For the third IndyCar offseason, we will look at a series of drivers through a Career Retrospective, taking into consideration how their careers and IndyCar changed from their first start to their last. We will look at where these drivers came from and what impression they have left on the North American based open-wheel series.
The final part of this year's series brings us to a driver many quietly forget. There is entire generation of the fanbase that will have never seen this driver race, just missing his illustrious but brief career. Considering some of his Brazilian contemporaries, the record book could have looked much different if this two-time champion had not decided to walk away from IndyCar with arguably a decade of a career ahead of him.
It is Gil de Ferran.
Where was de Ferran coming from?
Unlike many drivers, de Ferran balanced a budding racing career with university studies in his native Brazil, which caused him to miss races in Formula Ford competition. It wasn't until he won the Brazilian Formula Ford championship that he started considering becoming a full-time driver.
After success in Brazil, de Ferran earned a move to the United Kingdom to compete in the British Formula Three championship in 1991 where he was third in points driving for Edenbridge Racing behind West Surrey Racing's Rubens Barrichello and Paul Stewart Racing's David Coulthard. De Ferran won three races that season, taking only five races to get his first victory. With that success, and with Coulthard moving to International Formula 3000, Paul Stewart Racing hired de Ferran for the 1992 season.
De Ferran went on to have a dominant season, winning six races and standing on the podium 14 times with his next worst finish being fifth and he had one retirement. De Ferran's season was so strong that a third-place result and that fifth were dropped from his championship total as only a driver's best 13 results counted to the championship. Despite dropped points, he still claimed the title by 46 points over Belgian Philippe Adams. This championship led to a test in the 1992 world championship winning Williams FW14 while Alain Prost tested the FW15C.
It did not take long for de Ferran to find success in International Formula 3000, winning in his second start of the 1993 season at Silverstone. However, retirements hampered his season and he only scored points in three of nine races, but a victory and two runner-up results still earned him fifth in the championship.
De Ferran's junior formula pedigree did earn him a Formula One test with Footwork Arrows at Estoril, but this experience did not go well. He struggled to fit into the cockpit, and he split his head open on a locker door on the side of the transporter. It also did not help that Jos Verstappen was also testing for Footwork Arrows at that time and Verstappen was significantly quicker.
However, de Ferran's focus was not only on Formula One. During the summer of 1993 he visited the CART weekend at Michigan and was awestruck at the speed and the likes of Nigel Mansell, Emerson Fittipaldi and Mario Andretti competing. He also met team owners Jim Hall and Derrick Walker.
With no move to Formula One, de Ferran returned to International Formula 3000 and improved. He did suffer a neck injury in testing, but remained alive for the championship into the Magny-Cours finale. However, a retirement left him settling for third in the championship. Though he lost the title, his future was set. Jim Hall had called him up and locked him up for the 1995 CART season.
What did IndyCar look like when de Ferran started in the series?
It was 1995, so unified. CART was the only series in town. There were over two-dozen full-time entries and the drivers were predominantly from the Western Hemisphere.
Eight American drivers were regulars while the number of Brazilian drivers were increasing to six drivers. Emerson Fittipaldi had been around for a decade and he was over two decades removed from his second and final World Drivers' Champion. Maurício Gugelmin had found a home after driving in Formula One for Leyton House and Jordan. Raul Boesel had made 120 starts and yet to win a race.
Entering the fray was also Christian Fittipaldi, Emerson's nephew, who spent the previous three seasons driving for Minardi and Footwork in Formula One. Fittipaldi picked up three fourth-place finishes in those machines. André Ribeiro was also new to IndyCar after finishing second in Indy Lights the year prior. There was even Marco Greco as a regular, competing in 12 races between Galles Racing and Rick Simon Racing.
Of the top 21 drivers from the 1995 championship, 19 were from the Americas. The only European drivers mixed in there were Italy's Teo Fabi and Sweden's Stefan Johansson. Arie Luyendyk had stepped away from full-time competition that season. No driver from the United Kingdom nor Spain started a race that season. Franck Fréon was the only Frenchman to start a race. There were no Australians nor New Zealanders in the series. A Dane had never started an IndyCar race up to that point.
Forty-six drivers started a race over the 17 events that season. Nineteen of those drivers called the United States home. Fifteen different nationalities were represented on an IndyCar starting grid that season. Four different nationalities were represented in the championship top ten.
How does IndyCar look now?
One Brazilian competed in the entire 2023 IndyCar season: Hélio Castroneves. Only one other Brazilian competed in another event: Tony Kanaan.
Seven different nationalities were represented in the championship top ten, including four different ones in the championship top five. Fifteen nationalities were represented at some point over the 2023 season, but 13 of those countries had a full-time participant.
There were eight American drivers that completed every race. Of the top 21 in the championship, only ten were from the Americas. The countries that had been represented in the 1995 CART season that were not represented in the 2023 season include Italy, Chile, Belgium, Germany, Colombia and Austria.
No past World Drivers' Champion was on the grid, and only four drivers who started a race in 2023 have made at least one Formula One grand prix start prior. Of those four drivers, none of them have won a grand prix.
Thirty-seven drivers competed in one race this past season.
What did de Ferran do in-between?
Competing in a Reynard-Mercedes, de Ferran had growing pains, though he showed speed. He qualified in the top ten in each of the first four races, but suffered two accidents and a transmission failure. He had accidents in four of his first six starts, including one that saw him only complete a single lap in his first Indianapolis 500. Things turned in Milwaukee, finishing eighth though five laps down.
The speed remained there. In the final nine races, he started in the top ten seven times. He won his first career pole position at Cleveland, however, he was still plagued with accidents. The final three races were a swing in the right direction with a seventh at Loudon, though two laps down, but he was second at Vancouver and he won the finale at Laguna Seca, leading 54 of 84 laps. This three-race stretch left de Ferran with 56 points, two more than Christian Fittipaldi, and narrowly handing de Ferran rookie of the year honors.
De Ferran's sophomore season started like gangbusters, second at Homestead and he had four podium finishes and eight top ten finishes in the first ten races, including his second career victory at Cleveland. He was third in the championship, ten points off Jimmy Vasser at that point. He did suffer a rough spell to end the season, five finishes of 17th or worse in the final six races, leaving him sixth in the championship.
After 1996, Jim Hall retired from team ownership, and de Ferran was rumored for a ride at Stewart Grand Prix in Formula One, but de Ferran moved to Walker Racing for1997. Though he didn't win in his first season at Walker, de Ferran's seven podium finishes were tied for the most with Alex Zanardi, and de Ferran ended up second, 33 points behind Zanardi, in the championship.
There was a lull in 1998. His podium finishes dipped to two, and he had a dozen finishes outside the top ten, including ten finishes worse than 15th. There was a rebound in 1999. De Ferran won at Portland and he had four podium finishes. That July, Roger Penske contacted de Ferran for a ride in 2000, and the duo agreed to terms. Despite this good news, de Ferran's season ended on a sour note. He failed to finish six of the final 11 races and ended up eighth in the championship.
Team Penske had gone through two seasons of futile when de Ferran joined along with Hélio Castroneves in place of the late Greg Moore. De Ferran set the tone with two pole positions in his first two starts. He won his fifth start with the team at Nazareth and then won three races later at Portland. De Ferran rattled off good results and he took the championship lead at Laguna Seca. He ended the season with five podium finishes in the final nine races and he claimed the title by ten points over Adrián Fernández.
The title defense began on a strong note with finishes of second and third in the first two races. De Ferran did get to run his first Indianapolis 500 in six years and was competitive with teammate Hélio Castroneves as the two drivers combined to lead 79 laps. Castroneves had the better car that day as de Ferran settled for second.
Indianapolis success aside, after starting the CART season with two podium finishes, de Ferran had only one top five finishes over the next eight races. He began the final ten races fifth in the championship, 31 points off leader Kenny Bräck. De Ferran went on a tear with four consecutive top five finishes, including three trips to the podium, and he took the championship after Vancouver despite having not won yet that season.
De Ferran lost the championship lead after the Lausitzring round, but what followed was one of the greatest battles in IndyCar history between him and Bräck on the 1.5-mile Rockingham Motor Speedway in England. They were the only two drivers to lead over the entire race and were nose to tail in the closing laps. Bräck took the lead with two to go, but de Ferran made an emphatic pass on the final lap to claim the victory. Bräck still led the championship after this race with five points between him and de Ferran, but it swung the tide in the title.
De Ferran led every lap in the next race at Houston and took an 11-point championship lead. A suspension issue ended Bräck's race after only six laps at Laguna Seca while de Ferran was third and saw his championship lead increase to 27 points. A fourth at Surfers Paradise while Bräck finished fifth allowed de Ferran to clinch his second consecutive championship with a race to spare.
Off-track, Team Penske decided it would move to the Indy Racing League in 2002, meaning de Ferran could not properly defend his championship. It didn't seem to bother him as he began his IRL career with finishes of second, second, fourth and third. He had nine top five finishes in his first 11 starts, including a victory at Pikes Peak. He led the championship entering the final four rounds, but an accident at Kentucky knocked him down to third. He won at Gateway and was a point out of the championship lead with two races remaining.
The hopes of a third championship in three seasons were dashed at Chicagoland when an accident in turn two gave him a concussion and fractured wrist, ruling him out for the Texas finale though still mathematically alive for the championship.
De Ferran recovered for the 2003 season and started again with a runner-up result, but an accident at Phoenix in the second race left him with fractures in his neck and back and caused him to miss the Motegi round. He recovers in time for the start of Indianapolis 500 practice, but he struggled getting comfortable in the car. He qualified tenth, but battled pain the entire race. Roger Penske called strategy and placed de Ferran at the front behind Castroneves. De Ferran took the lead while the Penske drivers negotiated lapped traffic in the closing stages. After going through three restarts in the final 31 laps, de Ferran took the Indianapolis 500 over Castroneves.
Keeping up the form, de Ferran had nine consecutive top ten finishes after Indianapolis, including another victory at Nashville. While in great form and working his way to second in points with three races remaining, de Ferran announced he would retire at the end of the season on August 25. Team Penske announced Sam Hornish, Jr. as his replacement in 2004 the same day.
De Ferran's championship hopes were stunted after two consecutive results outside the top ten prior to the Texas finale. Five drivers were mathematically alive for the 2003 IRL championship entering Texas. Scott Dixon and Castroneves were tied while Tony Kanaan was seven points back in third with Hornish, Jr. 19 points back. De Ferran had a slim hope at 30 points off the top.
Things started on the right note with a pole position. De Ferran's hope slipped when he was caught in an accident on the front straightaway on lap 98, but he continued with only minor damage. He was able to cycle back to the lead through pit stops as other title contenders started to experience problems. Hornish started leaking fluid and retired. Castroneves and Kanaan had slight contact take each other out of the fight though both cars kept running. De Ferran led but Dixon remained on his heels with an 18-point cushion.
With 13 laps remaining, Kenny Bräck and Tomas Scheckter made contact entering turn three, sending Bräck's car into the catchfence. Due to the catchfence damage, the race ended after 195 of the scheduled 200 laps. De Ferran ended up 18 points behind Dixon in the championship, good enough for second after all the troubles from the other drivers, but de Ferran ended his career with a victory, though in a sober setting.
What impression did de Ferran leave on IndyCar?
To be honest, this isn't going to be about what impression de Ferran left, but what impression de Ferran could have left.
I grouped these three drivers, Kanaan, Castroneves and de Ferran, together, one, because they are Brazilians, but they were also contemporaries and the other two are kind of a measuring stick for the career de Ferran could have had.
De Ferran retired about a month before he turned 36 years old. Kanaan and Castroneves both competed this season at 48 years old. The 1990s and the 2000s were a different era where drivers didn't regularly race deep into their 40s. It was a period where it wasn't uncommon for a driver to step away in his late 30s and move to sports cars, which de Ferran did, but Kanaan and Castroneves are torchbearers for a changing trend, one where it is now normal to see IndyCar drivers competing into their 40s.
Scott Dixon is still competing and doesn't appear to be going anywhere and he is 43 years old. Will Power is 42 years old. Ryan Hunter-Reay returned to regular IndyCar competition in his 40s. Juan Pablo Montoya returned to IndyCar after 14 years away at age 39!
De Ferran wasn't forced into retirements, though I suspect the injuries from the 2002 and 2003 seasons, along with accidents like Bräck's, likely helped de Ferran decide to walk away at that moment rather than hang on any longer. His skill wasn't diminishing. This wasn't a driver who had gone years without a victory and been a shadow of his former self. De Ferran was on top of his game.
There is a world where de Ferran competes for another decade and he is the forerunner for Kanaan and Castroneves. Based on what we were seeing in his mid-30s, the record would likely look vastly different if de Ferran had continued, especially if he had continued with Team Penske.
De Ferran ran nine full seasons in IndyCar. He won 12 times in 160 starts. If he competed for ten more seasons, de Ferran would have had 166 points starts. He would have been looking at 24 career victories, but that is taking into consideration his Hall/VDS Racing and Walker Racing years. His numbers were better at Penske alone. In 71 Penske starts, he won nine times, a winning percentage of 12.67%. That wouldn't have lasted for a decade, but if it did hold, we could have been looking at 21 more victories, a career total of 33, and considering Hélio Castroneves' numbers and that Castroneves began at Penske at the same time as de Ferran, it is conceivable de Ferran could have achieved that.
And that is just talking about race victories. This is forgetting de Ferran was already a two-time champion and had just won an Indianapolis 500. Give him another ten years and the numbers in those two categories likely increase as well.
There are many things to take into consideration. The IRL was still oval-heavy, but it was starting to add road and street courses two years later. It would become a spec-series. De Ferran already had his share of injuries, but I don't think any of that would have slowed him down.
I am writing this because I believe de Ferran's impression on IndyCar is he is a forgotten driver and yet he is one of 15 drivers to win consecutive championships, and those two championship came during a highly contested, though fractured, era. In his final four seasons, his championship finishes were first, first, third and second and he went to the final with a mathematically shot in the two years he did not come out on top.
The reverence for de Ferran is not there like it is for Kanaan or Castroneves, and it should be. De Ferran is arguably the best of this Brazilian bunch.
Some of it is because he lost part of his career to the split. He only made four Indianapolis 500 starts with a five-year gap in the middle. His career was only nine seasons to begin with, but part of the lack of recognition is because de Ferran has been gone for so long. He did have a stint in the television booth and briefly owned part of an IndyCar team. He was recently brought back as a consultant for McLaren, but over 20 years after his final start, it is safe to say de Ferran wasn't a regular around IndyCar, and why would he be? He stepped away from driving and was free to do whatever he wanted. There are many other more important places to be in this world than at a racetrack. He wasn't a stranger but he didn’t have a weekly presence that entire time.
It would be right to recognize de Ferran differently than we do now. I am not saying he must be seen as an undisputed all-time great, someone that should be held higher than 99% of those that came before him, but he should be recognized more than he currently is. He did more with less and it earned him a shot at Team Penske at the right time. De Ferran made the most of it. It was a brief career when taken into consideration, but we saw enough to know how special a driver Gil de Ferran was.
