Sébastien Buemi facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Sébastien Buemi
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Buemi at the 2023 24 Hours of Le Mans
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| Born |
Sébastien Olivier Humbert Buemi
31 October 1988 Aigle, Vaud, Switzerland
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| Spouse(s) |
Jennifer
(m. 2015) |
| Children | 3 |
| Relatives | Natacha Gachnang (cousin) |
| FIA World Endurance Championship career | |
| Debut season | 2012 |
| Current team | Toyota Gazoo Racing |
| Racing licence |  FIA Platinum |
| Car no. | 8 |
| Starts | 86 |
| Championships | 4 (2014, 2018–19, 2022, 2023) |
| Wins | 26 |
| Podiums | 53 |
| Poles | 13 |
| Fastest laps | 11 |
| Best finish | 1st in 2014, 2018–19 (LMP1), 2022, 2023 (HY) |
| Formula E career | |
| Debut season | 2014–15 |
| Current team | Envision Racing-Jaguar |
| Car no. | 9 (2014–2018) 23 (2018–2022) 16 (2022–present) |
| Former teams | Renault, Nissan |
| Starts | 116 |
| Championships | 1 (2015–16) |
| Wins | 13 |
| Podiums | 31 |
| Poles | 16 |
| Fastest laps | 10 |
| Finished last season | 11th (53 pts) |
| Formula One World Championship career | |
| Nationality |  Swiss |
| Active years | 2009–2011 |
| Teams | Toro Rosso |
| Entries | 55 (55 starts) |
| Championships | 0 |
| Wins | 0 |
| Podiums | 0 |
| Career points | 29 |
| Pole positions | 0 |
| Fastest laps | 0 |
| First entry | 2009 Australian Grand Prix |
| Last entry | 2011 Brazilian Grand Prix |
| 24 Hours of Le Mans career | |
| Years | 2012–2024 |
| Teams | Toyota |
| Best finish | 1st (2018, 2019, 2020, 2022) |
| Class wins | 4 (2018, 2019, 2020, 2022) |
Sébastien Olivier Humbert Buemi (born 31 October 1988) is a famous Swiss racing driver. He competes in big races like the FIA World Endurance Championship for Toyota and in Formula E for Envision.
Sébastien has achieved a lot in his career. He raced in Formula One from 2009 to 2011. He also won the 2015–16 Formula E Championship with Renault. In endurance racing, where cars race for many hours, he has won the FIA World Endurance Championship four times. This is a record he shares with Brendon Hartley. He has also won the famous 24 Hours of Le Mans race four times, all with Toyota.
Sébastien has been with Toyota Gazoo Racing since 2012. He became a World Endurance Champion in 2014. He also won the 2018 24 Hours of Le Mans and the 2018-19 WEC Championship. He continued his winning streak at Le Mans in 2019, 2020, and 2022.
He started racing in FIA Formula E Championship with e.dams Renault (now Nissan Formula E Team) in 2014. He won the Formula E Championship in the 2015–16 season.
Early Racing Days
Sébastien Buemi was born in Aigle, Switzerland. He started his racing journey in karting.
Formula BMW Races
In 2004 and 2005, Sébastien raced in German Formula BMW. He finished third in 2004 and second in 2005. He was also second in the 2005 FBMW World Final.
Formula Three Races
After one race in Spanish Formula Three in 2005, Buemi moved to the Formula Three Euroseries in 2006. He finished 12th in that championship. In 2007, he came in second place in the same series. He also competed in special races like the Masters of Formula 3 and Macau Grand Prix.
A1 Grand Prix
For the 2006–07 A1 Grand Prix season, Buemi shared driving duties for A1 Team Switzerland. His team finished eighth overall.
GP2 Series
Buemi joined ART Grand Prix for a race in the 2007 GP2 Series season. He did well, finishing seventh. He then joined Arden International for the 2008 GP2 Asia Series. He finished second overall, winning one race. He continued with the team for the main 2008 season. He won his first race in France, starting 21st and using slick tires on a drying track. He won one more race and ended the season sixth.
Formula One Career
On September 18, 2007, he tested the Red Bull car. He was the third fastest driver that day. On January 16, 2008, Red Bull Racing announced Buemi as their test and reserve driver for the 2008 season. He even drove the medical car in some races when the usual driver was unwell.
Racing for Toro Rosso (2009–2011)
2009 Season
Scuderia Toro Rosso signed Buemi as a race driver on January 9, 2009. He was the first Swiss driver to race in F1 since 1995.
In his first race, the 2009 Australian Grand Prix, Buemi finished eighth, earning a point. He was later moved to seventh place. At the Chinese Grand Prix, he earned another point by finishing eighth in the rain. He finished the year sixteenth with 6 points, being the best rookie driver.
2010 Season
In 2009, it was confirmed that Buemi would race for Toro Rosso again in 2010.
During a practice session at the 2010 Chinese Grand Prix, a part of his car's front suspension broke. Both front wheels flew off while Buemi was going over 300 km/h. Luckily, neither Buemi nor any spectators were hurt. Toro Rosso said a new part failed. Buemi finished 2010 with eight points. He was sixteenth in the championship again.
2011 Season
Buemi continued to race for Scuderia Toro Rosso in 2011 with his teammate Jaime Alguersuari. On December 14, 2011, it was announced that both Buemi and Alguersuari would be replaced for the 2012 season.
Red Bull Racing (2012–Present)
2012 Season
In January 2012, Buemi rejoined Red Bull Racing as a test and reserve driver. He also acted as Toro Rosso's reserve driver. He continued this role for Red Bull in 2013 and 2014. As of 2023, Buemi was no longer listed as a Red Bull reserve driver.
FIA World Endurance Championship
Buemi also signed a deal to race in the 2012 24 Hours of Le Mans with Toyota Motorsport GmbH. His car was running in third place when it crashed.
In 2013, Buemi continued with Toyota for the full season and finished third in the drivers' championship. For the 2014 season, he drove Toyota's new car, the Toyota TS040 Hybrid. With four wins and seven podiums, Buemi became the World Endurance Drivers' Champion with his teammate Anthony Davidson.
As of 2024, Buemi has won the FIA WEC four times and the 24 Hours of Le Mans four times. He is the only driver in the FIA World Endurance Championship to have stayed with the same team and car maker since 2012.
Formula E
Buemi is one of the most successful drivers in Formula E history. He has many wins, pole positions, fastest laps, and points in the series.
Racing for Renault e.dams (2014–2018)
Buemi raced in the very first 2014–15 Formula E season for e.dams with Nicolas Prost.
2014–15 Season
Buemi's first season was a bit tough at the start. He had to retire from the first race in Beijing. In the next race, he started 19th but drove amazingly to finish 3rd. At the third race, he won his first race in Punta del Este. He won again in Monaco and the first London race. He finished the season second in the championship, just one point behind the winner.
2015–16 Season
In his second season, Buemi was very strong from the beginning. He got pole position, fastest lap, and the win in the first race in Beijing. He won again in Punta del Este. He then finished second in Buenos Aires and Mexico.
After finishing third in Paris, Buemi won his third race of the season in Berlin. This set up an exciting final in London. In the last race, Buemi needed to finish ahead of his rival Lucas di Grassi to win the championship. Di Grassi hit Buemi's car at the first corner. The title then came down to who could get the fastest lap bonus points. Even under huge pressure, Buemi got the fastest lap and became the Formula E champion for 2015-16!
2016–17 Season
His third season started incredibly well. He won the first three races of the championship. Buemi went on to win three more races in Monaco, Paris, and Berlin.
However, Buemi missed the New York race because he had other racing commitments with Toyota. Another driver, Pierre Gasly, took his place. He was also disqualified from two races due to technical issues. These lost points meant Buemi missed out on the championship, with Lucas di Grassi winning the title instead.
2017–18 Season
Buemi had a difficult start to this season. He got only one point from the first two races in Hong Kong. He then got pole position in Marrakesh and led most of the race, but finished second. He got two more podium finishes in the next two races. However, his Renault e.dams car was not as competitive as before. He finished the season in 4th place, his lowest position in Formula E so far.
Racing for Nissan e.dams (2018–2022)
The DAMS team changed from Renault to Nissan for the 2018-19 Formula E season. Buemi's original teammate, Alexander Albon, left to race in F1. Oliver Rowland took his place.
2018–19 Season
Buemi started the season with a 6th place finish. In the next race, he recovered to 8th after avoiding a spinning car. In Santiago, he started from pole position but crashed out due to brake failure. His bad luck continued in other races with energy issues and a suspension failure.
However, things improved after he took pole for the Berlin ePrix. He finished second in that race. He then finished third in Bern and in the second New York race. His first win of the season came in the first New York race, where he started from pole. By the end of the season, Buemi had moved from 13th to 2nd in the championship.
2019–20 Season
Buemi and Oliver Rowland continued with Nissan e.dams for the 2019–20 Formula E season. Buemi finished fourth in the championship.
2020–21 Season
Nissan e.dams kept Buemi and Oliver Rowland for the 2020–21 Formula E season.
2021–22 Season
Buemi continued with Nissan e.dams with Maximilian Günther as his new teammate. He did not get any podiums this season, with his best result being fifth place in New York City. He finished 15th in the standings.
Racing for Envision Racing (2023–Present)
2022–23 Season
In October 2022, Buemi announced he would join the Envision Racing team. He replaced Robin Frijns and became teammates with Nick Cassidy. He had been with e.dams for eight years. He finished sixth in the first race. He then got his first pole position since 2019 in Diriyah. He finished fourth and sixth in the races there. In Hyderabad, he finished third but was later moved to 15th place due to a car issue. In Cape Town, he was hit by another car but drove well with a damaged car to finish fifth.
2023–24 Season
Buemi stayed with Envision Racing for the 2023–24 Formula E season. Robin Frijns became his new teammate.
2024–25 Season
Buemi and Robin Frijns will continue racing for Envision Racing in the 2024–25 Formula E season.
Personal Life
Sébastien Buemi used to live in Bahrain and then Monaco. He has since moved back to Switzerland. He married Jennifer in 2015, and they have three sons. His grandfather, Georges Gachnang, and his cousin, Natacha Gachnang, are also racing drivers.
In 2013, Buemi helped mentor six people in a TV show. The show aimed to turn players of the Gran Turismo video game into real racing drivers for the Dubai 24 Hour race.
Images for kids
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Buemi driving for Arden International at the Silverstone round of the 2008 GP2 Series season
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Buemi in 2008
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Buemi during free practice at the 2009 Spanish Grand Prix
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Buemi driving the Toro Rosso STR5 during practice for the 2010 Spanish Grand Prix
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Buemi driving for Toro Rosso at the 2011 Malaysian Grand Prix
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The Toyota TS040 Hybrid that Buemi drove at the 2014 24 Hours of Le Mans
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Buemi at the 2015 Punta del Este ePrix
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Buemi on the podium at the 2017 Berlin ePrix
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Buemi at the 2023 Berlin ePrix.
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Buemi at the 2024 Tokyo ePrix
See also
In Spanish: Sébastien Buemi para niños
