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Ricardo Zonta

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Ricardo Zonta
Zonta in 2007, as a Stock Car Brasil driver
BornRicardo Luiz Zonta
(1976-03-23) 23 March 1976 (age 48)
Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil
Formula One World Championship career
NationalityBrazil Brazilian
Active years1999–2001, 2004–2005
TeamsBAR, Jordan, Toyota
Entries38 (36 starts)
Championships0
Wins0
Podiums0
Career points3
Pole positions0
Fastest laps0
First entry1999 Australian Grand Prix
Last entry2005 United States Grand Prix
24 Hours of Le Mans career
Years1998, 2008
TeamsAMG-Mercedes, Peugeot
Best finish3rd (2008)
Class wins0

Ricardo Luiz Zonta (Brazilian Portuguese pronunciation: [ʁiˈkaʁdu luˈiz ˈzõtɐ]; born March 23, 1976) is a Brazilian professional racing driver. He currently competes full-time in the Brazilian Stock Car Pro Series, driving the No. 10 Toyota Corolla E210 for RCM Motorsport.

Early career

[edit]

Born in Curitiba, Brazil, Zonta began karting in 1987, winning his first race shortly thereafter. The following year, he was runner-up for the Curitiba Karting Championship, and in 1991, he won the title. He continued karting until 1992, finishing fourth in the São Paulo Karting Championship before progressing to single-seaters for 1993. He finished 6th in the Brazilian Formula Chevrolet Championship, and then in 1994, came fifth in the Brazilian Formula Three Championship. A year later, Zonta won both the Brazilian and South American Formula Three Championships.

Moving to Europe in 1996, Zonta competed in the International Formula 3000 Championship for Draco Racing, winning two races and finishing fourth overall. In the same year, he became the first Brazilian to compete in International Touring Cars, with Mercedes. In 1997, he won three races and the Formula 3000 championship. He also took home the "Golden Helmet" award for best international driver for his efforts. The Jordan Formula One team signed him as their official test driver following his championship, and in 1998, he was signed by McLaren boss Ron Dennis. Zonta tested with the McLaren Formula One team in 1998, and concurrently won the FIA GT Championship (GT1 class) and the "Golden Helmet" award in the "world prominence" category.

In October 1998, immediately after winning the FIA GT championship, Zonta signed up with the B.A.R. Formula One racing team as one of its race drivers for the 1999 season,[1][2] after rejecting offers from Jordan and Sauber.[3]

Formula One career

[edit]
Zonta qualifying in place of an injured Ralf Schumacher at the 2005 United States Grand Prix.

In 1999, Zonta started as a Formula One racing driver alongside 1997 World Champion Jacques Villeneuve at new team BAR. He injured his foot in an accident during practice for the Brazilian Grand Prix, and was forced to miss three races. He also had a large accident at Spa-Francorchamps, and finished the season with no championship points. Zonta remained with BAR for the 2000 season, scoring his first world championship point with a sixth place in the opening race. He had another large accident when his front suspension broke during testing at Silverstone, but continued the season, scoring points in both the Italian and United States Grands Prix, to finish 14th in the championship. Replaced by Olivier Panis for the 2001 season, Zonta became the third driver for the Jordan team, replacing the injured Heinz-Harald Frentzen for one race, and then again when Frentzen was sacked, but was overlooked to replace him for the remainder of the season.

In 2002, he decided to focus on the Telefónica World Series, which he won.[4] Zonta was then hired as test driver for the Toyota F1 team in 2003, retaining the position in 2004. Toward the end of the season, the team sacked Cristiano da Matta from a race seat, and Zonta drove in four Grands Prix. In Belgium, he was running in fourth place three laps from the finish when his engine failed. In Suzuka the team hired Jarno Trulli and Zonta had to sit the event out, but the team allowed him to compete in his home race, the Brazilian Grand Prix, which he finished in 13th. He continued as a test driver for Toyota in 2005, alongside veteran French pilot Olivier Panis. At the US Grand Prix later that year, he stood in for the injured Ralf Schumacher and took his place on the grid, only for Toyota, like the other six Michelin-shod teams, to withdraw from the race due to safety concerns. 2006 saw Zonta continue with Toyota as the team's third and test driver. He was confirmed as test driver for the Renault Formula One team for the 2007 season on 6 September 2006.[5]

After Formula One

[edit]

In 2007, Zonta entered the Stock Car Brasil series in parallel with the work for the Renault team.[6] In 2008, he contested the 24 Hours of Le Mans with Peugeot Sport, driving the #9 car alongside Franck Montagny and Formula One tester Christian Klien.

He is also driving in the Grand Am Championship in America with Krohn Racing, while also being the team owner and driver of RZ Motorsport in Stock Car Brasil.[citation needed]

Personal life

[edit]

Two of Zonta's relatives, Billy and Brendon, are also racing drivers. Billy used to compete in the Sprint Race series until he was forced to retire in 2016 after being diagnosed with cancer. Brendon is currently active in Sprint Race's continuation series NASCAR Brasil Sprint Race, driving the No. 7 Ford Mustang in the AM class.[7][8]

Racing career

[edit]

Complete International Formula 3000 results

[edit]

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

Year Entrant 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 DC Points
1996 Draco Engineering NÜR
Ret 		PAU
3 		PER
Ret 		HOC
6 		SIL
3 		SPA
9 		MAG
Ret 		EST
1 		MUG
1 		HOC
11 		4th 27
1997 Super Nova Racing SIL
DSQ 		PAU
Ret 		HEL
Ret 		NÜR
1 		PER
2 		HOC
1 		A1R
2 		SPA
5 		MUG
1 		JER
Ret 		1st 39

Complete International Touring Car Championship results

[edit]

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

Year Team Car 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 Pos. Pts
1996 Warsteiner Mercedes-AMG Mercedes C-Class V6 HOC
1
 HOC
2
 NÜR
1
 NÜR
2
 EST
1
 EST
2
 HEL
1
 HEL
2
 NOR
1
 NOR
2
 DIE
1
 DIE
2
 SIL
1
 SIL
2
 NÜR
1
Ret 		NÜR
2
13 		MAG
1
 MAG
2
 MUG
1
 MUG
2
 HOC
1
 HOC
2
 INT
1
 INT
2
 SUZ
1
 SUZ
2
 29th 0
Source:[9]

24 Hours of Le Mans results

[edit]
Year Team Co-Drivers Car Class Laps Pos. Class
Pos.
1998 Germany AMG-Mercedes France Jean-Marc Gounon
France Christophe Bouchut 		Mercedes-Benz CLK LM GT1 31 DNF DNF
2008 France Peugeot Sport Total France Franck Montagny
Austria Christian Klien 		Peugeot 908 HDi FAP LMP1 379 3rd 3rd

Complete Formula One results

[edit]

(key)

Year Entrant Chassis Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 WDC Pts.
1999 British American Racing BAR 01 Supertec V10 AUS
Ret 		BRA
DNQ 		SMR MON ESP CAN
Ret 		FRA
9 		GBR
Ret 		AUT
15† 		GER
Ret 		HUN
13 		BEL
Ret 		ITA
Ret 		EUR
8 		MAL
Ret 		JPN
12 		NC 0
2000 Lucky Strike Reynard BAR Honda BAR 002 Honda V10 AUS
6 		BRA
9 		SMR
12 		GBR
Ret 		ESP
8 		EUR
Ret 		MON
Ret 		CAN
8 		FRA
Ret 		AUT
Ret 		GER
Ret 		HUN
14 		BEL
12 		ITA
6 		USA
6 		JPN
9 		MAL
Ret 		14th 3
2001 B&H Jordan Honda Jordan EJ11 Honda V10 AUS MAL BRA SMR ESP AUT MON CAN
7 		EUR FRA GBR GER
Ret 		HUN BEL ITA USA JPN 19th 0
2004 Panasonic Toyota Racing Toyota TF104 Toyota V10 AUS
TD 		MAL
TD 		BHR
TD 		SMR
TD 		ESP
TD 		MON
TD 		EUR
TD 		CAN
TD 		USA
TD 		FRA
TD 		GBR
TD 		GER
TD 		22nd 0
Toyota TF104B HUN
Ret 		BEL
10† 		ITA
11 		CHN
Ret 		JPN BRA
13
2005 Panasonic Toyota Racing Toyota TF105 Toyota V10 AUS
TD 		MAL
TD 		BHR
TD 		SMR
TD 		ESP
TD 		MON
TD 		EUR
TD 		CAN
TD 		USA
DNS 		FRA GBR
TD 		GER
TD 		HUN
TD 		TUR
TD 		ITA
TD 		BEL
TD 		BRA
TD 		JPN
TD 		CHN
TD 		NC 0

† Driver did not finish the Grand Prix, but was classified as they had completed over 90% of the race distance.

Complete Stock Car Pro Series results

[edit]
Year Team Car 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 Pos Points
2007 L&M Racing Peugeot 307 INT
DNQ 		CTB
22 		CGD
26 		INT
Ret 		LON
Ret 		SCZ
11 		CTB
Ret 		BSB
25 		ARG
9 		TAR
Ret 		RIO
15 		INT
22 		29th 13
2008 L&M Racing Peugeot 307 INT
14 		BSB
Ret 		CTB SCZ CGD INT RIO LON
22 		CTB BSB
7 		TAR
Ret 		INT
5 		24th 23
2009 RZ Motorsport Peugeot 307 INT
DSQ 		CTB
6 		BSB SCZ INT
25 		SAL RIO
10 		CGD
14 		CTB
14 		BSB
2 		TAR
Ret 		INT
13 		16th 48
2010 RZ Motorsport Chevrolet Vectra INT
Ret 		CTB
13 		VEL
15 		RIO
Ret 		RBP
8 		SAL
Ret 		INT
Ret 		CGD
5 		LON
21 		SCZ BSB
Ret 		CTB
5 		20th 36
2011 RZ Motorsport Chevrolet Vectra CTB
3 		INT
8 		RBP
Ret 		VEL
11 		CGD
16 		RIO
22 		INT
15 		SAL
7 		SCZ
21 		LON
5 		BSB
20 		VEL
25 		15th 51
2012 RZ Motorsport Chevrolet Sonic INT
26 		CTB
Ret 		VEL
6 		RBP
19 		LON
12 		RIO
24 		SAL
14 		CGD
22 		TAR
10 		CUR
Ret 		BRA
8 		INT
5 		13th 89
2013 RZ Motorsport Chevrolet Sonic INT
23 		CUR
6 		TAR
4 		SAL
28 		BRA
9 		CAS
14 		RBP
18 		CAS
29 		VEL
5 		CUR
8 		BRA
8 		INT
1 		7th 144
2014 RZ Motorsport Chevrolet Sonic INT
1
24 		SCZ
1
17 		SCZ
2
5 		BRA
1
5 		BRA
2
24 		GOI
1
Ret 		GOI
2
Ret 		GOI
1
17 		CAS
1
14 		CAS
2
22 		CUR
1
31 		CUR
2
DNS 		VEL
1
5 		VEL
2
5 		SCZ
1
23 		SCZ
2
16 		TAR
1
6 		TAR
2
3 		SAL
1
7 		SAL
2
Ret 		CUR
1
Ret 		14th 108
2015 Shell Racing Chevrolet Sonic GOI
1
21 		RBP
1
Ret 		RBP
2
Ret 		VEL
1
13 		VEL
2
8 		CUR
1
24 		CUR
2
Ret 		SCZ
1
12 		SCZ
2
14 		CUR
1
6 		CUR
2
18 		GOI
1
3 		CAS
1
2 		CAS
2
14 		MOU
1
11 		MOU
2
12 		CUR
1
Ret 		CUR
2
9 		TAR
1
5 		TAR
2
9 		INT
1
8 		13th 147
2016 Shell Racing Chevrolet Cruze CUR
1
5 		VEL
1
14 		VEL
2
DNS 		GOI
1
16 		GOI
2
4 		SCZ
1
10 		SCZ
2
9 		TAR
1
Ret 		TAR
2
8 		CAS
1
2 		CAS
2
10 		INT
1
22† 		LON
1
Ret 		LON
2
5 		CUR
1
14 		CUR
2
Ret 		GOI
1
Ret 		GOI
2
DSQ 		CRI
1
DSQ 		CRI
2
DNS 		INT
1
13 		16th 130
2017 Shell V-Power Chevrolet Cruze GOI
1
Ret 		GOI
2
1 		VEL
1
Ret 		VEL
2
6 		SCZ
1
7 		SCZ
2
18 		CAS
1
18 		CAS
2
DSQ 		CUR
1
22 		CRI
1
4 		CRI
2
10 		VCA
1
17 		VCA
2
11 		LON
1
16 		LON
2
1 		ARG
1
14 		ARG
2
12 		TAR
1
13 		TAR
2
10 		GOI
1
2 		GOI
2
19 		INT
1
13 		11th 174
2018 Shell V-Power Chevrolet Cruze INT
1
4 		CUR
1
20 		CUR
2
8 		VEL
1
2 		VEL
2
7 		LON
1
13 		LON
2
11 		SCZ
1
13 		SCZ
2
13 		GOI
1
6 		MOU
1
12 		MOU
2
DSQ 		CAS
1
16 		CAS
2
9 		VCA
1
8 		VCA
2
4 		TAR
1
3 		TAR
2
Ret 		GOI
1
DSQ 		GOI
2
Ret 		INT
1
1 		8th 184
2019 Shell V-Power Chevrolet Cruze VEL
1
11 		VCA
1
DSQ 		VCA
2
DSQ 		GOI
1
2 		GOI
2
21 		LON
1
26 		LON
2
17 		SCZ
1
5 		SCZ
2
11 		MOU
1
19 		MOU
2
20 		INT
1
8 		VEL
1
12 		VEL
2
18 		CAS
1
14 		CAS
2
15 		VCA
1
6 		VCA
2
4 		GOI
1
18 		GOI
2
7 		INT
1
Ret 		14th 155
2020 RCM Motorsport Toyota Corolla GOI
1
1 		GOI
2
Ret 		INT
1
3 		INT
2
1 		LON
1
11 		LON
2
13 		CAS
1
9 		CAS
2
Ret 		CAS
3
2 		VCA
1
12 		VCA
2
4 		CUR
1
12 		CUR
2
6 		CUR
3
5 		GOI
1
Ret 		GOI
2
5 		GOI
3
10 		INT
1
2 		2nd 278
2021 RCM Motorsport Toyota Corolla GOI
1
16 		GOI
2
15 		INT
1
16 		INT
2
4 		VCA
1
2 		VCA
2
3 		VCA
1
10 		VCA
2
1 		CAS
1
13 		CAS
2
2 		CUR
1
22 		CUR
2
4 		CUR
1
Ret 		CUR
2
10 		GOI
1
Ret 		GOI
2
DNS 		GOI
1
3 		GOI
2
7 		VCA
1
2 		VCA
2
6 		SCZ
1
10 		SCZ
2
5 		INT
1
12 		INT
2
2 		4th 307
2022 RCM Motorsport Toyota Corolla INT
1
5 		GOI
1
20 		GOI
2
13 		RIO
1
18 		RIO
2
Ret 		VCA
1
1 		VCA
2
25 		VEL
1
2 		VEL
2
11 		VEL
1
DSQ 		VEL
2
Ret 		INT
1
15 		INT
2
3 		VCA
1
6 		VCA
2
2 		SCZ
1
7 		SCZ
2
18 		GOI
1
2 		GOI
2
2 		GOI
1
12 		GOI
2
17 		INT
1
13 		INT
2
4 		5th 262
2023 RCM Motorsport Toyota Corolla GOI
1
3 		GOI
2
17 		INT
1
10 		INT
2
17 		TAR
1
24 		TAR
2
4 		CAS
1
11 		CAS
2
Ret 		INT
1
6 		INT
2
1 		VCA
1
1 		VCA
2
Ret 		GOI
1
4 		GOI
2
8 		VEL
1
15 		VEL
2
2 		BUE
1
27 		BUE
2
10 		VCA
1
Ret 		VCA
2
Ret 		CAS
1
6 		CAS
2
4 		INT
1
1 		INT
2
10 		3rd 280
2024 RCM Motorsport Toyota Corolla GOI
1
5 		GOI
2
19 		VCA
1
2 		VCA
2
C 		INT
1
5 		INT
2
6 		CAS
1
2 		CAS
2
5 		VCA
1
4 		VCA
2
20 		VCA
3
14 		GOI
1
3 		GOI
2
10 		BLH
1
17 		BLH
2
11 		VEL
1
15 		VEL
2
Ret 		BUE
1
2 		BUE
2
10 		URU
1
10 		URU
2
6 		GOI
1
10 		GOI
2
19 		INT
1
 INT
2
 4th* 774*

† Driver did not finish the race, but was classified as he completed over 90% of the race distance. * Season still in progress.

FIA GT Championship results

[edit]
Year Entrant Class Chassis Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Rank Points
1998 AMG Mercedes GT1 Mercedes-Benz CLK LM Mercedes-Benz M119 6.0L V8 OSC
1 		SIL
4 		HOC
2 		DIJ
1 		HUN
2 		SUZ
2 		DON
2 		A1R
1 		HMS
1 		LAG
1 		1st 77

GT1 World Championship results

[edit]
Year Team Car 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Pos Points
2010 Reiter Lamborghini ABU
QR
10
 		ABU
CR
5
 		SIL
QR 		SIL
CR 		BRN
QR 		BRN
CR 		PRI
QR
13
 		PRI
CR
10
 		SPA
QR
2
 		SPA
CR
1
 		NÜR
QR
4
 		NÜR
CR
14
 		ALG
QR 		ALG
CR 		NAV
QR
1
 		NAV
CR
1
 		INT
QR
Ret
 		INT
CR
Ret
 		SAN
QR 		SAN
CR 		8th 75
2011 Sumo Power GT Nissan ABU
QR
4
 		ABU
CR
Ret
 		ZOL
QR
12
 		ZOL
CR
Ret
 		ALG
QR
8
 		ALG
CR
7
 		SAC
QR 		SAC
CR 		SIL
QR 		SIL
CR 		NAV
QR 		NAV
CR 		PRI
QR 		PRI
CR 		ORD
QR 		ORD
CR 		BEI
QR 		BEI
CR 		SAN
QR 		SAN
CR 		28th 9

FIA GT Series results

[edit]
Year Team Car Class 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Pos. Points
2013 BMW Sport Trophy Team Brasil BMW Z4 GT3 Pro NOG
QR
6
 		NOG
CR
9
 		ZOL
QR
11
 		ZOL
CR
8
 		ZAN
QR
9
 		ZAN
CR
5
 		SVK
QR
7
 		SVK
CR
4
 		NAV
QR 		NAV
CR 		BAK
QR
14
 		BAK
CR
Ret
 		15th 29

References

[edit]
  1. ^ [1][permanent dead link‍]
  2. ^ [2][permanent dead link‍]
  3. ^ [3][permanent dead link‍]
  4. ^ "2002 Telefonica Super Nissan V6 World Series | Motorsport Database". Motor Sport. Retrieved 2023-09-05.
  5. ^ Grandprix.com article, retrieved September 6, 2006
  6. ^ Gazeta do Povo, retrieved April 3, 2007
  7. ^ "NASCAR Brasil: Saiba quem é quem na categoria que inicia temporada 2023 no fim de semana em Goiânia" [NASCAR Brazil: Find out who's who in the category that starts the 2023 season this weekend in Goiânia]. motorsport.uol.com.br (in Brazilian Portuguese). Motorsport.com. 17 March 2023. Retrieved 4 May 2023.
  8. ^ "NASCAR Brasil: Brendon Zonta fala de "orgulho" de tio Ricardo e história curiosa sobre nomes na família" [NASCAR Brasil: Brendon Zonta talks about “pride” of Uncle Ricardo and curious story about names in the family]. motorsport.uol.com.br (in Brazilian Portuguese). Motorsport.com. 30 April 2023. Retrieved 4 May 2023.
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference TouringCarsResults was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
[edit]
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