28/2/1979
Record updated 28-Feb-07
Sébastien Bourdais is a French racing driver and three-time Champ Car series winner.
Sebastien Bourdais is a racing driver born on February 28, 1979 in Le Mans, France.
Bourdais is the son of Jocelyne and Patrick Bourdais, a French prototype driver. In 1991, he began racing in karts, winning the Maine Bretagne Kart Championiship. His biggest achievement to date is winning the 2004 and 2005 Champ Car championship.
Started single seater racing in the French Formula Campus Championship.
Finished seventh in the French Formula Renault Championship in 1996, earning one podium finish. Won the 24 Hours of Le Mans karting event.
In 1997 he won four races and five poles in the French Formula Renault Championship. Earned 11 podium finishes in 16 races.
Rookie of the Year in French Formula 3 Championship in 1998, winning five races and four poles to finish sixth in the championship, he went on to win the Championship in 1999, with eight wins, three poles and setting four fastest race laps. Competed in his first 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Finished ninth in FIA International F3000 Championship in 2000 while competing with Prost Junior Team. Earned pole at Magny Cours and placed a season-high second at the French track. Finished fourth at 24 Hours of Le Mans.
In 2001 he ompeted in the FIA International F3000 Championship, winning at Silverstone and taking a pole at the A1 Ring. He earned podiums at Budapest and Hockenheim en route to a fourth-place finish in the championship with Team DAMS. Posted top-15 finishes in the 24 Hours of Le Mans and 12 Hours of Sebring.
He won FIA International F3000 Championship in 2002, winning races at Imola, Monaco and Nurburgring as well as seven pole positions while driving for Super Nova Racing. Earned seven podiums and turned fastest race lap in three events. Won two races in FIA Sport competition and also co-drove the Team Labre machine to victory in the 24 Hours of Spa.
He joined the Newman/Haas Racing squad in 2003 after winning the 2002 FIA International F3000 Championship. He claimed the pole for his very first race, pacing qualifying at St. Petersburg, where he became the first rookie in series history to lead the first lap of his initial Champ Car start. Backed that up with another pole in the years second event, leading Monterey qualifying with a track-record performance, becoming the first rookie since Nigel Mansell in 1993 to win the pole for each of his first two series starts.
Led 95 laps at Brands Hatch, including the final 33, to claim the first win of his career, and then followed that up with a thrilling victory at Lausitz, leading 74 laps and surviving a short run through the infield grass to nip Mario Dominguez by 0.084 seconds for his second victory. Won from pole in Champ Cars first-ever nighttime road-course event in Cleveland and would use that win as a springboard for a rookie-record five consecutive top-five finishes. Clinched the series "Rookie of the Year" title with a runner-up finish in Mexico City. Posted the best qualifying average (3.67) of any driver in the series. Became the first rookie to win the Greg Moore Legacy Award, which honors the memory of the late Champ Car star.
Teamed with Sarrazin and Lagorce in a Courage-Peugeot for Pescarolo Sport in November in the 1000 km pre-qualifying race for the 2004 24 Hours of Le Mans.
In 2004 he won the Champ Car championiship, with 7 wins, 8 poles and 369 points, with the Newman/Haas Racing team, beating drivers like Bruno Junqueira, Paul Tracy and Patrick Carpentier.
Bourdais started his Champ Car title defense in 2005 by winning the Long Beach Grand Prix. Five days later, he took his first win in a stock car, winning round two of the International Race of Champions season at the Texas Motor Speedway. Competes in his first Indianapolis 500 (an IRL event) in May. Then on July 17, Bourdais gets his second win of the Champ Car season by winning the inaugural Grand Prix of Edmonton. On October 23rd, in Surfers Paradise, Australia, Bourdais seals the championship with another spectacular win.
Staying with the Newman-Haas team, Bourdais conquered his third consecutive Champ Car title in 2006. He started the season with four consecutive victories at Long Beach, Houston, Monterrey, and Milwaukee. His winning streak was ended by the emergence of A. J. Allmendinger, who won three races in a row heading into summer. Bourdais responded with a commanding victory from pole at San Jose, and is still leading the Champ Car points standings. However, an incident caused by his arch-rival Paul Tracy that knocked him out on the final lap of the following race in Denver and a subsequent win by Allemendiger narrowed the gap between the two and the race may become more tighter until the end of the season. However, Bourdais's win in Montreal and Allemendinger's DNF had widen his points lead to 62 points with three races left, and Bourdais clinched the championship at the next race in Surfers Paradise despite a weak performance in that race. Bourdais became the first Champ Car driver to win three consecutive titles since Ted Horn achieved the hat trick in 1948.
Sebastien has also been given a test with Scuderia Toro Rosso and has set his sights on a 2008 drive with the team, announcing he will stay in Champ Car for 2007 with Newman-Haas.
On January 10, 2007, Bourdais was confirmed as a factory driver for Peugeot Sport for the 2007 24 Hours of Le Mans, acting as one of the team's third drivers. He has previous had experience at Le Mans with privateer Pescarolo Sport.