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2009- For 2009 Nelson Philippe returned to Champ Car racing with Minardi Team USA. He completed every race with mostly solid results. He won one race and finished in the top ten in the final Champ Car championship standings. In 2010 he will rejoin Minardi Team USA in what will be a three car effort.
2006 - 2008 Had a breakout season in 2006 & 2007, earning one win and three podium finishes for CTE HVM Racing. Earned his first podium finish at the historic Milwaukee Mile 2006, coming home third after starting ninth. Finished the season on a high note, earning five top seven finishes in his last six starts. The strong run in 2007 included a third place finish at Montreal and his first career Champ Car win at Surfers Paradise, Australia. His strong finish to the season earned him a career best finish of fourth in the Champ Car World Series Championship point's standings with 231. He drove for the new Minardi team in 2008 and performed well earning eight top ten finishes with two top five showings.
2005 Continued making great progress in his sophomore campaign in the Champ Cars and was a consistent top-10 threat by the end of the season. Established new career bests in qualifying and race results capped by a strong seventh-place showing in the Mexico City season finale. Scored four top-10 runs over the season and was named as the recipient of the Bosch Most Improved Driver Award - an award voted on by his peers in the series. Qualified a career-best sixth at San Jose. Led a race-high 23 laps in Monterrey. His Mexico City performance helped France clinch its firs-ever Nation's Cup championship. Finished 13th in the championship standings with 117 points.
2004 Became the youngest driver to ever start a Champ Car race, taking the green flag at Long Beach at the age of 17 years, eight months and 25 days. Started the year with Rocketsports Racing earning top-10 finishes in Monterrey and Cleveland, but was released after five starts. Joined Mi-Jack/Conquest Racing for the last six events of the year and had better success, running a career-high ninth at Las Vegas. Scored back-to-back top-10 runs (Vegas, Australia). |