Nelson Piquet Jr. facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Nelson Piquet Jr. |
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Piquet in 2015
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| Born | July 25, 1985 Heidelberg, West Germany |
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| Formula E career | |||||||
| Debut season | 2014–15 | ||||||
| Racing licence |  FIA Platinum |
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| Car no. | 3 | ||||||
| Former teams | NIO Formula E Team, Panasonic Jaguar Racing | ||||||
| Starts | 51 | ||||||
| Championships | 1 (2014–15) | ||||||
| Wins | 2 | ||||||
| Podiums | 5 | ||||||
| Poles | 1 | ||||||
| Fastest laps | 4 | ||||||
| Best finish | 1st in 2014–15 | ||||||
| Finished last season | 22nd | ||||||
| Formula One World Championship career | |||||||
| Nationality |  Brazilian |
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| Active years | 2008–2009 | ||||||
| Teams | Renault | ||||||
| Entries | 28 (28 starts) | ||||||
| Championships | 0 | ||||||
| Wins | 0 | ||||||
| Podiums | 1 | ||||||
| Career points | 19 | ||||||
| Pole positions | 0 | ||||||
| Fastest laps | 0 | ||||||
| First entry | 2008 Australian Grand Prix | ||||||
| Last entry | 2009 Hungarian Grand Prix | ||||||
| NASCAR Cup Series career | |||||||
| 1 race run over 1 year | |||||||
| 2014 position | 53rd | ||||||
| Best finish | 53rd (2014) | ||||||
| First race | 2014 Cheez-It 355 at The Glen (Watkins Glen) | ||||||
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| NASCAR Xfinity Series career | |||||||
| 38 races run over 4 years | |||||||
| 2016 position | 83rd | ||||||
| Best finish | 12th (2013) | ||||||
| First race | 2010 Zippo 200 (Watkins Glen) | ||||||
| Last race | 2016 Mid-Ohio Challenge (Mid-Ohio) | ||||||
| First win | 2012 Sargento 200 (Road America) | ||||||
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| NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series career | |||||||
| 54 races run over 4 years | |||||||
| 2013 position | 100th | ||||||
| Best finish | 7th (2012) | ||||||
| First race | 2010 NextEra Energy Resources 250 (Daytona) | ||||||
| Last race | 2013 Ford EcoBoost 200 (Homestead) | ||||||
| First win | 2012 VFW 200 (Michigan) | ||||||
| Last win | 2012 Smith's 350 (Las Vegas) | ||||||
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| Statistics current as of August 13, 2016. | |||||||
| Championship titles | |||||||
| 2014–15 2004 2002 |
Formula E British Formula 3 Formula Three Sudamericana |
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| Awards | |||||||
| 2003 Autosport National Racing Driver of the Year 2012 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Most Popular Driver |
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Nelson Piquet Jr. (born July 25, 1985), also known as Nelsinho Piquet, is a Brazilian race car driver. He used to compete in Formula One and Formula E, where he won the championship in the 2014–15 season. Currently, he races full-time in the Brazilian Stock Car Pro Series. He drives the No. 33 Toyota Corolla E210 for Motul TMG Racing.
Nelson also races a special car called an ORECA 07 in the LMP2 Pro/Am class. This is part of the European Le Mans Series for Team Virage. He is the son of Nelson Piquet, a famous three-time Formula One world champion.
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About Nelson Piquet Jr.
Nelson Piquet Jr. was born in Heidelberg, West Germany. His father, Nelson Piquet, is one of Brazil's most successful Formula One drivers. Nelson Jr.'s parents separated when he was young. He lived in Monaco with his Dutch mother, Sylvia Tamsma, until he was eight.
Then, he moved to Brazil to live with his father. He has two sisters, Kelly and Julia, and four half-brothers. He went to the American School of Brasília until he was 16. At that age, he decided to focus completely on his racing career.
Early Racing Career
Nelson Piquet Jr. started racing karts in Brazil in 1993. He raced karts until 2001. After that, he moved to Formula Three Sudamericana. His father's support helped him race for his own team. He continued this until he left the GP2 Series.
In 2002, he won the Formula Three Sudamericana championship. He still had four races left in the season. In 2003, Piquet moved to the United Kingdom. He joined the British Formula 3 Championship and started his own team, Piquet Sports. He finished 3rd in the championship that year. He won six races and got on the podium five times. He also got to test a Williams Formula One car.
In 2004, Piquet won the British Formula 3 Championship. He was only 19 years and 2 months old. This made him the youngest driver ever to win that championship. He also did more testing for Williams. In 2005, he raced in the A1 Grand Prix for A1 Team Brazil. He won two races at the first event of the season. He also drove in the GP2 Series and won his first race in Belgium. He even tested for the BAR-Honda Formula One team. In 2006, Piquet finished second in the GP2 championship. He was right behind British driver Lewis Hamilton.
Formula One Journey (2007–2009)
In 2007, Nelson Piquet Jr. became the official test and reserve driver for the Renault Formula One team.
Racing for Renault (2008)
For the 2008 season, Piquet became a main driver for Renault. He raced alongside Fernando Alonso, who was a double World Champion. Some people thought he got the spot because he was less of a threat to Alonso.
His first race in Australia was tough. He started 21st and crashed early, then had to stop racing. This was similar to his father's first race. He struggled in the first few races. He had to stop racing early in Bahrain, Monaco, and Canada.
Piquet was under pressure to improve his results. But then, he scored his first F1 points at the 2008 French Grand Prix. He finished 7th, even passing his teammate Alonso. At the 2008 German Grand Prix, he finished 2nd. This was his first time on the podium in F1. He used a smart strategy and a safety car to gain positions. He also finished 4th in the Japanese Grand Prix.
Final Season with Renault (2009)
Renault kept Piquet for the 2009 season. But he had a difficult start. He often failed to get past the first part of qualifying. His first race in Australia ended early due to brake problems. He finished 13th in Malaysia, but 16th in China.
After the 2009 Hungarian Grand Prix, he still hadn't scored any points. On August 3, 2009, Piquet announced that Renault had let him go. He said that his former team boss, Flavio Briatore, treated him unfairly. Romain Grosjean took his place for the rest of the season.
The "Crashgate" Incident
After Piquet left Renault, serious claims came out. It was said that he had crashed his car on purpose at the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix. The goal was to help his teammate, Fernando Alonso, win the race. At first, Piquet said it was just a mistake. But later, he told the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) that he was asked to crash. He said his team boss, Flavio Briatore, and engineer, Pat Symonds, told him to do it.
The FIA gave Piquet protection for telling the truth. Renault and its leaders were charged with cheating. Renault later said they would not fight the charges. Briatore and Symonds left the team.
Piquet said he regretted following the orders. He felt trapped by Mr. Briatore, who was also his manager. He said his situation at Renault became a "nightmare." Renault later apologized to Piquet for saying he made false claims. They also paid him money. This showed that Piquet's story was true.
NASCAR Racing (2010–2016)
After Formula One, Piquet decided to try NASCAR racing. In 2010, he drove in the Camping World Truck Series. In his first truck race, he finished 6th. This was the first time a Brazilian driver finished in the top ten in that series. He also raced in the NASCAR Nationwide Series.
In 2011, Piquet drove full-time in the Truck Series. He finished 10th in points. In 2012, he won his first NASCAR-sanctioned race. This was in the K&N Pro Series East at Bristol Motor Speedway. On June 23, 2012, Piquet won his first NASCAR national series race. It was the Nationwide Series Sargento 200 at Road America. He was the first Brazilian to win such an event.
On August 18, 2012, Piquet won his first Truck Series race in Michigan. He won another Truck Series race in Las Vegas on September 29, 2012. In 2013, Piquet moved to full-time racing in the Nationwide Series. He aimed for the Rookie of the Year award. He also raced in some Truck Series events.
In 2014, Piquet made his debut in the top NASCAR series, the Sprint Cup Series. He raced at Watkins Glen International. He returned to the Xfinity Series (formerly Nationwide Series) for one race in 2016.
Rallycross Adventures
After the 2013 season, Piquet joined the 2014 Global RallyCross Championship. He drove a Ford Fiesta ST. He earned four podium finishes (top three) in nine races. He ended the season in fourth place overall. In 2015, he won one race in the Global RallyCross Championship.
Formula E Champion (2014–2019)
In August 2014, Piquet joined the Formula E team China Racing. Formula E is a racing series for electric cars. In his first season (2014–15), Piquet got on the podium three times in the first five races.
He won his first Formula E race in Long Beach. He won another race in Moscow. These consistent results helped him win the very first Formula E Championship. He won by just one point!
Racing for Jaguar (2017–2019)
In 2017, Piquet moved to the Panasonic Jaguar Racing team. He had two challenging seasons there. In the 2018-19 season, he scored only one point. He left the Jaguar team after the Sanya ePrix.
Images for kids
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Piquet driving for Renault at the 2008 Canadian Grand Prix
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Piquet scored the first points of his F1 career at the 2008 French Grand Prix.
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Piquet at Road America in 2012
