Lamberto Leoni (born 24 May 1953 in Argenta) is a former 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 ...

. He participated in five

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, ...

World Championship Grands Prix, failing to qualify for three of them. He scored no championship points.

Career

After racing in Italian Formula 3 and

Formula 2 Formula Two (F2 or Formula 2) is a type of open-wheel formula racing category first codified in 1948. It was replaced in 1985 by Formula 3000, but revived by the FIA from 2009–2012 in the form of the FIA Formula Two Championship. The name re ...

with mixed results, Leoni moved into Formula One with a hired

Surtees The Surtees Racing Organisation was a race team that spent nine seasons (1970 to 1978) as a constructor in Formula One, Formula 2, and Formula 5000. History The team was formed by John Surtees, a four-time 500cc motorcycle champion and the ...

TS19 at the

1977 Italian Grand Prix The 1977 Italian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Monza on September 11, 1977. Qualifying Qualifying classification Race Report The fact that it was Ferrari's home race did not deter James Hunt who took pole, whereas C ...

, but failed to qualify. The following year he joined

Ensign An ensign is the national flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality. The ensign is the largest flag, generally flown at the stern (rear) of the ship while in port. The naval ensign (also known as war ensign), used on warships, may be diffe ...

but left after two more failures to qualify. Leoni returned to Formula 2 and then

Formula 3000 Formula 3000 (F3000) was a type of open wheel, single seater formula racing, occupying the tier immediately below Formula One and above Formula Three. It was so named because the cars were powered by 3.0 L engines. Formula 3000 championships ...

, forming his own

First Racing First Racing (sometimes written as FIRST Racing) was an Italian motor racing team founded by Lamberto Leoni, which competed in International Formula 3000 from 1987 to 1991 and the Italian Formula 3 Championship in 1990. The team built a car ...

team in 1987. In 1989 the team made an abortive attempt to enter Formula One with a car which was later used by the unsuccessful

Life Life is a quality that distinguishes matter that has biological processes, such as Cell signaling, signaling and self-sustaining processes, from that which does not, and is defined by the capacity for Cell growth, growth, reaction to Stimu ...

outfit. He subsequently managed the career of

Marco Apicella Marco Apicella (born 7 October 1965 near Bologna) is an Italian professional racing driver. He competed in one Formula One Grand Prix for the Jordan team in the 1993 Italian Grand Prix. He later won the 1994 Japanese Formula 3000 Championship dr ...

. Following his F3000 activities, Leoni became involved in powerboat racing, winning many races and almost winning the 1993 World Championship.

Racing record

Complete European Formula Two Championship results

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

Complete International Formula 3000 results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap.)

Complete Formula One World Championship results

( key)

24 Hours of Le Mans results

References

Sources

Profile at www.grandprix.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Leoni, Lamberto 1953 births Living people Sportspeople from the Province of Ferrara Italian racing drivers Italian Formula One drivers Surtees Formula One drivers Ensign Formula One drivers Formula One team owners European Formula Two Championship drivers International Formula 3000 drivers Italian motorboat racers 24 Hours of Le Mans drivers World Sportscar Championship drivers Team LeMans drivers