Ferdinand Habsburg (racing driver)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Ferdinand Zvonimir Von Habsburg
Ferdinand Habsburg Lothringen.jpg
Full nameFerdinand Zvonimir Maria Balthus Keith Michael Otto Antal Bahnam Leonhard von Habsburg-Lothringen[1]
Born (1997-06-21) 21 June 1997 (age 24)
Salzburg, Austria
FIA World Endurance Championship career
Debut season2021
Current teamTeam WRT
Car number31
Starts6
Wins3
Podiums4
Poles1
Fastest laps0
Best finish1st in 2021
Previous series
2017–18

2015–17
2016
2015–16
2015–16

2014		FIA Formula 3 European Championship

Toyota Racing Series
Euroformula Open Championship
Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0
Formula Renault 2.0 NEC

Formula Renault 1.6 NEC
Championship titles
2021
2021		Asian Le Mans Series - LMP2
FIA World Endurance Championship - LMP2

Ferdinand Zvonimir Maria Balthus Keith Michael Otto Antal Bahnam Leonhard von Habsburg-Lothringen[1] is an Austrian motor racing driver and heir apparent to the headship of the House of Habsburg-Lorraine. He is currently driving in the FIA World Endurance Championship with Team WRT and European Le Mans Series with Algarve Pro Racing respectively.

Habsburg won the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the FIA World Endurance Championship in the LMP2 class alongside Charles Milesi and Robin Frijns in 2021.

Family background[]

Ferdinand Habsburg was born on 21 June 1997 to Karl von Habsburg and Francesca von Habsburg. A member of the House of Habsburg-Lorraine, his paternal grandparents were Otto von Habsburg, the last crown prince of Austria-Hungary, and Princess Regina of Saxe-Meiningen. His maternal grandparents are Baron Hans Heinrich Thyssen-Bornemisza and Fiona Campbell-Walter, descendant of the Campbell baronets.

Habsburg was baptised on 20 September 1997 in Zagreb by Cardinal Franjo Kuharić. His godparents were his uncle Georg von Habsburg, Alois-Konstantin, 9th Prince of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg, Margarita Gómez-Acebo y Cejuela, and Agnes Husslein (born Countess of Arco).[2] He was also given the traditional Croatian name Zvonimir.

He is the brother of Eleonore von Habsburg and Gloria von Habsburg. His brother-in-law (Eleanore's husband) is Formula E driver Jérôme d'Ambrosio.[3]

Ferdinand is the heir apparent to the headship of the House of Habsburg, currently held by his father. He is informally titled as an Imperial and Royal Archduke of Austria. However, the titles and honorifics are unofficial as Austria is a republic with all royal titles being legally abolished in 1918.

Racing career[]

Karting[]

Habsburg began his racing career at the age of 14 with the Austrian team, Speedworld Academy.[4] He has worn racing number 62 since the beginning of his karting career. In 2014 after four years spent in ROTAX Junior category, winning multiple championship titles, he switched to Rotax DD2. He also qualified thrice for the Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals, scoring a best result of eleventh in 2013.

Formula Renault 1.6 NEC[]

In 2014, Habsburg made his début in single seaters, taking part in the Formula Renault 1.6 NEC Championship with . He finished 4th with a 100% finishing rate in 15 races.

Toyota Racing Series[]

For 2015, Habsburg contested New Zealand's Toyota Racing Series in January and February 2015 with Victory Motor Racing, finishing 11th in the championship and 5th in the rookie class with two podium finishes. He would return to the series with Giles Motorsport for 2016 and finished fourth in the championship behind Lando Norris, Jehan Daruvala and Brendon Leitch with four podium finishes, which included his first win in car racing in the season opener at Mike Pero Motorsport Park.

Habsburg contested his final season in the series in 2017, this time driving for M2 Competition. The Austrian finished the campaign in eighth place, scoring two podiums.

Formula Renault 2.0 NEC[]

For 2015, Habsburg decided to switch to the Formula Renault Northern European Cup with Fortec Motorsports.[5] Having only raced in the first five rounds in the series with a best finish of fifth at his home event at the Red Bull Ring, the Austrian ended up 19th in the standings.

Euroformula Open Championship[]

Habsburg made his debut in the Euroformula Open Championship in the 2015 season finale at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, where he finished both races in the top ten.[6]

The following year Habsburg comitted to the series full-time, racing for Drivex School.[7] Having lost ground to the more experienced title-favourite Leonardo Pulcini during the first few rounds, Habsburg was able to achieve his first race win in the series at the Circuit Paul Ricard. He followed that up by scoring seven podiums across the five remaining rounds, which included a win in Barcelona, and finished second in the standings, with twelve podiums from just 16 races to his credit.

FIA Formula 3 European Championship[]

2017[]

For 2017, Habsburg stepped up to the FIA European F3 Championship, racing for Carlin. He had a highly successful season, taking four podiums and a first series win at Spa. However his most impressive drive came in the end of year Macau Grand Prix. In the main race, he battled hard for the lead with Brazilian Sérgio Sette Câmara, but was unable to pass. On the final lap, Habsburg took the lead around the outside of the final corner at Fisherman's Bend, but braked too late and understeered into the barriers on the exit of the corner, with Sette Câmara doing exactly the same thing, handing the race win to Câmara's teammate Dan Ticktum. Habsburg eventually limped across the line fourth despite broken front suspension. Nonetheless, the Austrian would gain much praise from both his team boss and journalists for his final lap maneuver, along with his great season as a whole.

2018[]

He returned to the series in 2018 with Carlin, this time partnering Jehan Daruvala, Sacha Fenestraz, Nikita Troitskiy and Ameya Vaidyanathan.[8] However, Habsburg was unable to find the form from the previous year, scoring just a lone podium at Misano and finishing 13th in the championship.

Habsburg at 2019 Macau Grand Prix

Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters[]

2019[]

Habsburg competing for Aston Martin in the DTM

In 2019, Habsburg signed for R-Motorsport II to race the Aston Martin Vantage DTM in the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters. He scored two points finishes in Circuit Zolder and the Norisring and ended up 18th in the driver's championship.[9]

2020[]

For the 2020 season Habsburg made the switch to Audi Sport Team WRT racing the Audi RS5 Turbo DTM.[10] This season was comparatively successful for Habsburg as he secured 10 points positions, one of which was a podium in Circuit Zolder. This meant that Habsburg finished tenth in the driver's championship with 68 points, beating both of his teammates Fabio Scherer and Harrison Newey.

Endurance racing[]

2020[]

In 2020, Habsburg competed in the 24 Hours of Le Mans Virtual with Mahle Racing, driving the 2018 Aston Martin Vantage GTE alongside former IndyCar Series driver Robert Wickens and sim-racers Jimmy Broadbent and Kevin Rotting. They classified in 46th place.[11][12]

2021[]

Habsburg started his 2021 campaign by racing in the Asian Le Mans Series with G-Drive Racing. Together with his teammates Ye Yifei and Rene Binder he won the drivers' championship, taking two wins along the way. Alongside this, Habsburg raced with High Class Racing in the 2021 24 Hours of Daytona alongside Robert Kubica, Dennis Andersen, and Anders Fjordbach. However, they retired from the race due to a gearbox failure.[13]

On 26 February it was confirmed he would compete in the FIA World Endurance Championship for Team WRT alongside Robin Frijns and Charles Milesi, driving an Oreca 07 in the LMP2 class. During the first round in the 2021 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, Habsburg and his team finished tenth and in the following race, the 2021 8 Hours of Portimão, his team finished in fourth position. However, it was in the next race, the 2021 6 Hours of Monza that Habsburg clinched his first LMP2 podium, finishing in second place. In round four, that being the 2021 24 Hours of Le Mans, Habsburg and his Team WRT teammates clinched a dramatic LMP2 class win after their sister Team WRT car suffered a throttle Sensor failure on the final lap whilst in the lead of the race.[14] After a two-month long break the trio won the 6 Hours of Bahrain.[15] The following weekend, Habsburg, Frijns and Milesi clinched the LMP2 title after scoring a third consecutive victory in the series at the 8-hour race at the same venue.[16] Habsburg also became the first Austrian to win the LMP2 title in the World Endurance Championship.

Art car[]

Together with his mother Francesca von Habsburg, Habsburg launched a unique interpretation of racing and art in 2014. The famous Swiss designer group, Lang-Baumann, designed and painted his race car.[17]

Karting record[]

Karting career summary[]

Season Series Team Position
2011 Rotax Max Challenge Central-Eastern Europe — Junior 6th
Rotax Euro Challenge — Junior 75th
2012 Rotax Euro Challenge — Junior 79th
Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals — Junior Kalman Motorsport 35th
2013 Rotax Max Challenge Central-Eastern Europe — Junior 2nd
Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals — Junior Speedworld Academy 11th
2014 Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals — DD2 Speedworld Academy 12th
2019 Deutsche Elektro-Kart-Meisterschaft (DEKM) NC

Racing record[]

Career summary[]

Season Series Team Races Wins Poles F/Laps Podiums Points Position
2014 Formula Renault 1.6 NEC[18] Lechner Racing 15 0 0 0 4 213 4th
2015 Formula Renault 2.0 NEC Fortec Motorsports 11 0 0 0 0 62 18th
Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 5 0 0 0 0 0 NC†
Formula Renault 2.0 Alps 3 0 0 0 0 0 NC†
Euroformula Open Championship Drivex School 2 0 0 0 0 0 NC†
Toyota Racing Series Victory Motor Racing 16 0 1 1 2 490 11th
2016 Euroformula Open Championship Drivex School 16 2 4 1 12 247 2nd
Spanish Formula 3 Championship 6 1 1 0 4 90 3rd
Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 Fortec Motorsports 15 0 1 0 2 57 10th
Formula Renault 2.0 NEC 10 0 0 0 2 130 11th
Macau Grand Prix 1 0 0 0 0 N/A DNF
Toyota Racing Series Giles Motorsport 15 2 0 1 4 727 4th
2017 FIA Formula 3 European Championship Carlin 30 1 0 2 4 187 7th
Macau Grand Prix 1 0 0 0 0 N/A 4th
Toyota Racing Series M2 Competition 15 0 0 0 2 568 8th
2018 FIA Formula 3 European Championship Carlin 30 0 0 2 1 87 13th
International GT Open Drivex School 2 0 0 0 0 1 44th
Weathertech SportsCar Championship Jackie Chan DCR Jota 1 0 0 0 0 26 51st
Macau Grand Prix Motopark 1 0 0 0 0 N/A 10th
2019 Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters R-Motorsport II 17 0 0 0 0 3 18th
Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup R-Motorsport 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC
Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup - Silver Cup 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC
Macau Grand Prix ART Grand Prix 1 0 0 0 0 N/A DNF
2020 Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters Audi Sport Team WRT 17 0 1 0 1 68 10th
GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC
Intercontinental GT Challenge Audi 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC
2021 FIA World Endurance Championship - LMP2 Team WRT 6 3 1 0 4 151 1st
24 Hours of Le Mans - LMP2 1 1 0 0 1 N/A 1st
European Le Mans Series Algarve Pro Racing 6 0 0 0 1 27.5 13th
Asian Le Mans Series G-Drive Racing 4 2 0 1 3 81 1st
WeatherTech SportsCar Championship - LMP2 High Class Racing 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC‡

† As von Habsburg was a guest driver, he was ineligible to score championship points.
‡ Points only counted towards the Michelin Endurance Cup, and not the overall LMP2 Championship.

Complete Toyota Racing Series results[]

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

Year Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 DC Points
2015 Victory Motor Racing RUA
1
6 		RUA
2
3 		RUA
3
Ret 		TER
1
7 		TER
2
6 		TER
3
12 		HMP
1
10 		HMP
2
2 		HMP
3
11 		TAU
1
15 		TAU
2
16 		TAU
3
16 		TAU
4
14 		MAN
1
11 		MAN
2
14 		MAN
3
Ret 		12th 490
2016 Giles Motorsport RUA
1
1 		RUA
2
7 		RUA
3
2 		TER
1
13 		TER
2
8 		TER
3
4 		HMP
1
6 		HMP
2
9 		HMP
3
8 		TAU
1
6 		TAU
2
12 		TAU
3
4 		MAU
1
1 		MAU
2
7 		MAU
3
3 		4th 727
2017 M2 Competition RUA
1
7 		RUA
2
5 		RUA
3
6 		TER
1
4 		TER
2
Ret 		TER
3
18 		HMP
1
9 		HMP
2
10 		HMP
3
2 		TAU
1
18 		TAU
2
16 		TAU
3
3 		MAN
1
8 		MAN
2
5 		MAN
3
7 		8th 552

Complete Formula Renault 2.0 Northern European Cup results[]

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

Year Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 DC Points
2015 Fortec Motorsports MNZ
1
25 		MNZ
2
Ret 		SIL
1
18 		SIL
2
16 		RBR
1
6 		RBR
2
16 		RBR
3
5 		SPA
1
Ret 		SPA
2
23 		ASS
1
13 		ASS
2
11 		NÜR
1 		NÜR
2 		HOC
1 		HOC
2 		HOC
3 		19th 62

Complete Euroformula Open Championship results[]

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate points for the fastest lap of top ten finishers)

Year Entrant 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 DC Points
2015 Drivex School JER
1 		JER
2 		LEC
1 		LEC
2 		EST
1 		EST
2 		SIL
1 		SIL
2 		RBR
1 		RBR
2 		SPA
1 		SPA
2 		MNZ
1 		MNZ
2 		CAT
1
10 		CAT
2
4 		NC† 0
2016 Drivex School EST
1
2 		EST
2
9 		SPA
1
3 		SPA
2
3 		LEC
1
1 		LEC
2
2 		SIL
1
4 		SIL
2
2 		RBR
1
2 		RBR
2
Ret 		MNZ
1
3 		MNZ
2
2 		JER
1
7 		JER
2
2 		CAT
1
1 		CAT
2
2 		2nd 247

† As von Habsburg was a guest driver, he was ineligible to score championship points.

Complete Macau Grand Prix results[]

Year Team Car Qualifying Quali Race Main race
2016 United Kingdom Fortec Motorsport Dallara F312 23rd 17th DNF
2017 United Kingdom Carlin Dallara F317 5th 5th 4th
2018 Germany Motopark Dallara F317 15th 13th 10th
2019 France ART Grand Prix Dallara F3 2019 11th 8th DNF

Complete FIA Formula 3 European Championship results[]

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

Year Entrant Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 DC Points
2017 Carlin Volkswagen SIL
1
12 		SIL
2
13 		SIL
3
12 		MNZ
1
3 		MNZ
2
5 		MNZ
3
5 		PAU
1
8 		PAU
2
8 		PAU
3
6 		HUN
1
15 		HUN
2
10 		HUN
3
12 		NOR
1
Ret 		NOR
2
15 		NOR
3
8 		SPA
1
8 		SPA
2
1 		SPA
3
6 		ZAN
1
4 		ZAN
2
6 		ZAN
3
2 		NÜR
1
5 		NÜR
2
6 		NÜR
3
Ret 		RBR
1
6 		RBR
2
9 		RBR
3
4 		HOC
1
3 		HOC
2
20 		HOC
3
Ret 		7th 187
2018 Carlin Volkswagen PAU
1
11 		PAU
2
11 		PAU
3
Ret 		HUN
1
Ret 		HUN
2
8 		HUN
3
15 		NOR
1
18 		NOR
2
5 		NOR
3
9 		ZAN
1
14 		ZAN
2
5 		ZAN
3
7 		SPA
1
Ret 		SPA
2
10 		SPA
3
12 		SIL
1
13 		SIL
2
13 		SIL
3
9 		MIS
1
12 		MIS
2
7 		MIS
3
3 		NÜR
1
Ret 		NÜR
2
10 		NÜR
3
11 		RBR
1
5 		RBR
2
8 		RBR
3
6 		HOC
1
Ret 		HOC
2
12 		HOC
3
6 		13th 87

Complete WeatherTech SportsCar Championship results[]

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

Year Entrant Class Make Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Rank Points
2018 Jackie Chan DCR JOTA P Oreca 07 Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8 DAY
5 		SEB LBH MDO DET WGL MOS ELK LGA PET 51st 26
2021 High Class Racing LMP2 Oreca 07 Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8 DAY
9† 		SEB WGL WGL ELK LGA PET NC† 0†

† Points only counted towards the Michelin Endurance Cup, and not the overall LMP2 Championship.

Complete Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters results[]

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

Year Entrant Car 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 DC Points
2019 R-Motorsport II Aston Martin Vantage DTM HOC
1
Ret 		HOC
2
13 		ZOL
1
9 		ZOL
2
Ret 		MIS
1
14 		MIS
2
12 		NOR
1
10 		NOR
2
11 		ASS
1
13 		ASS
2
12 		BRH
1
15† 		BRH
2
11 		LAU
1
15 		LAU
2
Ret 		NÜR
1
11 		NÜR
2
15 		HOC
1
DNS 		HOC
2
11 		18th 3
2020 Audi Sport Team WRT Audi RS5 Turbo DTM SPA
1
DNS 		SPA
2
15 		LAU
1
6 		LAU
2
10 		LAU
1
11 		LAU
2
14 		ASS
1
8 		ASS
2
7 		NÜR
1
11 		NÜR
2
15 		NÜR
1
7 		NÜR
2
6 		ZOL
1
7 		ZOL
2
7 		ZOL
1
3 		ZOL
2
10 		HOC
1
11 		HOC
2
14 		10th 68

† Driver did not finish, but was classified as he completed 90% of the race distance.

Complete European Le Mans Series results[]

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

Year Entrant Class Chassis Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 Rank Points
2021 Algarve Pro Racing LMP2 Oreca 07 Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8 CAT
11 		RBR
8 		LEC
7 		MNZ
10 		SPA
Ret 		ALG
3 		13th 27.5

Complete FIA World Endurance Championship results[]

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

Year Entrant Class Chassis Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 Rank Points
2021 Team WRT LMP2 Oreca 07 Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8 SPA
10 		ALG
4 		MNZ
2 		LMS
1 		BHR
1 		BHR
1 		1st 151

Complete 24 Hours of Le Mans results[]

Year Team Co-Drivers Car Class Laps Pos. Class
Pos.
2021 Belgium Team WRT France Charles Milesi
Netherlands Robin Frijns 		Oreca 07-Gibson LMP2 363 6th 1st

References[]

  1. ^ a b "Ferdinand Habsburg". Driver Database. Retrieved 13 July 2021.
  2. ^ "Le baptême de l'archiduc Zvonimir", Point de Vue, no. 2566 (24 au 30 septembre 1997): 10–12.
  3. ^ Pal Sinha, Barnali (26 July 2020). "Eleonore von Habsburg marries Formula E driver Jérôme d'Ambrosio in secret wedding". International Business Times. Retrieved 26 July 2020.
  4. ^ "Speedworld Academy". Speedworld-academy.at. Retrieved 3 February 2016.
  5. ^ Khorounzhiy, Valentin (16 January 2015). "Ferdinand Habsburg graduates to Formula Renault 2.0 NEC with Fortec". Paddock Scout. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
  6. ^ Allen, Peter (30 October 2015). "MacLeod and Habsburg at Euroformula Open finale". Paddock Scout. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
  7. ^ "Breaking news: Habsburg fährt 2016 in drei Meisterschaften!" (in German). 7 March 2016. Retrieved 7 March 2016.
  8. ^ Simmons, Marcus (1 February 2018). "Habsburg stays on for second F3 season". Motorsport.com. Motorsport Network. Retrieved 1 February 2018.
  9. ^ "Juncadella/Habsburg complete R-Motorsport Aston Martin DTM line-up". Autosport.com. 19 February 2019.
  10. ^ "FERDINAND HABSBURG JOINS WRT TEAM AUDI SPORT THREE-CAR LINE-UP IN THE DTM". WRT.
  11. ^ "24H Le Mans virtual provisional team entry list" (PDF). Automobile Club de l'Ouest. 11 June 2020.
  12. ^ "Bsimracing Race Hour 24" (PDF). Bsimracing. 14 June 2020.
  13. ^ "FERDINAND HABSBURG SIGNS WITH HIGH CLASS RACING FOR ROLEX 24 AT DAYTONA". 11 June 2020.
  14. ^ Watkins, Gary (26 August 2021). "LMP2 decided by last-lap drama". Autosport: 24–27. Archived from the original on 12 September 2021. Retrieved 11 September 2021 – via PressReader.
  15. ^ "Title favourite WRT has "surprised everyone" in first WEC season". www.autosport.com. Retrieved 21 November 2021.
  16. ^ "WEC Bahrain 8 Hours: #7 Toyota wins title, clash ruins GTE Pro battle". www.autosport.com. Retrieved 21 November 2021.
  17. ^ "LB". Langbaumann.com. Retrieved 3 February 2016.
  18. ^ "Formula Renault 1.6 NEC 2014 standings". Driverdb.com. 2014.

External links[]

Sporting positions
Preceded by
Roman Rusinov
James French
Léonard Hoogenboom
 Asian Le Mans Series
LMP2 Champion
2021
With: René Binder & Ye Yifei 		Succeeded by
Incumbent
Preceded by FIA Endurance Trophy for LMP2 Drivers
2021
With: Robin Frijns & Charles Milesi 		Succeeded by
Incumbent
Retrieved from ""