Giorgio Pantano

Giorgio Pantano (born 4 February 1979) is an Italian former professional racing driver who drove for the Jordan Formula One team for much of the 2004 season before being replaced by Timo Glock. He also raced in Formula 3000. He retired from racing at the end of 2014.

Pantano raced in the GP2 Series from its inaugural year in 2005 until his championship campaign in 2008, holding the record for most races competed, and most races won in the series. As of 2011, these records have been taken over by Luca Filippi (86 starts) and Pastor Maldonado (10 wins) respectively.

Career

Early years

Born in Conselve, near Padua, Pantano is the holder of one of the best records ever in karting, where he started at age nine. Nico Rosberg grew up with a poster of Pantano on his bedroom wall and later would describe the Italian as being "probably the best of all time in karts." Fernando Alonso once called Pantano "invincible" and that in karting he had looked up to him as being "a really incredible talent."

Superleague Formula

Unable to find a drive in Formula One and unable to return to GP2 as former champions are not permitted, Pantano joined up with Superleague Formula to drive the A.C. Milan entry. Pantano won one race for A.C. Milan at the Magny-Cours round.

After 2010

thumb|left|Pantano's McLaren MP4-12C from the 2014 Blancpain Sprint Series

Pantano was linked to a return to the IndyCar Series in 2010, driving a Panther Racing entry. He instead signed on to drive in Auto GP for Super Nova Racing, finishing thirteenth in the championship.

Pantano returned to the IndyCar Series in 2011 as an injury replacement for Justin Wilson in races at Sonoma and Baltimore, and did not consider to racing again in Europe in the near future.

Pantano made a brief return to IndyCar in 2012, racing at the 2012 Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio for Chip Ganassi Racing. He finished fourteenth after qualifying in 24th place. In 2013, Pantano competed in the International GT Open GTS class and won the championship with three wins and five podium finishes in thirteen races. He also secured a drive at the 2014 Spa 24 Hours for Thierry Boutsen's Boutsen Ginion team, sharing a McLaren with Frédéric Vervisch, Olivier Grotz and Karim Ojjeh.

Racing record

Career summary

{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 90%; text-align:center"

! Season

! Series

! Team

! Races

! Wins

! Poles

! F.Laps

! Podiums

! Points

! Position

! rowspan=3 | 1999

|align=left| Euro Open by Nissan

|align=left| Tecno Dinamica Attiva

| 6

| 0

| 7

| 21st

|align=left| British Formula Three Championship

|align=left| Target Racing

| 1

| 0

| NC

|align=left| Formula Palmer Audi Winter Series

|align=left|

| 4

| 0

| 2

| 52

| style="background:#FFDF9F;" | 3rd

! rowspan=2 | 2000

|align=left nowrap| German Formula Three Championship

|align=left| Opel Team KMS

| 20

| 3

| 5

| 10

| 205

| style="background:#FBFFBF;" | 1st

|align=left| Formula One

|align=left nowrap| Mild Seven Benetton Playlife

| colspan=7 | Test Driver

! rowspan=2 | 2001

|align=left| International Formula 3000

|align=left| Team Astromega

| 12

| 1

| 0

| 3

| 1

| 12

| 9th

|align=left| Formula One

|align=left| West McLaren Mercedes

| colspan=7 | Test Driver

! rowspan=2 | 2002

|align=left| International Formula 3000

|align=left| Coloni F3000

| 12

| 3

| 1

| 2

| 7

| 54

| style="background:#DFDFDF;" | 2nd

|align=left| Formula One

|align=left| BMW WilliamsF1 Team

| colspan=7 | Test Driver

! 2003

|align=left| International Formula 3000

|align=left| Durango

| 10

| 2

| 4

| 41

| style="background:#FFDF9F;" | 3rd

! 2004

|align=left| Formula One

|align=left| Jordan Grand Prix

| 14

| 0

| 24th

! rowspan=2 | 2005

|align=left| GP2 Series

|align=left| Super Nova Racing

| 23

| 0

| 1

| 0

| 6

| 49

| 6th

|align=left| IndyCar Series

|align=left| Chip Ganassi Racing

| 2

| 0

| 48

| 26th

! 2006

|align=left| GP2 Series

|align=left| FMS International

| 15

| 3

| 0

| 4

| 44

| 5th

! 2007

|align=left| GP2 Series

|align=left| Campos Racing

| 21

| 2

| 1

| 6

| 59

| style="background:#FFDF9F;" | 3rd

! rowspan=2 | 2008

|align=left| GP2 Series

|align=left| Racing Engineering

| 19

| 4

| 7

| 76

| style="background:#FBFFBF;" | 1st

|align=left| International GT Open - GTS

|align=left| Scuderia Latorre

| 2

| 0

| 1

| 6

| 25th

! rowspan=2 | 2009

|align=left| Superleague Formula

|align=left| A.C. Milan

| 14

| 1

| 0

| 3

| 286

| 7th

|align=left| Eurocup Mégane Trophy

|align=left| Oregon Team

| 4

| 0

| 1

| 28

| 11th

! rowspan=2 | 2010

|align=left| Auto GP

|align=left| Super Nova Racing

| 10

| 0

| 1

| 8

| 13th

|align=left| Trofeo Abarth Italia

|align=left| Forza Service

| 4

| 2

| 1

| 2

| 3

| 43

| 9th

! 2011

|align=left| IndyCar Series

|align=left| Dreyer & Reinbold Racing

| 3

| 0

| 1

| 0

| 37

| 36th

! 2012

|align=left| IndyCar Series

|align=left| Chip Ganassi Racing

| 1

| 0

| 16

| 31st

! 2013

|align=left| International GT Open - GTS

|align=left| Bhaitech

| 15

| 3

| 0

| 1

| 5

| 56

| style="background:#FBFFBF;" | 1st

! rowspan=2 | 2014

|align=left| Blancpain GT Sprint Series - Pro

|align=left| Bhaitech

| 13

| 0

| 19

| 14th

|align=left| Blancpain Endurance Series - Pro-Am

|align=left| Boutsen Ginion Racing

| 1

| 0

| NC

!colspan="10"|

Complete Euro Open by Nissan results

(key)

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size:85%"

! Year

! Entrant

! 1

! 2

! 3

! 4

! 5

! 6

! 7

! 8

! 9

! 10

! 11

! 12

! 13

! 14

! 15

! 16

! DC

! Points

| 1999

! nowrap| Tecno Dinamica Attiva

|ALB 1

|ALB 2

|JER 1

|JER 2

|JAR 1

|JAR 2

|bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| MNZ 1

|bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| MNZ 2

|bgcolor="#cfcfff"| JAR 1

|bgcolor="#cfcfff"| JAR 2

|bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| DON 1

|bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| DON 2

|CAT 1

|CAT 2

|VAL 1

|VAL 2

! 21st

! 7

Complete German Formula Three Championship results

(key)

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size:85%"

! Year

! Entrant

! Chassis

! Engine

! 1

! 2

! 3

! 4

! 5

! 6

! 7

! 8

! 9

! 10

! 11

! 12

! 13

! 14

! 15

! 16

! 17

! 18

! 19

! 20

! DC

! Points

| 2000

! nowrap| Opel Team KMS

! nowrap| Dallara F300

! Opel

|style="background:#ffffbf;"| ZOL 1

|style="background:#dfdfdf;"| ZOL 2

|style="background:#dfffdf;"| HOC1 1

|style="background:#dfdfdf;"| HOC1 2

|style="background:#dfffdf;"| OSC1 1

|style="background:#ffffbf;"| OSC1 2

|style="background:#dfdfdf;"| NOR 1

|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| NOR 2

|style="background:#dfffdf;"| SAC 1

|style="background:#dfdfdf;"| SAC 2

|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| NÜR1 1

|style="background:#dfffdf;"| NÜR1 2

|style="background:#ffdf9f;"| LAU 1

|style="background:#dfffdf;"| LAU 2

|style="background:#ffffbf;"| OSC2 1

|style="background:#dfdfdf;"| OSC2 2

|style="background:#dfffdf;"| NÜR2 1

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| NÜR2 2

|style="background:#dfffdf;"| HOC2 1

|style="background:#ffdf9f;"| HOC2 2

!style="background:#ffffbf;"| 1st

!style="background:#ffffbf;"| 205

Complete International Formula 3000 results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap.)

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size:85%"

! Year

! Entrant

! 1

! 2

! 3

! 4

! 5

! 6

! 7

! 8

! 9

! 10

! 11

! 12

! DC

! Points

| 2001

! nowrap| Team Astromega

|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| INT

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| IMO

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| CAT

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| A1R

|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| MON

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| NÜR

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| MAG

|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| SIL

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| HOC

|style="background:#DFFFDF;"| HUN

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| SPA

|style="background:#FBFFBF;"| MNZ

! 9th

! 12

| 2002

! nowrap| Coloni F3000

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| INT

|style="background:#FFDF9F;"| IMO

|style="background:#FBFFBF;"| CAT

|style="background:#DFFFDF;"| A1R

|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| MON

|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| NÜR

|style="background:#DFFFDF;"| SIL

|style="background:#FFDF9F;"| MAG

|style="background:#FBFFBF;"| HOC

|style="background:#DFDFDF;"| HUN

|style="background:#FBFFBF;"| SPA

|style="background:#FFDF9F;"| MNZ

|style="background:#DFDFDF;"|2nd

|style="background:#DFDFDF;"|54

| 2003

! nowrap| Durango

|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| IMO

|style="background:#FBFFBF;"| CAT

|style="background:#FFDF9F;"| A1R

|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| MON

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| NÜR

|style="background:#FBFFBF;"| MAG

|style="background:#DFDFDF;"| SIL

|style="background:#DFFFDF;"| HOC

|style="background:#DFFFDF;"| HUN

|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| MNZ

|colspan=2|

|style="background:#FFDF9F;"|3rd

|style="background:#FFDF9F;"|41

!colspan="16"|

Complete GP2 Series results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size:85%"

! Year

! Entrant

! 1

! 2

! 3

! 4

! 5

! 6

! 7

! 8

! 9

! 10

! 11

! 12

! 13

! 14

! 15

! 16

! 17

! 18

! 19

! 20

! 21

! 22

! 23

! DC

! Points

| 2005

! nowrap| Super Nova International

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| IMO FEA

|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| IMO SPR

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| CAT FEA

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| CAT SPR

|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| MON FEA

|style="background:#DFDFDF;"| NÜR FEA

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| NÜR SPR

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| MAG FEA

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| MAG SPR

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| SIL FEA

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| SIL SPR

|style="background:#DFFFDF;"| HOC FEA

|style="background:#DFDFDF;"| HOC SPR

|style="background:#FFDF9F;"| HUN FEA

|style="background:#FFDF9F;"| HUN SPR

|style="background:#DFDFDF;"| IST FEA

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| IST SPR

|style="background:#DFFFDF;"| MNZ FEA

|style="background:#FFDF9F;"| MNZ SPR

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| SPA FEA

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| SPA SPR

|style="background:#DFFFDF;"| BHR FEA

|style="background:#DFFFDF;"| BHR SPR

! 6th

! 49

| 2006

! nowrap| Petrol Ofisi FMS International

| VAL FEA

| VAL SPR

| IMO FEA

| IMO SPR

| NÜR FEA

| NÜR SPR

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| CAT FEA

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| CAT SPR

|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| MON FEA

|style="background:#DFFFDF;"| SIL FEA

|style="background:#DFFFDF;"| SIL SPR

|style="background:#DFFFDF;"| MAG FEA

|style="background:#FBFFBF;"| MAG SPR

|style="background:#DFFFDF;"| HOC FEA

|style="background:#DFFFDF;"| HOC SPR

|style="background:#FFDF9F;"| HUN FEA

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| HUN SPR

|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| IST FEA

|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| IST SPR

|style="background:#FBFFBF;"| MNZ FEA

|style="background:#FBFFBF;"| MNZ SPR

|colspan=2|

! 5th

! 44

| 2007

! nowrap| Campos Grand Prix

|style="background:#FFFFFF;"| BHR FEA

|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| BHR SPR

|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| CAT FEA

|style="background:#DFFFDF;"| CAT SPR

|style="background:#DFDFDF;"| MON FEA

|style="background:#FBFFBF;"| MAG FEA

|style="background:#FFDF9F;"| MAG SPR

|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| SIL FEA

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| SIL SPR

|style="background:#DFFFDF;"| NÜR FEA

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| NÜR SPR

|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| HUN FEA

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| HUN SPR

|style="background:#DFDFDF;"| IST FEA

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| IST SPR

|style="background:#FBFFBF;"| MNZ FEA

|style="background:#000000; color:white"| MNZ SPR

|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| SPA FEA

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| SPA SPR

|style="background:#DFDFDF;"| VAL FEA

|style="background:#DFFFDF;"| VAL SPR

|colspan=2|

|style="background:#FFDF9F;"| 3rd

|style="background:#FFDF9F;"| 59

| 2008

! nowrap| Racing Engineering

|style="background:#DFFFDF;"| CAT FEA

|style="background:#FFDF9F;"| CAT SPR

|style="background:#FBFFBF;"| IST FEA

|style="background:#DFFFDF;"| IST SPR

|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| MON FEA

|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| MON SPR

|style="background:#FBFFBF;"| MAG FEA

|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| MAG SPR

|style="background:#FBFFBF;"| SIL FEA

|style="background:#FFDF9F;"| SIL SPR

|style="background:#FBFFBF;"| HOC FEA

|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| HOC SPR

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| HUN FEA

|style="background:#DFFFDF;"| HUN SPR

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| VAL FEA

|style="background:#FFDF9F;"| VAL SPR

|style="background:#000000; color:white"| SPA FEA

| SPA SPR

|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| MNZ FEA

|style="background:#DFFFDF;"| MNZ SPR

|colspan=3|

|style="background:#FBFFBF;"| 1st

|style="background:#FBFFBF;"| 76

!colspan="27"|