Neel Jani Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Neel Jani
Jani in 2021 at Arosa
Nationality	Swiss
Born	(1983-12-08) 8 December 1983 (age 41) Rorschach, Switzerland
FIA World Endurance Championship career
Debut season	2011 (ILMC)
Current team	Proton Competition
Racing licence	FIA Platinum
Car no.	99
Previous series
1998–2000 2000 2001–2002 2003–2004 2005–2006 2005–2009 2007 2010	Karting Formula Lista Junior Formula Renault 2000 Eurocup Formula Renault V6 Eurocup GP2 Series A1 Grand Prix Champ Car World Series Le Mans Series

24 Hours of Le Mans career
Years	2009–2019
Teams	Speedy Racing Team Sebah, Rebellion Racing, Porsche Team
Best finish	1st (2016)
Class wins	1

Neel Jani (born on December 8, 1983) is a professional race car driver from Switzerland.

He is famous for winning the exciting 24 Hours of Le Mans race in 2016. He joined the Porsche team in 2014. With Porsche, he raced in the FIA World Endurance Championship, which is a top-level racing series.

Before that, Jani raced for A1 Team Switzerland in a series called A1 Grand Prix. He helped his team win the championship in the 2007–2008 season. They also finished second twice, in 2005–06 and 2008–09. In 2007, he raced in the Champ Car series in North America for PKV Racing. Neel Jani has also won races in the GP2 Series and used to be a test driver for Formula One teams.

Later, he joined the Formula E electric car racing series. He raced for Faraday Future Dragon Racing in the 2017/2018 season. He then returned to Formula E in the 2019-2020 season with his home brand, Porsche. His teammate was Andre Lotterer.

Early Racing Days
Racing in GP2
A1 Grand Prix Success
Formula One Dreams
Champ Car Racing
Sports Car Adventures
Back to Electric Cars: Formula E
Personal Life
Images for kids
See also

Early Racing Days

Neel Jani was born in Rorschach, Switzerland. His father is from India, and his mother is Swiss.

He started his racing journey in karting in 1998. After two years, he moved up to bigger racing cars. In 2001, he joined the Formula Renault 2000 Eurocup. He also raced in some Italian Formula Renault events that year. He continued in both series in 2002.

In 2003, Jani moved to the Formula Renault V6 Eurocup. He drove for the Jenzer team. He finished second in the championship that year, missing first place by only four points. In 2004, he raced in the Formula Renault V6 Eurocup again. This time, he joined the DAMS team. He finished fourth in the championship that season.

Racing in GP2

In 2005, Neel Jani raced in the GP2 Series. This series is a step below Formula One. He drove for Racing Engineering. He won two races that year, one at the Hungaroring and another at Monza. He even led most of the Nürburgring race with some smart driving.

Jani racing for A1 Team Switzerland in South Africa (2009)

In 2006, he filled in for an injured driver in two GP2 races. He made history by being the only person to race in both GP2 and Formula One on the same day!

A1 Grand Prix Success

After GP2, Neel Jani joined the new A1 Grand Prix series. He raced for A1 Team Switzerland, representing his country. In the very first season (2005-06), his team finished second overall. Jani often finished on the podium, which means he was in the top three. He even won a race in Dubai.

He missed the first two races of the 2006-07 season. But he came back later and won another race in Malaysia.

Jani raced in all the races for Switzerland in the 2007-08 season. He led his team to win the championship that year, with four wins! His team finished second again in the 2008-09 season, with Jani racing in every event.

Formula One Dreams

Neel Jani was once considered for a reserve driver spot with the Sauber Formula One team. In December 2005, he became the third driver for Scuderia Toro Rosso. He held this role throughout the 2006 season. This meant he helped test the car and was ready to step in if needed.

Jani testing his PKV Racing Champ Car

In June 2023, it was announced that Jani joined Audi. He became a simulator driver for them. This means he helps develop their new engine for Formula One, which they plan to use in 2026.

Champ Car Racing

In 2007, Jani raced for the PKV Racing team in the Champ Car World Series. This was a major open-wheel racing series in North America. He finished ninth overall in the series that year. After this, he decided to focus on the A1GP series.

Sports Car Adventures

Jani racing a Lola B12/60 at the 2012 Petit Le Mans

In 2010, Jani started racing sports cars with the Swiss team Rebellion Racing. He teamed up with Nicolas Prost. They raced a Lola-Judd LMP1 car in the Le Mans Series and the 24 Hours of Le Mans. They finished second in one race and fifth in another. He also raced a Ford GT in the FIA GT1 season.

Jani began racing full-time in the WEC in 2012 with Rebellion. He raced with Prost and Nick Heidfeld for two seasons. Then, in 2014, he joined the factory Porsche team. He won his first LMP1 race in Brazil that year. He finished third overall in the championship.

In 2015, Jani won another race in Bahrain. He also finished second five times. Again, he ended the championship in third place.

Jani driving in the 2018 6 Hours of Silverstone

The 2016 WEC season started great for Jani. He won at Silverstone and finished second at Spa. Then came the incredible win at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. His team inherited the win when the leading Toyota car broke down on the very last lap! It was a very dramatic victory.

Back to Electric Cars: Formula E

On August 24, 2017, it was announced that Jani would race in the FIA Formula E Championship. This series uses electric race cars. He joined Faraday Future Dragon Racing for the fourth season. His teammate was Jérôme d'Ambrosio. After only two races, Jani left the team. He decided to focus on his sports car racing commitments with Rebellion Racing.

In December 2018, Porsche announced that Jani would return to Formula E. He was part of their driver lineup for their first season in the series, the 2019–2020 season. He raced for Porsche with teammate Andre Lotterer until the end of that season. He finished twentieth in the standings. For the 2020-21 Formula E Championship, he was replaced by another driver.