Emanuele Pirro facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Emanuele Pirro
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Pirro at the 2012 6 Hours of Fuji
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| Born | 12 January 1962 Rome, Italy
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| Spouse(s) |
Marie-Hélène
(m. 1991) |
| Children | 2 |
| Formula One World Championship career | |
| Nationality |  Italian |
| Active years | 1989–1991 |
| Teams | Benetton, Scuderia Italia |
| Entries | 40 (37 starts) |
| Championships | 0 |
| Wins | 0 |
| Podiums | 0 |
| Career points | 3 |
| Pole positions | 0 |
| Fastest laps | 0 |
| First entry | 1989 French Grand Prix |
| Last entry | 1991 Australian Grand Prix |
| 24 Hours of Le Mans career | |
| Years | 1981, 1998–2008, 2010 |
| Teams | Martini, Gulf, Joest, Champion, Drayson |
| Best finish | 1st (2000, 2001, 2002, 2006, 2007) |
| Class wins | 6 (2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2006, 2007) |
| Championship titles | |
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Emanuele Pirro (born 12 January 1962) is a famous Italian racing driver. He competed in Formula One races from 1989 to 1991. He is especially known for his success in endurance racing. Pirro won the challenging 24 Hours of Le Mans five times. He also won the 12 Hours of Sebring twice, both times with the Audi team.
Pirro has won many championships throughout his career. He was the Italian Karting Champion twice (in 1976 and 1979). He also won the Formula Fiat Abarth Championship in 1980. Later, he became the Italian Superturismo Champion twice (1994, 1995). In 1996, he won the Super Tourenwagen Cup.
In sportscar racing, he achieved even more victories. He was a two-time American Le Mans Series champion (2001, 2005). He also won the Petit Le Mans three times (2001, 2005, 2008). Pirro won the 24 Hours Nürburgring in 1989 and the Macau Guia Race twice (1991, 1992). He has competed in over 500 official races, winning more than 90 of them!
Contents
About Emanuele Pirro
Emanuele Pirro was born in Rome, Italy. His family roots come from a small town called Latera near Viterbo. He is married to Marlene and they have two sons. His son Cristoforo was born in 1993 and is now a Mechanical Engineer working in F1. His other son, Goffredo, born in 1996, is an Automotive Engineer specializing in Motorsport. In his free time, Emanuele enjoys cooking.
Pirro's Racing Journey
Emanuele Pirro started racing cars in 1980. Before that, he spent seven years racing go-karts. In karting, he won two Italian championships and was a runner-up in both the European and World Karting Championships. After go-karts, he won races in many different series. These included F3, F3000, and Formula Nippon.
Racing in Formula One
In 1988, Pirro joined McLaren as a test driver. His job was to help develop the new Honda engine for their MP4/4 car. He continued in this role for the next three seasons.
His Formula One racing career began at the 1989 French Grand Prix. He raced for the Benetton-Ford team. He took the place of Johnny Herbert, who was recovering from injuries. For the 1990 and 1991 seasons, Pirro raced for BMS Scuderia Italia.
Touring Car Success
While racing in single-seater cars, Pirro also drove for BMW in touring car races until 1993. He won races in many different touring car series. These included the ETCC, WTCC, Italian Supertouring, and DTM. He was one of the few drivers to win in his very first DTM race.
He also won the 24 Hours Nürburgring, the Macau Guia Race twice, and the Wellington 500 four times. He achieved these wins with the famous BMW M3 E30 car and the Schnitzer team. After leaving BMW in 1993, he joined Audi. With Audi, he won the Italian Touring Car Championships in 1994 and 1995. He then won the German Touring Car Championship in 1996. Between 1994 and 1996, he raced in 70 Italian and German Supertouring races. He only finished outside the top 10 once during this time.
Sportscar Achievements
Pirro first raced in endurance events when he was just 19 years old. He won in his class at the 24 Hours of Daytona with a Lancia Beta Montecarlo car. He also won the Kyalami 9 Hours. After a difficult experience at Le Mans that same year, he didn't race much in endurance events for a while. He made a few appearances in Japan, driving a Nissan and a Porsche.
He returned to Le Mans in 1998 with a McLaren F1 car. In 1999, Audi introduced the Audi R8R car. With this car, Pirro started an amazing streak of nine podium finishes in a row at the famous French race. In 2000, along with Tom Kristensen and Frank Biela, he won the first of three straight victories with the new Audi R8.
In 2006, Pirro, Frank Biela, and Marco Werner made history. They were the first drivers to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans with a diesel-powered car. They repeated this win the following year. In 2008, Pirro announced he was ending his career in Audi sportscars. Between 1999 and 2008, he won five 24 Hours of Le Mans races. He also won two ALMS championships, two 12 Hours of Sebring races, and three Petit Le Mans races. After 2008, he still competed in some races. These included the 12 Hours of Sebring and 24 Hours of Le Mans with Drayson Racing. He also raced in the 24 hours of the Nürburgring with an Audi R8 GT3.
Life After Full-Time Racing
Emanuele Pirro still enjoys racing in historic car events. In 2010, he won the Monaco Historic Grand Prix in the Formula 3 class.
He also has important roles in the world of motorsport. He is a Brand Ambassador for Audi. He is also a member of several important commissions, like the FIA Drivers’ Commission. He is the President of the Italian Karting Commission. Pirro is also a Steward for F1 races and often appears as a TV expert. He is a frequent guest speaker at events for large companies.
In 2015, he even competed in the first round of the British Universities Karting Championship with his two sons.
Pirro owns a 5-star hotel called Faloria Mountain Spa Resort in Cortina d’Ampezzo. He has also played football for over 25 years with the Nazionale Piloti team. He also participates in the “Star Team for the Children” for Prince Albert of Monaco. He takes part in other charity events too.
Recently, he became the Director of the McLaren Racing Driver Development program.
Images for kids
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Pirro driving for Benetton at the 1989 Belgian Grand Prix.
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Pirro at the 1991 United States Grand Prix.
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Pirro driving an Audi R10 at Laguna Seca in 2006.
See also
In Spanish: Emanuele Pirro para niños
