Paul di Resta (born 16 April 1986) is a British

racing driver Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. In North America, the term is commonly used to describe all forms of automobile sport including non ...

and broadcaster from Scotland, who competes in the

FIA World Endurance Championship The FIA World Endurance Championship, abbreviated as WEC, is a world championship for automobile endurance racing organized by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO) and sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The se ...

for

Peugeot Peugeot (, , ) is a French automobile brand owned by Stellantis. The family business that preceded the current Peugeot companies was established in 1810, making it the oldest car company in the world. On 20 November 1858, Émile Peugeot applie ...

. Di Resta competed in

Formula One Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...

between and . Born in

Uphall Uphall (, ) is a village in West Lothian, Scotland. It forms a conurbation with Broxburn, West Lothian, Broxburn to the east, Dechmont to the west and the major town of Livingston, Scotland, Livingston to the south west. Uphall is 30 miles from ...

and raised in

Bathgate Bathgate ( or , ) is a town in West Lothian, Scotland, west of Livingston, Scotland, Livingston and adjacent to the M8 motorway (Scotland), M8 motorway. Nearby towns are Linlithgow, Livingston, and West Calder. A number of villages fall under ...

, di Resta drove in

for

Force India Force India Formula One Team Limited, commonly known as Force India and later Sahara Force India, was a Formula One racing team and constructor based in Silverstone, United Kingdom, with an Indian licence. The team was formed in October 200 ...

from to , and became a reserve driver for the Williams F1 team in , driving a single race for them as a substitute driver in . A former

Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters The Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters, commonly abbreviated as the DTM, is a sports car racing series sanctioned by ADAC. The series is based in Germany, with rounds elsewhere in Europe. The series currently races a modified version of Group GT3 gra ...

(DTM) and

Formula 3 Euro Series The Formula 3 Euro Series was a European-based junior single seater formula for Formula Three chassis that was launched (in its current form) in 2003 as a merger of the French Formula Three Championship and German Formula Three Championship. The ...

champion, di Resta did not secure a Formula One seat for 2014, instead rejoining Mercedes to race again in DTM. He later became a reserve F1 driver for

McLaren McLaren Racing Limited ( ) is a British auto racing, motor racing team based at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, Surrey, England. The team is a subsidiary of the McLaren Group, which owns a majority of the team. McLaren is best known a ...

for the 2022 season, and a former commentator for

Sky Sports Sky Sports is a group of British broadcasting of sports events, subscription sports channels operated by the satellite television, satellite pay television company Sky Group (a division of Comcast), and is the dominant subscription television ...

' coverage of F1.

Personal life

Paul di Resta was born on 16 April 1986 in

Uphall, West Lothian Uphall (, ) is a village in West Lothian, Scotland. It forms a conurbation with Broxburn to the east, Dechmont to the west and the major town of Livingston to the south west. Uphall is 30 miles from Glasgow and 14 miles from Edinburgh in the ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. Di Resta is of Italian descent and grew up in

. He is a former pupil of

Bathgate Academy Bathgate Academy is a Mixed-sex education, mixed secondary school in Bathgate, West Lothian, Scotland, also serving the nearby town of Blackburn, West Lothian, Blackburn. History Established by the will of John Newland (a Jamaican-plantation sla ...

and supports

Celtic Football Club The Celtic Football Club, commonly known as Celtic (), is a professional Association football, football club in Glasgow, Scotland. The team competes in the Scottish Premiership, the top division of Scottish football league system, Scottish ...

. He now lives in

Monaco Monaco, officially the Principality of Monaco, is a Sovereign state, sovereign city-state and European microstates, microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria, in Western Europe, ...

, and is a cousin of racing drivers

Dario Dario is a masculine given name, etymologically related to Darius. Given name * Dario Allevi (born 1965), Italian politician *Dario Argento (born 1940), Italian film director * Dario Badinelli (born 1946), Italian triple jumper * Dario Bellezza ...

and

Marino Franchitti Marino Alessandro Cesare Franchitti (born 7 July 1978) is a British racing driver, and the younger brother of Dario Franchitti. He has spent the majority of his career racing in sports cars and grand tourers, with a career highlight of winning t ...

. His step-father was Scottish footballer

Dougie McCracken Dougie McCracken (21 July 1964 – 5 May 2011) was a Scottish professional footballer who played as both a defender and a forward. Career Born in Kilwinning, McCracken made 140 appearances in the Scottish Football League for Ayr United, Dumba ...

. His younger brother, Stefan, has raced at an amateur level and his half-brother,

Jon Jon is a shortened form of the common given name Jonathan, derived from "YHWH has given". The name is spelled Jón in Iceland and on the Faroe Islands. In the Nordic countries, it is derived from Johannes. Notable people * Jon Aaraas (born 1986 ...

, is a goalkeeper for

association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

club

Dundee Dundee (; ; or , ) is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, fourth-largest city in Scotland. The mid-year population estimate for the locality was . It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firt ...

. Di Resta and Laura Jordan became engaged in December 2013 and married on 28 August 2014.

Career

Karting

He started his career in

karting Kart racing or karting is a motorsport discipline using open-wheel, four-wheeled vehicles known as go-karts or shifter karts. They are usually raced on scaled-down circuits, although some professional kart races are also held on full-size motor ...

, racing in various competitive series of karts from 1994 until 2002. In 2001 he won the British JICA Championship.

Formula Renault

He stepped up to single-seaters at the end of 2002, when he competed in the

British Formula Renault British Formula Renault Championship referred to one of two Formula Renault championships that were held in the United Kingdom. The main series was Renault Sport UK's Formula Renault 2.0 UK championship which was held from 1989 to 2011 and was ge ...

Winter Series. He raced in British Formula Renault full-time in 2003 with the Eurotek Motorsport team, finishing seventh in the standings with one race win. He switched to

Manor Motorsport 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 ...

for 2004, finishing third in the championship standings with four wins. He also entered some races of Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 with the Manor team. He also won the McLaren Autosport BRDC Young Driver of The Year Award in 2004. The award had been won by his cousin

Dario Franchitti George Dario Marino Franchitti (born 19 May 1973) is a British motorsport commentator and retired motor racing driver from Scotland. Franchitti won the IndyCar Series Drivers' Championship in 2007, 2009, 2010 and 2011; the Indianapolis 500 in ...

in 1992.

Formula Three

Di Resta switched to the

Formula Three Euroseries The Formula 3 Euro Series was a European-based junior single seater formula for Formula Three chassis that was launched (in its current form) in 2003 as a merger of the French Formula Three Championship and German Formula Three Championship. The ...

with Manor Motorsport in 2005, finishing tenth in the standings. For 2006 he moved to the ASM Formule 3 team, winning the championship with five wins, beating teammate and future Formula One World Drivers' Champion,

Sebastian Vettel Sebastian Vettel (; born 3 July 1987) is a German racing driver who most recently competed in Formula One from to . Vettel won four Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, which he won consecutively from to with Red Bull, and rema ...

. Di Resta also won the 2006 BP Ultimate Masters at

Circuit Park Zandvoort Circuit Zandvoort (), known for sponsorship reasons as CM.com Circuit Zandvoort, previously known as Circuit Park Zandvoort until 2017, is a motorsport race track located in the dunes north of Zandvoort, the Netherlands, near the North Sea coas ...

DTM

In 2007, di Resta switched from single-seaters to race in the

(DTM)

touring car racing Touring car racing is a motorsport road racing competition that uses race-prepared touring cars. It has both similarities to and significant differences from stock car racing, which is popular in the United States. While the cars do not move a ...

series, for Mercedes. In the championship, he finished 5th overall behind drivers

Mattias Ekström Bengt Mattias Ekström (born 14 July 1978) is a racing and rally driver from Sweden. He competed in the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters for Audi from 2001 until his retirement in 2018, and has been competing in the FIA World Rallycross Championship ...

(who won his second DTM title),

Bruno Spengler Bruno Spengler (born August 23, 1983) is an Alsatian-born Canadian racing driver. A long-term Mercedes-AMG and BMW factory driver, he currently works for Bugatti. He is the 2012 DTM champion. Career Early career Spengler was born near Strasbo ...

Martin Tomczyk Martin Tomczyk (born 7 December 1981) is a former German professional racing driver. He is now the motorsports director at ABT Sportsline. He was the DTM champion in 2011, third in 2007, fourth in 2006 and fifth in 2004, having won eight races. ...

and

Jamie Green James Roger Green (born 14 June 1982) is a British professional racing driver. He last raced for Audi Sport Team Rosberg in the 2020 DTM season, where he achieved 3 podiums and finished 8th in the standings. Early career Green was born in L ...

. Di Resta was the highest driver in the standings to drive a non-2007 car. His performances earned him a 2008 Mercedes C Klasse for the 2008 season, in which he won two races and finished second in the points, four points behind eventual champion

Timo Scheider Timo Scheider (born 10 November 1978 in Lahnstein) is a German racing driver who competes in the FIA World Rallycross Championship for Münnich Motorsport. He won the DTM title in 2008 and 2009. Career Karting Like most other drivers, Scheider ...

of Audi. In 2009, he finished third overall behind Scheider and compatriot

Gary Paffett Gary James Paffett (born 24 March 1981 in Bromley) is a British former racing driver. Having become a household name in the DTM, following fifteen years in the series and two championship wins, Paffett moved onto Formula E for the 2018/19 champ ...

. In 2010, he won three races in a row on the way to winning the championship.

Formula One

Paul di Resta 2010 Malaysia 1st Free Practice

Di Resta tested for the

team, and was in the frame for a drive with the

team for the 2009 season due to the teams' shared engine supplier,

Mercedes-Benz Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to simply as Mercedes and occasionally as Benz, is a German automotive brand that was founded in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a subsidiary of the Mercedes-Benz Group, established in 2019) is based in Stuttgart, ...

. However, Force India chose to retain

Giancarlo Fisichella Giancarlo "Giano" Fisichella (; born 14 January 1973), also known as Fisico or Fisi, is an Italian racing driver and motorsport executive, who competed in Formula One from to . Fisichella won three Formula One Grands Prix across 14 seasons. Bo ...

and

Adrian Sutil Adrian Sutil (; born 11 January 1983) is a German racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Born and raised in Starnberg, Sutil started kart racing, karting aged 14 and moved into single seater racing in 2002 in the Formula Ford, Sw ...

, with

Vitantonio Liuzzi Vitantonio "Tonio" Liuzzi (born 6 August 1980) is an Italian former racing driver who competed in Formula One from to . Born and raised in Bari, Liuzzi began competitive kart racing aged nine. After a successful karting career—culminating in ...

as reserve driver.

Force India (2010–2013)

=2010

= In December 2009, with Fisichella having moved to Ferrari and Liuzzi being promoted to the race team, di Resta took part in a test with the team at the

Jerez Jerez de la Frontera () or simply Jerez, also cited in old English-language sources as , is a city and municipality in the province of Cádiz in the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Located in southwestern Iberia, it lies on the Campi� ...

circuit alongside

J. R. Hildebrand John Randal Hildebrand Jr. (born January 3, 1988) is an American race car driver. He last competed in the IndyCar Series driving part-time in the No. 11 Chevrolet for AJ Foyt Enterprises. Hildebrand won the 2009 Indy Lights championship and ca ...

. At the

Autosport International Autosport International is a four-day motorsport event that includes a two-day trade show for industry professionals and a two-day public show. It is held at the National Exhibition Centre, NEC, in Birmingham, United Kingdom and operated by Mo ...

show in January 2010, he was said to be close to a deal as the team's test and reserve driver for the 2010 season. The deal was announced on 2 February. Di Resta made his Formula One race meeting début at the

2010 Australian Grand Prix The 2010 Australian Grand Prix (formally the 2010 Formula 1 Qantas Australian Grand Prix) was a Formula One motor race held on 28 March 2010 at the Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It was the second round of the 201 ...

, where he took part in the first free practice session in place of Sutil and finished 11th. He drove in the first practice session of all the following races until the

Monaco Grand Prix The Monaco Grand Prix () is a Formula One motor racing event held annually on the Circuit de Monaco, in late May or early June. Run since 1929, it is widely considered to be one of the most important and prestigious automobile races in the wo ...

where he did not take part. He resumed driving for the team at the

European Grand Prix The European Grand Prix (also known as the Grand Prix of Europe) was a Formula One event that was introduced during the mid-1980s and was held every year from to , except in . During these years, the European Grand Prix was held in a countr ...

and the following

British Grand Prix The British Grand Prix is a Grand Prix motor racing event organised in the United Kingdom by Motorsport UK. First held by the Royal Automobile Club (RAC) in 1926 British Grand Prix, 1926, the British Grand Prix has been held annually since 1948 ...

. After sitting out the

German Grand Prix The German Grand Prix () was a motor race that took place most years since 1926, with 75 races having been held. The race has been held at only three venues throughout its history: the Nürburgring in Rhineland-Palatinate, Hockenheimring in B ...

he returned for the

Hungarian Grand Prix The Hungarian Grand Prix (, ) is a motor racing event held annually in Mogyoród at the Hungaroring. Since 1986, the race has been a round of the FIA Formula One World Championship. History Origins The first Hungarian Grand Prix was held on ...

. Di Resta subsequently sat out the

Belgian Grand Prix The Belgian Grand Prix (; ; ) is a motor racing event which forms part of the Formula One World Championship. The first national race of Belgium was held in 1925 at the Spa region's race course, an area of the country that had been associated ...

as Tonio Liuzzi and

needed as much track-time as possible to get the feeling of the new parts. He participated in practice for the

Italian Grand Prix The Italian Grand Prix () is the fifth oldest national Grand Prix motor racing, motor racing Grand Prix (after the French Grand Prix, the United States Grand Prix, the Spanish Grand Prix and the Russian Grand Prix), having been held since 1921 ...

, but did not participate in the

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

Grands Prix. The team elected that di Resta should miss the

Korean Grand Prix The Korean Grand Prix () was a Formula One race held in South Korea, from 2010 until 2013, when it was dropped from the Formula One calendar. History On 2 October 2006, it was confirmed that the event would take place in 2010, and would be ho ...

to allow Liuzzi and Sutil to get used to the new track for the race.

=2011

Di Resta joined

in the

Formula One racing team for the season, replacing

. He scored his first championship point at his first race, the , after both Saubers were disqualified. This was followed by another 10th place in

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

, 11th in

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

, and a retirement in

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

, where he left the pits with a loose wheel. He was running fifth in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

until a collision with

Nick Heidfeld Nick Lars Heidfeld (; born 10 May 1977) is a German former racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Born and raised in Mönchengladbach, North Rhine-Westphalia, Heidfeld began competitive kart racing aged 11. He progressed to Formu ...

left him with a damaged car and a drive-through penalty, and later crashed out of the race on lap 67. He qualified sixth at

Silverstone Silverstone is a village and civil parish in the West Northamptonshire unitary authority area of Northamptonshire, England. The village is about south-southwest of Towcester and northeast of Brackley, both accessed via the A43 road, A43 main ...

but finished 15th after a long pitstop due to a tyre mix-up. His third points-scoring finish of the season came in

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

, where he finished seventh in changeable conditions. In the he finished 8th. This was followed by a career-best sixth-place finish in

, ahead of teammate Sutil, who finished eighth. He finished tenth in

Korea Korea is a peninsular region in East Asia consisting of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and smaller islands. Since the end of World War II in 1945, it has been politically Division of Korea, divided at or near the 38th parallel north, 3 ...

, ninth in

Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi is the capital city of the United Arab Emirates. The city is the seat of the Abu Dhabi Central Capital District, the capital city of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, and the UAE's List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, second-most popu ...

and eighth in

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

=2012

On 16 December 2011, it was announced that he was to be retained by Force India for the 2012 season, with

Nico Hülkenberg Nicolas Hülkenberg (, born 19 August 1987) is a German racing driver who competes in Formula One for Sauber. In endurance racing (motorsport), endurance racing, Hülkenberg won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2015 24 Hours of Le Mans, 2015 with Por ...

taking the place of Sutil as his teammate. He qualified 15th for the season opener in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

and finished 10th in the race, passing

Jean-Éric Vergne Jean-Éric Serge Raymond Vergne (; born 25 April 1990), also known by his initials JEV, is a French racing driver, who competes in the FIA World Endurance Championship for Peugeot and in Formula E for DS Penske. In formula racing, Vergne compete ...

and

Nico Rosberg Nico Erik Rosberg (born 27 June 1985) is a German and Finnish former racing driver and entrepreneur, who competed under the German flag in Formula One from to . Rosberg won the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in with Mercedes, and w ...

on the final lap. He qualified 14th for the , and finished seventh in the wet race. He was 12th in

. In

Bahrain Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...

he qualified inside the top ten, having missed the second free practice session after several members of the team were caught up in a petrol bomb incident. Using a two-stop strategy he took sixth place in the race, which equalled his previous career-best result. He was 14th in

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

, a lap behind winner

Pastor Maldonado Pastor Rafael Maldonado Motta (; born 9 March 1985) is a Venezuelan former racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Maldonado won the 2012 Spanish Grand Prix with Williams. After winning the GP2 Series in 2010 with Rapax, Maldona ...

; seventh in

having started 15th on the grid; and 11th in

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

. At the European Grand Prix he was the only driver on the grid who performed a one-stop strategy and came 7th whilst his teammate,

, finished in 5th position. After failing to score a point in the next three races, di Resta finished tenth in

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

. The following weekend, at the

, di Resta showed strong pace in qualifying, setting the fourth fastest time in Q3, but took a five place grid penalty for a gearbox change to start the Grand Prix in ninth. He finished the race in eighth. At the

Singapore Grand Prix The Singapore Grand Prix is a motor racing event which forms part of the Formula One World Championship. The event takes place on the Marina Bay Street Circuit and was the inaugural night race and first street circuit in Asia designed for Form ...

, he qualified sixth and finished a career-best fourth, after the retirements of Maldonado and Hamilton. The final five races of the season resulted in only one further points-scoring finish – 9th place in

=2013

= On 31 January 2013, Force India confirmed di Resta would race for the team for a third consecutive season in . After qualifying outside the top ten in

, di Resta managed to battle through into the points, finishing just behind his teammate,

in eighth place. In

, however di Resta retired after his car's wheel nuts kept jamming, and the team was ultimately forced to retire both cars. Qualifying in 11th place for the

Chinese Grand Prix The Chinese Grand Prix () is a round of the Formula One World Championship. The event was held every year from 2004 until 2019 before it was suspended from 2020 to 2023 due to the COVID-19 pandemic in China. The event resumed in 2024 and is con ...

, the race saw him finish in eighth place and he obtained four points. Di Resta matched his career best result in

with a fourth place, being overtaken close to the end by Lotus's

Romain Grosjean Romain David Jeremie Grosjean (; born 17 April 1986) is a French and Swiss racing driver, who competes in the IMSA SportsCar Championship for Lamborghini and serves as a reserve driver in the IndyCar Series for Prema. Grosjean competed under ...

, depriving the Scot of a maiden podium. He followed that up with a seventh in

. A disappointing qualifying session in the wet meant di Resta started from 17th in

, however initially going for an aggressive two stop strategy; luck played its part and due to a red flag he was able to use a new set of tyres, and made ground to ninth-place finish with some good overtakes. Another disappointing qualifying session at the next race in

saw di Resta starting in 17th position yet again. Starting on the harder medium compound tyre, di Resta was able to run the longest of all drivers on his first stint, going 56 laps before finally making his only pit stop. The strategy worked as di Resta finished the race in 7th. After six consecutive point finishes, di Resta struggled in the later part of the season as his team Force India struggled to cope with new

Pirelli Pirelli & C. S.p.A. is an Italian multinational tyre manufacturer based in the city of Milan, Italy. The company, which has been listed on the Borsa Italiana since 1922, is the 5th-largest tyre manufacturer, and is focused on the consumer pro ...

tyres and he recorded five consecutive retirements. On 12 December, it was announced that he would not be retained as a driver with Force India for the season.

Williams (2016–2017)

=2016

= After a two-year absence from the sport, di Resta returned to Formula One as reserve driver for Williams.

=2017

= Williams retained di Resta as their reserve driver for 2017 whilst he competed for Mercedes in DTM. He replaced lead driver Felipe Massa for qualifying and the race at the as the Brazilian recovered from an illness. This marked di Resta's first F1 start in almost four years, whilst also becoming the first British driver for Williams since

Jenson Button Jenson Alexander Lyons Button (born 19 January 1980) is a British racing driver, who competes in the FIA World Endurance Championship for Jota. Button competed in Formula One from to , and won the World Drivers' Championship in with Brawn; ...

in and Scottish driver since

David Coulthard David Marshall Coulthard (born 27 March 1971) is a British former racing driver and sports broadcasting, broadcaster from Scotland who competed in Formula One from to . Nicknamed "DC", Coulthard was runner-up in the Formula One World Drivers' ...

in . His qualifying results were described as an "unbelievable job" by Mercedes F1 Director

Toto Wolff Torger Christian "Toto" Wolff (, born 12 January 1972) is an Austrian billionaire investor, motorsport executive and former racing driver. Since 2013, Wolff has served as team principal, CEO and co-owner of Mercedes in Formula One, winning ei ...

, having competed without having driven the FW40 prior to the session. He ended the day in 19th place ahead of

Marcus Ericsson Marcus Thorbjörn Ericsson (born 2 September 1990) is a Swedish racing driver, who competes in the IndyCar Series for Andretti Global, Andretti. Ericsson competed in Formula One from to . In American open-wheel racing, Ericsson won the India ...

and was 0.766s off his teammate

Lance Stroll Lance Strulovitch (; born 29 October 1998), commonly known as Lance Stroll (), is a Canadian racing driver who competes in Formula One for Aston Martin. Born and raised in Montreal, Stroll is the son of billionaire businessman Lawrence Stroll ...

. He retired in the race after 60 laps.

McLaren (2020–22)

After another absence from Formula One, di Resta returned to the sport as a reserve driver after

put him on standby for the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix at the

Silverstone Circuit Silverstone Circuit is a motor racing circuit in England, near the Northamptonshire villages of Silverstone and Whittlebury. It is the home of the British Grand Prix, which it first hosted as the 1948 British Grand Prix. The 1950 British Grand ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

2014 DTM HockenheimringII Paul di Resta by 2eight 8SC2144

McLaren retained di Resta as a stand-in reserve driver for the and seasons while he competed in the

DTM return (2014–2019)

In May 2014, di Resta returned to the

series driving for

HWA Team HWA Team, also known as HWA RACELAB, is the auto racing team of HWA AG, a German company based in Affalterbach, that also develops and builds vehicles and components for Mercedes-AMG race cars. It is named after founder Hans-Werner Aufrecht. ...

, who manage the

AMG Mercedes Mercedes-AMG GmbH, commonly known as AMG (Aufrecht, Melcher, Großaspach), is the high-performance subsidiary of Mercedes-Benz AG. AMG independently hires engineers and contracts with manufacturers to customize Mercedes-Benz AMG vehicles. The co ...

team in DTM. Di Resta finished the 2014 season in 15th place having scored points only three times, all three being 4th-place finishes. Di Resta finished the 2018 season in 3rd place in the driver's championship, after winning three races at

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 motor racing, Grand Prix behind the Iron Curtai ...

Brands Hatch Brands Hatch is a motor racing circuit in West Kingsdown, Kent, England, United Kingdom. Originally used as a grasstrack motorcycle circuit on farmland, it hosted 12 runnings of the British Grand Prix between 1964 and 1986 and currently hosts ...

, and Misano. United Autosports Le Mans 24 Hours 2020 1 2

In 2019, after five seasons driving for Mercedes, di Resta joined the

Swiss Swiss most commonly refers to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Swiss may also refer to: Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss Café, an old café located ...

motor racing team

R-Motorsport R-Motorsport was a Switzerland, Swiss motor racing team founded in 2015. The team raced Aston Martins as they are affiliated with the dealership in Canton of St. Gallen, Sankt Gallen; the only one in Switzerland. History Founded in late 2015, R-M ...

, driving the

Aston Martin Vantage DTM The Aston Martin Vantage DTM is a "Class 1 Touring Cars, Class 1" Touring car racing, touring car constructed by the British automotive industry, car manufacturer Aston Martin Racing, Aston Martin for use in the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters. Th ...

. Di Resta finished in 16th place having scored points only four times.

Endurance Racing (2019-present)

In 2018, Paul di Resta raced in the

Asian Le Mans Series The Asian Le Mans Series (ALMS) 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 s ...

for

United Autosports United Autosports is a sports car racing team based in Wakefield, England, United Kingdom, founded by businessman Zak Brown and former driver Richard Dean (racing driver), Richard Dean. United Autosports has won the 24 Hours of Le Mans (LMP2 Cl ...

, scoring one win and 4 podiums alongside Phil Hanson and eventually winning the 2018-19 Asian Le Mans Series championship. Following their Asian Le Mans Series win, Di Resta and United Autosport competed in the 2019-20 FIA World Endurance Championship going onto to win the

2020 24 Hours of Le Mans The 88th 24 Hours of Le Mans (French: ''88e 24 Heures du Mans'') was a 24-hour Endurance racing (motorsport), automobile endurance race for Le Mans Prototype (LMP) and LM GTE, Le Mans Grand Touring Endurance (LMGTE) cars fielded by teams of th ...

alongside Hanson and

Filipe Albuquerque Filipe Miguel Delgadinho Albuquerque (born 13 June 1985) is a Portuguese people, Portuguese professional racing driver, currently driving an Acura ARX-06 in the IMSA SportsCar Championship for Wayne Taylor Racing, and an Oreca 07 in the Europea ...

in the LMP2 Class and finishing 5th overall. On February 8, 2021,

Peugeot Sport Peugeot Sport is the department of French carmaker Peugeot responsible for motorsport activities. History Beginnings in rallying Peugeot Sport was formed in 1981 under the name of Peugeot Talbot Sport, after Jean Todt, a World Rally Champion ...

revealed di Resta will drive their LMH Hypercar entry in the

2022 FIA World Endurance Championship The 2022 FIA World Endurance Championship was the tenth season of the FIA World Endurance Championship, an auto racing series organised by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) and the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO). The series ...

alongside Mikkel Jensen and

. He, and the Peugeot team, competed in the last three races of the season with a P4 finish in the

6 Hours of Fuji The 6 Hours of Fuji (formerly the Fuji 1000 Kilometres) is a sports car race held at Fuji Speedway in Oyama, Shizuoka, Japan. The race was held for the first time in 1967, and in 1977 became part of the new Fuji Long Distance Series. In 1982 a se ...

and two retirements in the

6 Hours of Monza The 6 Hours of Monza (formerly the 1,000 Kilometres of Monza and known after 1966 as the Trofeo Filippo Caracciolo) is an Endurance racing (motorsport), endurance race, mainly for sports car racing, sports cars, which is held at the Mo ...

and the 8 Hours of Bahrain. In the end, Di Resta finished in P10 in the Driver's championship.

Broadcasting career (2016–2023)

Sky Sports F1 (2016–2023)

Since 2016, Di Resta has been a regular contributor to the

Sky Sports F1 Sky Sports F1 is a British pay television sports channel owned by Sky Group. Part of the Sky Sports networks, it broadcasts motorsport coverage, with a particular focus on Formula One, including live coverage of all practices, qualifying sessio ...

channel. He was a common presence as a co-commentator, analyst and one of the insiders in "Sky Race Control" during practices, qualifying sessions and races, alongside

Karun Chandhok Karun Chandhok (; born 19 January 1984) is an Indian former racing driver and broadcaster, who competed in Formula One at 11 Grands Prix from to . Chandhok also competed in Formula E for Mahindra Racing. Previously, Chandhok has competed fo ...

Anthony Davidson Anthony Denis Davidson (born 18 April 1979) is a British former racing driver and broadcaster, who competed in Formula One between and . In endurance racing, Davidson won the FIA World Endurance Championship in 2014 with Toyota. Born in Hem ...

Damon Hill Damon Graham Devereux Hill (born 17 September 1960) is an English former racing driver and broadcaster, who competed in Formula One from to . Hill won the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in with Williams, and won 22 Grands Prix acr ...

, and

Johnny Herbert John Paul Herbert (born 25 June 1964) is a British former racing driver and broadcaster. He competed in Formula One from to , winning three Formula One Grands Prix over a 12-season career. In endurance racing, Herbert won the 24 Hours of Le ...

until being axed by Sky Sports in Jan 2023 along with

Karting record

Karting career summary

Racing record

Racing career summary

– As di Resta was a guest driver, he was ineligible to score points.
^* Season still in progress.

Complete Formula Renault 2.0 UK record

( key)

Complete Formula 3 Euro Series record

( key)

Complete Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap) ^† Driver did not finish, but was classified as he completed 90% of the race distance.

Complete Formula One results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap) Driver failed to finish the race, but was classified as he had completed more than 90% of the race distance.

Complete IMSA SportsCar Championship results

^* Season still in progress.

Complete European Le Mans Series results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; results in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap) ^† Car was initially a Pro-Am entry, therefore was ineligible for points.

Complete Asian Le Mans Series results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; results in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap) † Not eligible for points.
^* Season still in progress.

Complete FIA World Endurance Championship results

^* Season still in progress.

Complete 24 Hours of Le Mans results

Notes

References

External links

*
Official website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Di Resta, Paul 1986 births Living people People from Uphall Sportspeople from West Lothian People educated at Bathgate Academy Scottish expatriate sportspeople in Monaco British expatriate sportspeople in Monaco Scottish racing drivers British Formula Renault 2.0 drivers Formula Renault Eurocup drivers Formula 3 Euro Series drivers Formula 3 Euro Series champions Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters drivers Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters champions Italian Scottish racing drivers Scottish Formula One drivers Force India Formula One drivers Williams Formula One drivers 24 Hours of Daytona drivers 24 Hours of Le Mans drivers WeatherTech SportsCar Championship drivers FIA World Endurance Championship drivers Manor Motorsport drivers ART Grand Prix drivers Asian Le Mans Series drivers United Autosports drivers Peugeot Sport drivers Mercedes-AMG Motorsport drivers HWA Team drivers R-Motorsport drivers Eurotek Motorsport drivers Aston Martin Racing drivers European Le Mans Series drivers