Brendon Hartley facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Brendon Hartley
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Hartley at the 2024 6 Hours of Fuji
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| Born |
Brendon Morris Hartley
10 November 1989 Palmerston North, Manawatū-Whanganui, New Zealand
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| Spouse(s) |
Sarah Wilson
(m. 2018) |
| FIA World Endurance Championship career | |
| Debut season | 2012 |
| Current team | Toyota Gazoo Racing |
| Racing licence |  FIA Platinum |
| Car no. | 8 |
| Former teams | Murphy, Porsche, SMP |
| Starts | 74 |
| Championships | 4 (2015, 2017, 2022, 2023) |
| Wins | 23 |
| Podiums | 51 |
| Poles | 17 |
| Fastest laps | 8 |
| Best finish | 1st in 2015, 2017 (LMP1), 2022, 2023 (HY) |
| Formula One World Championship career | |
| Nationality |  New Zealander |
| Active years | 2017–2018 |
| Teams | Toro Rosso |
| Car number | 28 |
| Entries | 25 (25 starts) |
| Championships | 0 |
| Wins | 0 |
| Podiums | 0 |
| Career points | 4 |
| Pole positions | 0 |
| Fastest laps | 0 |
| First entry | 2017 United States Grand Prix |
| Last entry | 2018 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix |
| 24 Hours of Le Mans career | |
| Years | 2012–2017, 2020–2024 |
| Teams | Murphy, Porsche, Toyota |
| Best finish | 1st (2017, 2020, 2022) |
| Class wins | 3 (2017, 2020, 2022) |
| Previous series | |
| 2009–2011 2008–2009 2008 2007 2006–2007 2006 2005–2006 2003–2004 2002–2003 |
Formula Renault 3.5 F3 Euro Series British F3 Formula Renault 2.0 Italia Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 Formula Renault 2.0 NEC Toyota Racing Series Formula Ford NZ Formula First NZ |
| Championship titles | |
| 2007 | Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 |
Brendon Morris Hartley (born 10 November 1989) is a super fast racing driver from New Zealand. He races in the FIA World Endurance Championship for the Toyota team. Brendon also raced in Formula One from 2017 to 2018.
In endurance racing, which means races that last a very long time, Brendon has won four FIA World Endurance Championship titles. This is tied with another great driver, Sébastien Buemi. He has also won the famous 24 Hours of Le Mans race three times!
He won his first World Endurance Championship in 2015 with his teammates Mark Webber and Timo Bernhard. He won it again in 2017 with Timo Bernhard and Earl Bamber. His Le Mans wins were in 2017 (with Bamber and Bernhard), 2020 (with Sébastien Buemi and Kazuki Nakajima), and 2022 (with Buemi and Ryō Hirakawa).
Before all this, he raced in Formula One for the Scuderia Toro Rosso team. His first F1 race was the 2017 United States Grand Prix.
Contents
Early Racing Days
Brendon was born in Palmerston North, New Zealand. His family loved motorsport, and his dad, Brian, was also a racer. Brendon started kart racing when he was just six years old, following his older brother.
When he was 12, he entered his first big race championship in the Formula First category. He finished seventh that season. In 2003, he won the New Zealand Formula Ford Festival. This win helped him get a spot in the Formula Ford championship the next year. He won two races in a car his brother had used before.
After racing in Formula Toyota New Zealand, Brendon moved to Europe. There, he competed in the Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 and the Formula Renault 2.0 Northern European Cup. In his second year, he won the Eurocup championship!
In 2007, Brendon also tried Formula Three for the first time. He finished fourth in the Masters of Formula 3 event. In 2008, he raced in the British Formula 3 Championship and won five races, finishing third overall. He also got a podium finish (third place) at the famous Macau Grand Prix.
He continued racing in different series, even getting a chance to test for A1 Team New Zealand. In 2010, he joined the GP2 Series for a few races.
Sportscar Adventures (2012-2017)
When Brendon couldn't find a spot in single-seater races, he switched to sportscar racing. He joined the Murphy Prototypes team in 2012. His first big sportscar race was the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, where he finished third in his class. He also raced in the 2012 24 Hours of Le Mans, a super long race.
In 2013, he kept racing with Murphy and also joined Starworks Motorsport in the USA. He won a race in both championships, showing how fast he was.
In 2014, something big happened: Porsche asked Brendon to become one of their main factory drivers! For the next four years, he raced a Porsche 919 Hybrid in the FIA World Endurance Championship. He won the championship in 2015 and again in 2017. He also won the 2017 24 Hours of Le Mans with his teammates and finished second in 2015.
Formula One Dream
Becoming a Red Bull Driver
In 2008, when Brendon was just 18, he got his first chance to drive a Formula One car. He did a show run for Red Bull Racing and then helped test a new car for Scuderia Toro Rosso. He even helped out when Mark Webber (another famous driver) broke his leg.
For the 2009 and 2010 seasons, Brendon was the official reserve driver for both Red Bull Racing and Scuderia Toro Rosso. This meant he was ready to step in if a main driver couldn't race. He was the first New Zealander to be an F1 driver since 1984! However, his time with Red Bull ended in 2010.
In 2012 and 2013, Brendon also did test drives for the Mercedes F1 team. He hoped this would help him get back into Formula One.
Racing for Toro Rosso (2017-2018)
Brendon finally made his full Formula One debut for Toro Rosso at the 2017 United States Grand Prix. He replaced another driver and raced with car number 39. He finished 13th in his first race. After that, it was confirmed he would stay with Toro Rosso for the rest of the season and chose 28 as his permanent race number.
In 2018, Brendon was a full-time driver for Toro Rosso alongside Pierre Gasly. He scored points in three races: the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, the German Grand Prix, and his best finish, ninth place, at the 2018 United States Grand Prix.
After the 2018 season, it was announced that Brendon would not continue with Toro Rosso.
Working with Ferrari (2019)
In 2019, Brendon joined Scuderia Ferrari as a development driver. This meant he helped the team test new parts and work on their car in the simulator.
Formula E Racing
After his time in Formula One, Brendon tried out Formula E, which is a championship for electric racing cars. He joined the GEOX Dragon Racing team for the 2019–20 season. He scored points in one race before leaving the team in 2020.
More Sportscar Success (2019-Present)
Back to the World Endurance Championship
After leaving Formula One, Brendon returned to endurance racing. In 2019, he raced for SMP Racing and even got a podium finish. Soon after, Toyota announced he would be joining their team for the 2019–20 season, replacing the famous F1 driver Fernando Alonso.
With Toyota, Brendon quickly found success. He got a podium finish in Silverstone and won a race in Fuji. He also won his second 24 hours of Le Mans in 2020 with Toyota.
He continued racing with Toyota as they moved to the new Hypercar rules. He won the first two races of the 2021 season. In 2022, he won his third Le Mans race! He also won the World Endurance Championship again in 2022 and 2023.
Racing in America
Brendon has also raced in the American WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. He competed in the 24 Hours of Daytona several times. In 2017, he won the 2017 Petit Le Mans race with the Extreme Speed Motorsports team.
About Brendon
Brendon Hartley lives in Monaco. He is married to Sarah Wilson. They got married in 2018 after being together for about twelve years. In his free time, Brendon enjoys mountain biking and road cycling. He can also play the guitar.
Images for kids
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Hartley driving for Ocean Racing Technology at the Monza round of the 2011 GP2 Series
See also
In Spanish: Brendon Hartley para niños
