Paul Belmondo

Nationality:	French	Races Entered:	27
Date of Birth:	23 April, 1963	DNQ/DNPQ:	20
Teams:	March (1992) Pacific (1994)	Best Result:	9th, Hungary, 1992

BIOGRAPHY

Before Formula One

Born in Boulogne-Billancourt near Paris, Frenchman Paul Belmondo is the son of film idol Jean-Paul Belmondo. The cynics will say that the latter fact no doubt helped him progress all the way to F1 despite some rather mediocre performances in lower formulae. So unnoticable, in fact, that we are at a loss to explain why Formula One International magazine, previewing the 1992 season, proclaimed him as the most accomplished rookie that year along with Christian Fittipaldi, better than Eric van de Poele and Ukyo Katayama. Belmondo began his career strongly enough, racing karts in 1979 and winning the Yamaha karting challenge in 1981. In 1982, he won the prestigious Volant Elf series, and moved up to Formula Renault in 1983, where he collected one win at the Bugatti circuit at Le Mans in coming 7th overall. He then raced in French F3 for three seasons.

In 1984 he drove for ORECA in a Martini Mk42 Alfa Romeo, and with 61 points to champion Olivier Grouillard's 108, Belmondo was 4th overall. Strangely, in the following seasons he slipped to 6th in 1985 (despite recording a win at Albi), and down to 11th in 1986. The only thing he seemed to pick up during these years was a cockney accent from his British team manager, Dave Price! During these years, Belmondo also dabbled in the World Sportscar Championship. In 1984 he was a surprise selection when he joined the famous Joest Racing team to drive their Porsche 956 at the Sandown round in Australia with 'John Winter' and Dieter Schornstein. With Winter being the only driver of note amongst these three, to finish 11th was a good effort.

In 1985, Belmondo rejoined Joest for three more races. At Silverstone, he teamed up with Klaus Ludwig and Paolo Barilla and came 6th. Then his entry with Colombian driver Mauricio de Narvaez and American Kenper Miller crashed at Le Mans, before another retirement at Fuji with de Narvaez and Winter. But back in single seaters, in 1987 he took the step up to F3000 in a GBDA Lola T87/50 Cosworth. In a generally creditable year, he came 5th at Pau, and was also strong in race trim at Silverstone and Enna, but failed to qualify at Imola and crashed out from a strong position at the Le Mans Bugatti track. He finished 18th in the series with 2 points. 1988 saw Belmondo switch to the works Lola Motorsports team to drive their Lola T88/50 Cosworth. It turned out to be a disaster, with poor results, no points, and even 3 DNQs.

For 1989 he was on the move again, joining the new CDM team to drive a Reynard 89D Cosworth, but once again there were off-track problems. Poor team management blighted Paul's season, and once again he failed to score any points, but instead suffered four accidents, including three in a row at Pau, Jerez and Enna. 1990 was better as Belmondo left CDM and joined Superpower to drive a Reynard 90D Mugen. Despite another 3 DNQs, and more accidents and gearbox problems, he slowly got his act together and at the Le Mans Bugatti track came a steady 6th. But that point left him a lowly equal 22nd in the overall standings. Having not impressed sufficiently to get an F1 drive, he found himself stuck in F3000 for yet another season in 1991, and went to Apomatox to drive their Reynard 91D Cosworth. Once again there were accidents and mechanical problems, plus yet another DNQ at Brands Hatch, and the end result was another blank on the scorecard, with Paul's career seemingly on the rocks.

Throughout these years, though, he had kept up some sports car contacts with drives at Le Mans. In 1987, he drove a Brun Motorsports Porsche 962C with Michel Trolle and Pierre de Thoisy, but retired with accident damage after 88 laps. He returned in 1988 to drive a Courage Competition C22LM Porsche with François Migault and Ukyo Katayama, but once again retired with a crash after 66 laps. 1989 saw Belmondo join the Obermaier Racing/Primagaz team in a Porsche 962C alongside Pierre Yver and Jürgen Lässig, and once again an accident ended their campaign, this time only after 61 laps. Then in 1991, just to do something different, Belmondo also competed in the Paris-Dakar rally.

Formula One

Despite his poor F3000 results, Belmondo then managed to get into Formula One in 1992. During the year he would test for the Venturi Larrousse team at Paul Ricard, but his race drive came with March, and it was principally a marriage of financial necessity. As team-mate to the talented Karl Wendlinger in the old March CG911s with Ilmor V10s, Belmondo was made to look decidedly ordinary. Out of 11 entries, he qualified only 5 times, but did something which probably no one else that year managed: he finished in every one of his starts. After missing out by respectable margins in South Africa, Mexico and Brazil, Belmondo achieved his first start in fortuitous circumstances in Spain. Having qualified 23rd on the Friday, when it rained hard on Saturday he was assured of his first F1 race. Despite treacherous conditions on race day, Belmondo kept it together and finished a creditable 12th, but 4 laps down.

He then finished 13th (3 laps adrift) in San Marino from 24th on the grid, and after being way off the pace at Monaco, he finished 14th in Canada having started 20th, but was 5 laps adrift of winner Gerhard Berger. In France, he was 26th after Friday qualifying, but an off-track excursion on Saturday saw Paul lose valuable time, and Andrea Chiesa pipped him for the last grid spot by over six tenths. Belmondo then failed to qualify again in Britain. But he did finish 13th again in Germany, having started 22nd, and was only a single lap behind. Yet it was in Hungary where he did best, qualifying a very good 17th and completing the race in 9th, 3 laps down. Unfortunately, just as he was beginning to get on the pace, the money ran out and he was replaced for the rest of the year by Emanuele Naspetti.

TIn 1993, Belmondo did not race in F1, but did test for Benetton. His main focus that year was the French Supertourisme series, in which he drove a works Opel Vectra, recording a best finish of 7th, but more often than not he finished outside of the top ten. He also raced at Le Mans for TWR Jaguar in an XJ220, with Jay Cochran and Andreas Fuchs, but the car retired from overheating. Belmondo jumped at the chance, though, to join the Pacific team in its debut year in F1 in 1994. Despite beginning race-winners in lower categories, Pacific was totally out of its depth in F1, with no money, a powerless Ilmor engine, and a car with the structural rigidity of paper. As team mate to Bertrand Gachot, Belmondo was with the team for all 16 races of the championship, but only qualified twice, at Monaco and Spain.

He was usually slightly slower than Gachot, which was respectable in itself, but neither Pacific really had much chance. The cars were late to be readied, so late in fact that in the season opener at Interlagos, Belmondo did not even get a chance to record a time. When there were two cars available, fellow debutants Simtek easily had Pacific's measure. Both his qualifications need to be put into context, however. Belmondo only got on the grid at Monaco by default, after both Simtek and Williams only entered one car (in the wake of Roland Ratzenberger and Ayrton Senna's deaths), and after Sauber withdrew both its cars after Wendlinger's serious practice accident. Regardless, Belmondo withdrew after doing 53 laps as a mobile chicane, succumbing to fatigue. All the same it was the furthest that a Pacific would go in a race in 1994.

Similarly, Paul's start in Spain was due to the fact that Andrea Montermini, the new Simtek recruit, also crashed in practice and broke his leg, while Sauber only fielded one car for Heinz-Harald Frentzen. Qualifying 26th and last, Belmondo spun out on the third lap. Some other quick snippets from his dismal 1994. In Belgium, where pit lane space was at a premium, Belmondo found himself squeezed between the Williams and Benetton pits. Cynics suggested this was so that the big boys could get more garage space after qualifying. They were right. In Adelaide, he described his car as one which required you to look in the mirrors if you wanted a clear lap. Gachot summed up the abilities of the car when he said on Saturday night that it was a very happy time for him, because it meant he would never have to drive the PR01 chassis ever again. High praise indeed ...

After Formula One

In 1994, he had once again gone to Le Mans in a Venturi 600 LM for Societe Venturi SA, sharing the car with Ferdinand de Lesseps and Jacques Tropenat, but perhaps he brough his F1 luck with him, for the car did not qualify. The team retained Belmondo for their 1995 Le Mans tilt, though, partnering him in a new 600 SLM with Arnaud Trevisiol and Jean-Marc Gounon. This time they got into the race and even finished, but they were not classified. Throughout the rest of 1995, though, Belmondo had been driving for the Pilot Aldix team in a Ferrari F40 in the BPR Global GT Endurance Series. Competing in 7 rounds with drivers such as Santiago Puig, Michel Neugarten, Moller and Chatriot, Belmondo recorded retirements at Jerez, Monza, Jarama, Montlhery and Silverstone, an 11th place at Paul Ricard, and 10th at Nogaro.

Belmondo continued to campaign an F40 GTE in Global GTs in 1996, this time for the Ennea/Igol team with Gounon and Eric Bernard. A number of top 5 grid positions and finishes resulted, including poles at Paul Ricard, Anderstorp and Nogaro, and a 2nd place at Zhuhai. Overall, with some 155 points, the trio were equal 5th in the championship. However, their Le Mans effort sadly ended in retirement after electronic problems. Keeping up his ties with Pacific and Bertrand Gachot, in 1997 Belmondo went to Japan and landed drives in the Japanese GT Championship for the Powercraft and the Ryowa House Pacific Teams in Toyota Supras alongside Gachot, but with 2 retirements, and other results of 20th, 11th, 8th and 5th, the pair were only equal 21st on 12 points. 1997 also saw Belmondo begin racing in the Porsche Supercup series, with three races at Imola, Monaco and the Nurburgring.

Returning to Europe full-time in 1998, he formed his own team, Paul Belmondo Racing, to compete in Porsche Supercup racing, alternating with Claude-Yves Gosselin as to who would drive the car. As it was, Belmondo only had two drives, coming 9th at the A1-Ring and 10th at Monza. In 1999, Belmondo took the plunge into GT racing with his team, entering both the French GT Championship and the FIA GT Championship in Chrysler Viper GTS-Rs. In the French championship, sharing the car with Gosselin and also Marc Rostan, he recorded 5 top five finishes, including 2nd at Valencia and a victory at Le Mans Bugatti.

In the FIA championship, Belmondo had a succession of team-mates, including Gosselin, Rostan, Emmanuel Clerico, Luca Drudi and Dominique Dupuy. Generally he was outclassed by the ORECA Vipers, but he did finish every race in the top 10, including 5ths at Watkins Glen and Zolder, and a 3rd at Zhuhai. The highlight, though, was at Homestead in America, where with Clerico he trounced the ORECA machines to win. Despite an operation which kept Belmondo out of the Oschersleben round of the championship, Paul still finished 9th overall with 19 points. However, his effort at Le Mans, with Rostan and Tiago Monteiro, ended with a satisfactory if not brilliant placing of 17th overall.

2000 saw the FIA GT championship drop in popularity as the American Le Mans Series, with its own GT class, spread into Europe and even Australia. Paul Belmondo Racing became one of the mainstays of the FIA championship, with Belmondo himself sharing his car alternately with Vincent Vosse, Gosselin again, and Marc Duez. Belmondo recorded 5 podium finishes but no victories en route to 8th place overall with 25 points, although he was behind other drivers from his own stable. He elected not to race at Le Mans, however. In 2001, Belmondo continues in the FIA GT championship with a team of three cars. He has already driven with Didier Defourny, Clerico and Gosselin in the rounds contested so far, with results of 4th at Monza, 7th at Brno, and 4th at Zolder. He entered two cars at Le Mans, but again did not drive himself. Instead, one of his drivers was Vanina Ickx, the daughter of ex-F1 and Le Mans ace Jacky Ickx.

CAREER SUMMARY

Before Formula One
1979-80	• Began racing karts.
1981	• Yamaha Karting Challenge, 1st overall.
1982	• Volant Elf Series, 1st overall.
1983	• French Formula Renault, 7th overall, 1 win.
1984	• French F3, 4th overall, 61 points in an ORECA Martini Mk42 Alfa Romeo. • World Sportscar Championship, 1 start in a Joest Porsche 956 with Winter and Schornstein.
1985	• French F3, 6th overall, 1 win. • World Sportscar Championship, 3 starts in a Joest Porsche 956 with various drivers.
1986	• French F3, 11th overall.
1987	• F3000, 18th overall, 2 points in a GBDA Lola T87/50 Cosworth. • World Sportscar Championship, 1 start at Le Mans in a Brun Porsche 962C with Trolle and De Thoisy.
1988	• F3000, 3 DNQs in a Lola Motorsports Lola T88/50 Cosworth. • World Sportscar Championship, 1 start at Le Mans in a Courage C22LM Porsche with Migault and Katayama.
1989	• F3000 in a CDM Reynard 89D Cosworth. • Le Mans 24hrs, retired in an Obermaier/Primagaz Porsche 962C with Yver and Lässig.
1990	• F3000, =22nd overall, 3 DNQs, 1 point in a Superpower Reynard 90D Mugen.
1991	• F3000, 1 DNQ in an Apomatox Reynard 91D Cosworth. • Competed in the Paris-Dakar Rally.
Formula One
1992	• Tested the Venturi Larrousse F1 car. • March CG911 Ilmor V10, 11 entries, 6 DNQs.
1993	• Tested the Benetton F1 car.
1994	• Pacific PR01 Ilmor V10, 16 entries, 14 DNQs.
After Formula One
1993	• French Supertourisme Championship in a works Opel Vectra. • Le Mans 24hrs, retired in a TWR Jaguar XJ220 with Cochran and Fuchs.
1994	• Le Mans 24hrs, DNQ in a Societe Venturi SA Venturi 600 LM with de Lesseps and Tropenat.
1995	• BPR Global GT Endurance Series, 7 starts in a Pilot Aldix Ferrari F40 with various drivers. • Le Mans 24hrs in a Societe Venturi SA Venturi 600 SLM with Trevisiol and Gounon.
1996	• BPR Global GT Endurance Series, =5th overall, 155 points in an Ennea/Igol Ferrari F40 GTE with Gounon and Bernard. • Le Mans 24hrs, retired in an Ennea/Igol Ferrari F40 GTE with Gounon and Bernard.
1997	• Japanese GT Championship, =21st overall, 12 points in a Powercraft/Ryowa House Pacific Toyota Supra with Gachot. • Porsche Supercup, 3 events.
1998	• Porsche Supercup, 2 events. • Formed Paul Belmondo Racing.
1999	• FIA GT Championship, 9th overall, 19 points, 1 win in a Chrysler Viper GTS-R with various drivers. • French GT Championship, 1 win in a Chrysler Viper GTS-R with Gosselin and Rostan. • Le Mans 24hrs, 17th place overall in a Chrysler Viper GTS-R with Rostan and Monteiro.
2000	• FIA GT Championship, 8th overall, 25 points in a Chrysler Viper GTS-R with various drivers.
2001	• FIA GT Championship in a Chrysler Viper GTS-R with various drivers.

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