish at the Belgian Grand Prix, followed by 5th and 6th-place finishes in Italy and Singapore respectively put him just one point behind current World Champion Kimi Räikkönen with just three races remaining.
It was confirmed on 6 October that both Heidfeld and teammate Robert Kubica, Kubica would remain at the BMW Sauber team for the season.
In the last three races Heidfeld scored four points, ending in sixth place in the standings after being passed by Fernando Alonso at the last round of the season. However, Heidfeld became only the second driver to finish 18 races in a single season, after Tiago Monteiro completed the same feat with Jordan Grand Prix, Jordan in 2005. Heidfeld also became the first driver to finish every single race in a season since Michael Schumacher in 2002.
Heidfeld began in 2009 Australian Grand Prix, Australia by qualifying in 11th place and finishing 10th in the race. At the 2009 Malaysian Grand Prix, Malaysian Grand Prix, Heidfeld again qualified in 11th, but started 10th as Sebastian Vettel was issued a 10 place drop (for an incident caused in Australia with Heidfeld's teammate Kubica). The race was stopped due to torrential rain on the 33rd lap, when Heidfeld was third, but as set out in the regulations, the result was taken at the end of the penultimate completed lap, when Heidfeld had been running second. Because less than 75% of the race distance had been covered, the drivers only received half points. He scored a further 2 points at the , and finished 5th at 2009 Belgian Grand Prix, Spa to score another 4 points. A seventh-place finish at 2009 Italian Grand Prix, Monza added a further 2 points to his 2009 tally. Nevertheless, four points-scoring finishes in the final six races secured him thirteenth position in the Drivers' Championship, two points ahead of Kubica.
In 2009 Singapore Grand Prix, Singapore, Heidfeld's run of 41 consecutive classified finishes was brought to an end due to a collision with Force India's Adrian Sutil.
In September 2010, Heidfeld returned to the Formula One grid, replacing Pedro de la Rosa at the Sauber team for the remainder of the 2010 Formula One season, 2010 season. This marked his third spell with them. On 4 October 2010, Sauber confirmed their driver line-up for 2011 Formula One season, 2011 as Kamui Kobayashi and Sergio Pérez, seemingly leaving Heidfeld without a drive for 2011, before replacing Robert Kubica at Renault in Formula One, Renault, who was injured in a rally accident on 6 February 2011.
On 9 February, Renault in Formula One, Lotus Renault GP confirmed that Heidfeld would be sharing testing duties with Bruno Senna on the Saturday and Sunday of the four-day test at Circuito de Jerez, Jerez, to evaluate the drivers in preparation of replacing the injured and former BMW Sauber teammate Robert Kubica, who had suffered long-term injuries to his arm and hand in a crash whilst rallying in Italy, for the season. On the Saturday, Heidfeld set the quickest time of the day, stating that he enjoyed his day's running – 86 laps – with the team, and had fun driving the car. Heidfeld was confirmed as Kubica's replacement on 16 February 2011. In Australia, the first race of the season following the cancellation of the , Heidfeld qualified 18th and ended 12th after suffering significant damage to his car due to another competitor driving into him at the start of race. On 10 April 2011, Heidfeld finished third, after starting sixth, in the at Sepang International Circuit, Sepang, breaking Stefan Johansson's record of 12 podiums without a win. He added another 12th place in 2011 Chinese Grand Prix, China, before a seventh-place finish in 2011 Turkish Grand Prix, Turkey after a close battle with teammate Petrov. Two eighth places in 2011 Spanish Grand Prix, Spain and 2011 Monaco Grand Prix, Monaco were followed by a retirement at the , after running into the back of Kamui Kobayashi and causing damage to his front wing, which broke under acceleration and collapsed under the car. He was forced to retire after his car caught fire after exiting the pit lane on lap 25 in the Hungarian Grand Prix. Heidfeld was replaced by Bruno Senna ahead of the . Heidfeld officially parted company with the team on 2 September 2011.
On 26 June 2014, Heidfeld signed up for the inaugural season of FIA Formula E Championship, Formula E for Venturi Grand Prix. In the first race at the 2014 Beijing ePrix, he had a spectacular accident at the final corner on the final lap with DAMS, e.Dams Renault driver Nicolas Prost whilst fighting for the lead. Prost later accepted the blame for the accident. At the 2014 Putrajaya ePrix, he retired from the race after a collision this time with Franck Montagny but to add insult to injury, he was excluded from the 19th position finish for changing his car outside the permitted area during his pit stop, meaning he cannot count the race as a round where he drops a score.
‡ Half points awarded as less than 75% of race distance was completed.
Nick Heidfeld 1st official Fanclub website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Heidfeld, Nick 1977 births Living people Sportspeople from Mönchengladbach German expatriate sportspeople in Monaco German expatriate sportspeople in Switzerland Expatriate sportspeople in Monaco Expatriate sportspeople in Switzerland Racing drivers from North Rhine-Westphalia German racing drivers German Formula Three Championship drivers International Formula 3000 drivers International Formula 3000 Champions German Formula One drivers Prost Formula One drivers Sauber Formula One drivers Jordan Formula One drivers Williams Formula One drivers Renault Formula One drivers 24 Hours of Le Mans drivers Porsche Supercup drivers Supercars Championship drivers American Le Mans Series drivers FIA World Endurance Championship drivers Formula E drivers People from Stäfa Eifelland Racing drivers Opel Team BSR drivers Mercedes-AMG Motorsport drivers Rebellion Racing drivers Venturi Grand Prix drivers Mahindra Racing drivers Nürburgring 24 Hours drivers WeatherTech SportsCar Championship drivers Campos Racing drivers West Competition drivers World Rallycross Championship drivers
Early life and career
Heidfeld was born in Mönchengladbach, West Germany on 10 May 1977, and began racing Kart racing, karts at the age of 11 in 1988. In 1994 he moved into the German Formula Ford series, gaining widespread attention by winning 8 of the 9 races to take the title that season. In 1995 he won the German International Formula Ford 1800 Championship, and came second in the Zetec, Zetec Cup. This led to a drive in the German Formula Three Championship for 1996, where he finished third overall, after taking 3 wins. He entered the end of the season Macau Grand Prix and won the first heat of the race, attracting the attention of compatriot Norbert Haug, who later signed him up for the West Competition team.
Junior career
The following year Heidfeld won the German F3 Championship for Bertram Schäfer Racing, with support from McLaren/West, including a win at the Monaco Grand Prix Formula Three support race. In 1998, he won three races and was runner-up in the International Formula 3000 championship, with the West Competition, West Competition team. At the final race of the season he was demoted to the back of the grid from pole position, after his team used non-compliant fuel. He finished the race ninth and out of the points, losing the championship by seven points to Juan Pablo Montoya. During that season, he was also the official test driver for the Team McLaren, McLaren-Mercedes-Benz, Mercedes Formula One team. In 1999, he won the International Formula 3000 Championship. That year he also took the official track record at the Goodwood Festival of Speed which stood for 20 years. He was also a member of the Mercedes squad that raced at the 1999 24 Hours of Le Mans, but the team withdrew after the Mercedes-Benz CLR back-flipped on the Mulsanne Straight while Mark Webber (racing driver), Mark Webber and Peter Dumbreck were driving.Formula One career
Prost (2000)
Heidfeld was signed as a race driver for the Prost Grand Prix F1 team for the 2000 Formula One season, 2000 season, alongside Formula One veteran Jean Alesi. Heidfeld struggled with his new car and suffered a string of retirements, as well as colliding with his teammate on more than one occasion.Sauber (2001–2003)
He departed Prost at the end of that season, before signing a three-year contract with Sauber for 2001 Formula One season, 2001. He was partnered with then rookie driver Kimi Räikkönen. Heidfeld scored his first podium with a third-place finish in the 2001 Brazilian Grand Prix, Brazilian Grand Prix. After the announcement of Mika Häkkinen's retirement, many thought that Heidfeld would replace him in the McLaren-Mercedes team, as he had Mercedes backing and had outscored the much more inexperienced Räikkönen by three points over the year. However, the McLaren seat went to Räikkönen, and Heidfeld stayed with Sauber for 2002 and 2003, where he racked up a number of points finishes. In 2002 Formula One season, 2002 he outperformed another rookie teammate, Felipe Massa, but was then beaten by his more experienced fellow countryman, Heinz-Harald Frentzen, in 2003 Formula One season, 2003.
Jordan (2004)
At the end of the 2003 season, Heidfeld was replaced at the Sauber team by Jordan Grand Prix, Jordan's Giancarlo Fisichella and looked to be without a race seat for the 2004 Formula One season, 2004 season. However, after impressing during a series of preseason tests, it was announced that Heidfeld would race with the financially strapped Jordan team, alongside rookie Giorgio Pantano. The Jordan EJ14, EJ14 was an upgrade of the previous season's uncompetitive EJ13 and proved slow. Despite this, Heidfeld often outperformed the car, finishing ahead of more competitive vehicles. He finished seventh at the 2004 Monaco Grand Prix, Monaco Grand Prix and eighth at the 2004 Canadian Grand Prix, Canadian Grand Prix and finished the season with three points.Williams (2005)
During the winter of 2004–2005, Heidfeld tested with the Williams Grand Prix Engineering, Williams team, in a 'shootout' against Antônio Pizzonia for the second race seat alongside Mark Webber (racing driver), Mark Webber. At the Williams launch on 31 January 2005, it was announced that Heidfeld would be the race driver for the team in 2005 Formula One season, 2005, replacing the McLaren-bound Juan Pablo Montoya.
He performed well throughout the season, often finishing ahead of teammate Webber. At the seventh race of the 2005 season at the Nürburgring circuit, his home Grand Prix, Heidfeld took his first and only pole position. In 2005 Monaco Grand Prix, Monaco he finished second, which he equalled at the Nürburgring in the same season.
Heidfeld missed the 2005 Italian Grand Prix, Italian and 2005 Belgian Grand Prix, Belgian Grands Prix due to injuries suffered in a testing accident. Scheduled to come back for 2005 Brazilian Grand Prix, Brazil, he was injured again when hit by a motorbike when out cycling, and therefore forced to sit out the rest of the season.
BMW Sauber (2006–2009)
2006
Heidfeld gained a contract with his then Williams' engine supplier, BMW in Formula One, BMW, when they bought the Sauber team (BMW and Sauber Motorsport, Sauber merger) and entered Formula One as BMW in Formula One, BMW Sauber for the 2006 Formula One season, 2006 season, replacing Felipe Massa who was bound for Scuderia Ferrari, Ferrari.
During 2006 Heidfeld scored points several times for his new team. At Melbourne he ran as high as second until the safety car came out. He eventually finished fourth. At Indianapolis, he was eliminated in a spectacular first lap accident which saw fellow drivers Scott Speed, Jenson Button, Kimi Räikkönen and Juan Pablo Montoya also go out. Heidfeld's car was launched into a quadruple barrel roll, but he and the other drivers all walked away unharmed. The 2006 Hungarian Grand Prix, Hungarian Grand Prix saw Heidfeld give BMW Sauber their first podium finish and best result of the year, when he finished third, even though he had only qualified tenth on the grid.
At the end of 2006, Heidfeld was quoted attacking the media's saturation coverage of his teammate Robert Kubica, who had scored fewer points than him. This has happened two other times in the German's career; in 2001 when he was teammates with Kimi Räikkönen (whom he beat twelve points to nine) and in 2002, when he was teammates with Felipe Massa (whom he beat by seven points to four). Räikkönen and Massa later formed the 2007 Scuderia Ferrari, Ferrari driver line-up.
2007
Heidfeld started the 2007 Formula One season, 2007 season strongly. In 2007 Bahrain Grand Prix, Bahrain, he chased down and overtook reigning world champion Fernando Alonso around the outside, finishing half a minute ahead of his BMW teammate Kubica. He scored three fourth places in the opening three races, a sixth in 2007 Monaco Grand Prix, Monaco, and a second place at the 2007 Canadian Grand Prix, Canadian Grand Prix, where he also out-qualified both Scuderia Ferrari, Ferraris, equalling his best ever Grand Prix finish. After retiring from fifth place at Indianapolis, he was outscored by teammate Kubica at both Magny-Cours and Silverstone. At an eventful 2007 European Grand Prix, European Grand Prix at the Nürburgring, Heidfeld's home circuit, where he collided with Kubica on the opening lap, he recovered and overtook Kubica on the final lap to finish sixth, despite making six pitstops during the race. Heidfeld returned to form in Hungary, qualifying second and finishing third to score his and BMW's second podium of the season. He finished fourth at the 2007 Turkish Grand Prix, Turkish and 2007 Italian Grand Prix, Italian Grand Prix, and fifth in the 2007 Belgian Grand Prix, Belgian Grand Prix. He eventually finished a career-best fifth in the championship with 61 points, outpointing Kubica by 22 points.
On 28 April 2007, Heidfeld drove three demonstration laps around the Nürburgring's legendary 14 mile Nordschleife track, which made him the first driver in 31 years to pilot a current F1 car there. About 45,000 spectators attended the event, which was held after a four-hour VLN endurance race.
2008
After several months of negotiations, BMW confirmed that Heidfeld would stay with the team for .
Heidfeld began the 2008 season strongly, finishing second in 2008 Australian Grand Prix, Australia after qualifying fifth. In 2008 Malaysian Grand Prix, Malaysia, he qualified fifth but dropped down to tenth at the first corner after being pushed wide by Jarno Trulli. He got back up to sixth, also setting his first ever fastest lap in the process. In 2008 Bahrain Grand Prix, Bahrain he started from sixth place but he did not gain a place at the start, but passed Trulli and Heikki Kovalainen to climb up to fourth. He finished there and this fourth gave him second in the championship.
After a few disappointing qualifying sessions and races in the following weeks (after which the German press started to call him "Leidfeld", with "Leid" meaning "misery" in German), Kubica and Heidfeld made BMW Sauber history by securing the third-year team's first victory, and first one-two finish respectively in 2008 Canadian Grand Prix, Canada. Heidfeld was positioned eighth on the grid and after losing a place at the start, before gaining it back, was sitting comfortably in eighth place once again before a safety car situation saw the top 7 cars enter the pits in what was to soon become a bizarre series of errors that left Heidfeld and Kubica battling for the top two places. Heidfeld was switched to a one-stop fuel strategy and came out of his stop ahead of Kubica, but considerably heavier on fuel. Not long afterwards, Heidfeld moved off the racing line allowing Kubica to make an easy pass, which then allowed the lighter BMW Sauber to build up a considerable lead on Heidfeld, who was occupied with preventing Fernando Alonso, also in a lighter car, from chasing Kubica. The gap built by Kubica allowed him to rejoin the race comfortably in the lead after his final pitstop with no threats behind him. Heidfeld finished the race second, solidifying his fifth-place position in the driver's points although his post-race body language suggested he was unhappy to have ceded a potential win for the benefit of the team. Heidfeld had a disappointing race in 2008 French Grand Prix, France, failing to score any points. He came back strongly at the 2008 British Grand Prix, British Grand Prix, starting fifth and finishing second in the wet conditions. Another strong performance, where he set the fastest lap of the race for the second time this season, was his home grand prix at the Hockenheimring showed that, for the time being, he had reversed the performance deficit to his teammate. Another second-place finish at the Belgian Grand Prix, followed by 5th and 6th-place finishes in Italy and Singapore respectively put him just one point behind current World Champion Kimi Räikkönen with just three races remaining.
It was confirmed on 6 October that both Heidfeld and teammate Robert Kubica, Kubica would remain at the BMW Sauber team for the season.
In the last three races Heidfeld scored four points, ending in sixth place in the standings after being passed by Fernando Alonso at the last round of the season. However, Heidfeld became only the second driver to finish 18 races in a single season, after Tiago Monteiro completed the same feat with Jordan Grand Prix, Jordan in 2005. Heidfeld also became the first driver to finish every single race in a season since Michael Schumacher in 2002.
2009
Heidfeld began in 2009 Australian Grand Prix, Australia by qualifying in 11th place and finishing 10th in the race. At the 2009 Malaysian Grand Prix, Malaysian Grand Prix, Heidfeld again qualified in 11th, but started 10th as Sebastian Vettel was issued a 10 place drop (for an incident caused in Australia with Heidfeld's teammate Kubica). The race was stopped due to torrential rain on the 33rd lap, when Heidfeld was third, but as set out in the regulations, the result was taken at the end of the penultimate completed lap, when Heidfeld had been running second. Because less than 75% of the race distance had been covered, the drivers only received half points. He scored a further 2 points at the , and finished 5th at 2009 Belgian Grand Prix, Spa to score another 4 points. A seventh-place finish at 2009 Italian Grand Prix, Monza added a further 2 points to his 2009 tally. Nevertheless, four points-scoring finishes in the final six races secured him thirteenth position in the Drivers' Championship, two points ahead of Kubica.
In 2009 Singapore Grand Prix, Singapore, Heidfeld's run of 41 consecutive classified finishes was brought to an end due to a collision with Force India's Adrian Sutil.
2010: Different stints
Mercedes and Pirelli test driver
Following BMW's decision to withdraw from the sport at the end of the 2009 season, Heidfeld's future in Formula One was uncertain. It was mentioned that he was considered to drive for Mercedes-Benz in Formula One, Mercedes GP alongside fellow German Nico Rosberg but the team signed another German in Michael Schumacher instead. McLaren was also a potential destination however these negotiations came to nothing as well. Heidfeld was then tipped for a seat at Sauber alongside Kamui Kobayashi but they decided to go with Pedro de la Rosa. Heidfeld was then in the running for a Renault in Formula One, Renault seat alongside fellow BMW in Formula One, BMW Sauber refugee Robert Kubica, but on 4 February, Heidfeld was confirmed as the test and reserve driver for Mercedes. At the 2010 Australian Grand Prix, Australian Grand Prix, Heidfeld was chosen to succeed Pedro de la Rosa as Chairman of the Grand Prix Drivers' Association. He left the position upon taking the role of Pirelli's test driver ahead of the 2010 Belgian Grand Prix, Belgian Grand Prix, and was replaced by Rubens Barrichello. In August 2010, with Heidfeld not yet having driven the Mercedes MGP W01 car, the team released him from his contract so that he could become the Pirelli tyre company's test driver. Heidfeld tested a Toyota TF109 car fitted with Pirelli tyres on a number of occasions in 2010, ahead of the firm's replacement of Bridgestone as the sport's sole tyre supplier in . Heidfeld completed three tests for Pirelli in Mugello Circuit, Mugello, Circuit Paul Ricard, Paul Ricard and Circuito de Jerez, Jerez before being released from his duties to join Sauber, with his place being taken by Romain Grosjean.Returns to F1 with Sauber (2010)
In September 2010, Heidfeld returned to the Formula One grid, replacing Pedro de la Rosa at the Sauber team for the remainder of the 2010 Formula One season, 2010 season. This marked his third spell with them. On 4 October 2010, Sauber confirmed their driver line-up for 2011 Formula One season, 2011 as Kamui Kobayashi and Sergio Pérez, seemingly leaving Heidfeld without a drive for 2011, before replacing Robert Kubica at Renault in Formula One, Renault, who was injured in a rally accident on 6 February 2011.
Lotus Renault (2011)
On 9 February, Renault in Formula One, Lotus Renault GP confirmed that Heidfeld would be sharing testing duties with Bruno Senna on the Saturday and Sunday of the four-day test at Circuito de Jerez, Jerez, to evaluate the drivers in preparation of replacing the injured and former BMW Sauber teammate Robert Kubica, who had suffered long-term injuries to his arm and hand in a crash whilst rallying in Italy, for the season. On the Saturday, Heidfeld set the quickest time of the day, stating that he enjoyed his day's running – 86 laps – with the team, and had fun driving the car. Heidfeld was confirmed as Kubica's replacement on 16 February 2011. In Australia, the first race of the season following the cancellation of the , Heidfeld qualified 18th and ended 12th after suffering significant damage to his car due to another competitor driving into him at the start of race. On 10 April 2011, Heidfeld finished third, after starting sixth, in the at Sepang International Circuit, Sepang, breaking Stefan Johansson's record of 12 podiums without a win. He added another 12th place in 2011 Chinese Grand Prix, China, before a seventh-place finish in 2011 Turkish Grand Prix, Turkey after a close battle with teammate Petrov. Two eighth places in 2011 Spanish Grand Prix, Spain and 2011 Monaco Grand Prix, Monaco were followed by a retirement at the , after running into the back of Kamui Kobayashi and causing damage to his front wing, which broke under acceleration and collapsed under the car. He was forced to retire after his car caught fire after exiting the pit lane on lap 25 in the Hungarian Grand Prix. Heidfeld was replaced by Bruno Senna ahead of the . Heidfeld officially parted company with the team on 2 September 2011.
Legacy
In 2016, in an academic paper that reported a mathematical modeling study that assessed the relative influence of driver and machine, Heidfeld was ranked the 23rd best Formula One driver of all time.Endurance racing
On 1 February 2012, it was confirmed that Heidfeld would join the Rebellion Racing team to contest both the 2012 24 Hours of Le Mans, Le Mans 24 Hours and selected races of the 2012 FIA World Endurance Championship season, FIA World Endurance Championship. In addition to Le Mans, he also raced at the 12 Hours of Sebring, Sebring 12 Hours and 1000 km Spa, Spa 6 Hours, sharing a Lola Cars, Lola-Toyota Le Mans Prototype, LMP1 car with teammates Neel Jani and Nico Prost, Nicolas Prost. The car finished 32nd overall and seventh in class at 2012 12 Hours of Sebring, Sebring after encountering problems, before leading home a Rebellion one-two in the unofficial privateer class at 2012 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, Spa, finishing fifth overall behind the four works Audi Sport Team Joest, Audis. At Le Mans, Heidfeld and his teammates went one better by finishing fourth, splitting the Audis after a fast and problem-free run.Formula E
On 26 June 2014, Heidfeld signed up for the inaugural season of FIA Formula E Championship, Formula E for Venturi Grand Prix. In the first race at the 2014 Beijing ePrix, he had a spectacular accident at the final corner on the final lap with DAMS, e.Dams Renault driver Nicolas Prost whilst fighting for the lead. Prost later accepted the blame for the accident. At the 2014 Putrajaya ePrix, he retired from the race after a collision this time with Franck Montagny but to add insult to injury, he was excluded from the 19th position finish for changing his car outside the permitted area during his pit stop, meaning he cannot count the race as a round where he drops a score.
Personal life
Heidfeld lives in Stäfa, Switzerland with his fiancée, daughter (born 2005), and sons (born 2007, 2010). He has an elder brother, Tim, and a younger brother, Sven Heidfeld, Sven, a former racing driver who is now a motorsport commentator for German television. His nickname to Formula One fans is "Quick Nick", which he got while driving for Williams Grand Prix Engineering, Williams in 2005 Formula One season, 2005.Racing record
Career summary
Formula racing
International Formula 3000 results
(:Template:Motorsport driver results legend, key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)Formula One results
(:Template:F1 driver results legend 2, key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap) Did not finish, but was classified as he had completed more than 90% of the race distance.‡ Half points awarded as less than 75% of race distance was completed.
=Formula One records
= Heidfeld holds the following List of Formula One driver records, Formula One records:Formula E results
(:Template:Motorsport driver results legend, key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)=Formula E records
= Heidfeld holds the following List of Formula E driver records, Formula E record:Endurance racing
Le Mans 24 Hours results
FIA World Endurance Championship results
American Le Mans Series results
WeatherTech SportsCar Championship results
References
External links
* *Nick Heidfeld 1st official Fanclub website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Heidfeld, Nick 1977 births Living people Sportspeople from Mönchengladbach German expatriate sportspeople in Monaco German expatriate sportspeople in Switzerland Expatriate sportspeople in Monaco Expatriate sportspeople in Switzerland Racing drivers from North Rhine-Westphalia German racing drivers German Formula Three Championship drivers International Formula 3000 drivers International Formula 3000 Champions German Formula One drivers Prost Formula One drivers Sauber Formula One drivers Jordan Formula One drivers Williams Formula One drivers Renault Formula One drivers 24 Hours of Le Mans drivers Porsche Supercup drivers Supercars Championship drivers American Le Mans Series drivers FIA World Endurance Championship drivers Formula E drivers People from Stäfa Eifelland Racing drivers Opel Team BSR drivers Mercedes-AMG Motorsport drivers Rebellion Racing drivers Venturi Grand Prix drivers Mahindra Racing drivers Nürburgring 24 Hours drivers WeatherTech SportsCar Championship drivers Campos Racing drivers West Competition drivers World Rallycross Championship drivers