Nicholas Latifi facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Nicholas Latifi
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Latifi at the 2022 Singapore Grand Prix
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Nicholas Daniel Latifi
29 June 1995 Montreal, Quebec, Canada
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| Parent(s) | Michael Latifi (father) |
| Formula One World Championship career | |
| Nationality |  Canadian |
| Active years | 2020–2022 |
| Teams | Williams |
| Car number | 6 |
| Entries | 61 (61 starts) |
| Championships | 0 |
| Wins | 0 |
| Podiums | 0 |
| Career points | 9 |
| Pole positions | 0 |
| Fastest laps | 0 |
| First entry | 2020 Austrian Grand Prix |
| Last entry | 2022 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix |
| Previous series | |
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Nicholas Daniel Latifi (born on June 29, 1995) is a Canadian former racing driver. He competed in Formula One, the highest class of auto racing, from 2020 to 2022.
Born in Montreal and raised in Toronto, Nicholas is the son of businessman Michael Latifi. He started his racing journey in karting at age 13. By 2012, he moved into "junior formulae" races, like the Italian Formula Three Championship. He achieved his best Formula Three result in 2013, finishing fifth.
Latifi then raced in the GP2 Series, which later became the FIA Formula 2 Championship. In 2019, he finished second in the Formula 2 championship. Before joining Formula One, he also worked as a test driver for teams like Renault and Force India.
In 2020, Latifi joined the Williams Formula One team. He raced alongside George Russell. He scored his first Formula One points in 2021 at the Hungarian Grand Prix. He also earned points in the Belgian Grand Prix that year. In 2022, he scored points again at the Japanese Grand Prix. After the 2022 season, Latifi left Formula One.
About Nicholas Latifi
Nicholas Daniel Latifi was born in Montreal, Quebec, on June 29, 1995. He grew up in North York, Toronto. His father, Michael Latifi, is a Canadian businessman. His mother, Marilena Latifi, is Italian-Canadian. Nicholas has three siblings: Sophia, Michael Alexander, and Matthew.
Nicholas went to Crescent School and finished in 2013. Because he raced so much, he studied from home for most of high school. In 2021, his school added him to their Alumni Wall of Honour.
In 2023, Latifi announced he was taking a break from racing. He decided to study for an MBA degree at the London Business School. He said he probably wouldn't race in F1 again. However, he might consider other types of motorsport later on.
Latifi's car number, 6, is a nod to a nickname for his hometown, Toronto.
Racing Before Formula One
Latifi started racing a bit later than some drivers. He began karting when he was 13 years old. He spent four years in karting and eight years in junior racing series. This meant he joined Formula One at 24, which he said was "definitely on the older side."
Karting Adventures
Latifi started his karting career in 2009. In 2010, he finished second in a Canadian karting championship. He kept racing karts in Canada and the U.S. until 2012. That year, he won the Florida Winter Tour championship. In 2015, he even raced against former Formula One drivers Rubens Barrichello and Nelson Piquet Jr. in a karting event.
Formula Three and Renault 3.5 Races
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Latifi spent four years competing in different European Formula Three series. He first raced single-seater cars in the 2012 Italian Formula Three Championship. He finished seventh overall, with one win and four times on the podium.
In 2013, Latifi started the year in the Toyota Racing Series in New Zealand. He finished ninth. He then raced in both the FIA Formula 3 European Championship and the British Formula 3 International Series. He finished 15th in European F3 and 5th in British F3, where he earned a podium finish. He also placed seventh in the 2013 Masters of Formula 3 race.
The year 2014 was very busy for Latifi. He competed in 53 races across six different series. In his second European F3 season, he joined Prema Powerteam and finished 10th. He raced against future F1 stars like Esteban Ocon and Max Verstappen. He achieved a second-place finish at Silverstone. He also competed in Formula Renault 3.5, where he finished second in the final race. In November, he came fifth in the famous Macau Grand Prix.
In 2015, Latifi raced full-time in Formula Renault 3.5 with Arden Motorsport. He finished 11th overall. His best results were two fourth-place finishes.
Sportscar Racing
Latifi also tried sportscar racing. In 2012, he drove a Ford Mustang GT in the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge. In 2014 and 2015, he raced in the Porsche Carrera Cup Great Britain. He finished second in one race at Oulton Park in 2015.
GP2 and FIA Formula 2
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From 2016 to 2020, Latifi spent four full seasons in the GP2 Series and its new version, FIA Formula 2. He always raced with the DAMS team. He also made short appearances in 2014 and 2015.
Early GP2 Seasons (2014–2016)
Latifi joined GP2 for two races in 2014. In 2015, he raced in eight GP2 events. In 2016, Latifi became a full-time GP2 driver with DAMS. It was a tough season, and he finished 16th. However, he did get one podium finish at the first race in Barcelona.
First Wins (2017–2018)
The series changed its name to FIA Formula 2 Championship in 2017. Latifi nearly won the sprint race in Barcelona, finishing third. He then got his first F2 win at the Silverstone sprint race. He started third, took the lead, and won easily. At Monza, he climbed from 14th to third in a wet race. He finished fifth in the championship with one win and nine podiums.
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In 2018, a new F2 car was introduced. Latifi found it hard to get used to the new car. He felt he had to change his natural driving style. Despite some struggles, he made great comebacks in several races. He scored three podiums and won one race at Spa-Francorchamps. He finished ninth in the season. At the end of 2018, Latifi joined the Williams Driver Academy.
Runner-up in Final Season (2019)
In 2019, Latifi started the F2 season very strongly. He won the first race in Bahrain. He also won the sprint race in Baku and the feature race in Barcelona. He was leading the championship for a while. However, Nyck de Vries eventually took the lead.
Latifi continued to fight, getting a second-place finish at Silverstone. He dominated and won the feature race in Hungary. A cancelled race weekend and a tough race in Monza ended his title hopes. He focused on keeping second place in the championship, which he did.
Before the last race, Williams announced he would join their Formula One team for 2020. Latifi finished the 2019 F2 season in second place. He had four wins, eight podiums, and three fastest laps. His team, DAMS, also won their first F2 team title since 2014.
Formula One Career
Latifi first tested a Formula One car for Renault in 2016. He drove a Renault-powered car at Silverstone. In 2017, he tested the Renault R.S.17 car at Barcelona and the Hungaroring.
In 2018, Latifi became a reserve and test driver for Force India. This meant he could drive the car during practice sessions at race weekends. He took part in his first F1 practice in Montreal. He also tested the Force India VJM11 car twice.
After joining the Williams Driver Academy, Latifi became Williams' test and reserve driver for 2019. He tested the Williams car at Sakhir. He also participated in six practice sessions during the season.
Williams Team (2020–2022)
Financial Challenges
When Latifi joined Williams in 2020, the team was facing money problems. News reports suggested that Latifi's family businesses, like Sofina Foods (his father's company) and Lavazza, brought in a lot of sponsorship money for Williams. Latifi also brought money from the Royal Bank of Canada. However, Latifi said that while racing is expensive, his F2 results showed he deserved to be in F1.
The COVID-19 pandemic made Williams' financial issues worse. The team lost its main sponsor, ROKiT. Latifi's father, Michael Latifi, helped the team by working with HSBC to manage Williams' debts. This gave the team a quick cash boost.
2020 Season
Williams promoted Latifi to their main team for 2020. He replaced Robert Kubica and raced with his former Formula 2 rival, George Russell. Due to a rule issue, he raced under an American license that year, but F1 still considered him Canadian.
Latifi had a tough first season. The Williams car was not very competitive, and the team didn't score any points all year. He made his first race start at the Austrian Grand Prix. Even though he crashed in practice and started last, he finished 11th. He often struggled in qualifying, usually being knocked out early.
Despite no points, Latifi came close several times. At the Italian Grand Prix, he recovered from last place to finish 11th. He also finished 11th at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. When Russell temporarily moved to Mercedes for one race, Latifi outqualified his new teammate, Jack Aitken. Latifi finished his first season 21st in the Drivers' Championship. Russell beat him in qualifying in every race, but Latifi finished ahead of him in two races.
2021 Season
Williams kept Latifi and Russell for the 2021 season. At the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, Latifi qualified 14th, his best position yet. However, he crashed out of the race. For his first Monaco Grand Prix, Latifi wore a special helmet to celebrate Williams' 750th race. He finished 15th, even though his water bottle wasn't connected.
Williams' performance slowly got better. Latifi almost made it to the second qualifying session in three races in a row. He scored his first F1 points at the Hungarian Grand Prix. He started 18th, but a big crash at the start helped him move up to sixth. After a good pit stop, he climbed to third place. He finished eighth, which became seventh after another driver was disqualified. This was Williams' first time getting points with both cars since 2018. Latifi was "super happy" with the result.
Latifi continued to benefit from Williams' improved car. He scored points again at the Belgian Grand Prix. This race was very wet and mostly run behind a safety car, so he kept his ninth-place starting position. He qualified 14th at the Russian Grand Prix but crashed out. Williams' performance dropped towards the end of the season. However, Latifi outqualified Russell for the first time at the São Paulo Grand Prix. He also outqualified Russell again at the final race in Abu Dhabi.
Latifi played a big part in the controversial end of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen were fighting for the championship. Latifi crashed on lap 53, causing a safety car. The race director made a controversial decision to let some lapped cars unlap themselves. This allowed Verstappen to get right behind Hamilton for the final lap. Verstappen, on new tires, then overtook Hamilton to win the championship. Latifi later apologized for the crash. He also shared that he received "shocking" online abuse after the race. Hamilton and Mercedes team members sent him messages of support.
Latifi finished 17th in the Drivers' Championship with seven points.
2022 Season
Latifi stayed with Williams for the 2022 season. His new teammate was Alex Albon, who used to be his F2 teammate. Formula One introduced new rules for 2022, and Latifi found it hard to adapt to the new cars. Williams team boss Jost Capito believed the online abuse from the previous year affected Latifi's performance. The team offered him their full support.
In the first race in Bahrain, Latifi qualified last and finished 16th. At Jeddah, he crashed by himself in both qualifying and the race. He didn't finish higher than 16th until the fifth race in Miami. He didn't beat Albon in a race until the Spanish Grand Prix. He also crashed on the warm-up lap of the Monaco Grand Prix. There were rumors that Latifi might be replaced mid-season, but Williams said he would finish the season.
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The British Grand Prix was a good race for Latifi. He made it to the second qualifying session for the first time and qualified tenth. He moved up to eighth at the start but finished 12th due to car damage. However, other incidents continued. At the French Grand Prix, Latifi crashed with Kevin Magnussen. At the Belgian Grand Prix, Latifi spun, causing Valtteri Bottas to retire. At the Italian Grand Prix, Latifi's old F2 rival Nyck de Vries filled in for Albon. De Vries outqualified Latifi and finished ninth, while Latifi was 15th. This was seen as a big moment for Latifi's future at Williams. Latifi also got a penalty after crashing with Zhou Guanyu at the Singapore Grand Prix.
Despite the penalty, the Japanese Grand Prix was a highlight for Latifi. He started last but scored his first points of the season, finishing ninth. This happened because he made a smart decision to pit for different tires during a safety car period. In his final race with Williams, the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Latifi's race was affected by a collision with Mick Schumacher. He eventually retired due to an electrical problem.
Latifi finished 20th in the Drivers' Championship with two points. Williams decided to replace him with Logan Sargeant for 2023. Latifi accepted the decision, saying that "performance hasn’t been there this year." He also said he was "very grateful" for his time in Formula One.
Images for kids
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Latifi at the 2022 Singapore Grand Prix
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Latifi racing in the 2013 European Formula 3 Championship
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Latifi racing for Prema Powerteam at Spa in the 2014 European Formula 3 Championship
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Latifi in the 2016 GP2 Series
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Latifi racing in Austria in the 2018 Formula 2 Championship.
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Latifi at the 2019 Spielberg Formula 2 round in Austria
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Nicholas Latifi during 2020 pre-season testing
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George Russell at Mugello in 2020
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Latifi at the 2021 Austrian Grand Prix
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Latifi at the 2022 British Grand Prix
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Latifi at the 2022 Austrian Grand Prix
