Gil de Ferran, former Brazilian driver and strongman of McLaren in Formula 1, has died

He The Brazilian Gil de Ferranwinner of 2003 Indianapolis 500 and two-time champion of the Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) in the United States, died on Friday due to heart failure suffered during a competition on the circuit The Opa-Llocka Club Competition, in the state of Florida. The driver, 56 years old, born in Paris but of Brazilian nationality, stopped the car due to chest pain and was immediately taken to hospital, but the treatment he received was not enough to save his life, the media reported today Americans.

“We are terribly sad to learn of the tragic passing of Gil de Ferran,” wrote his team at IndyCar, Penske.

The Brazilian legend began his career in British Formula 3; He developed in the United States with two titles in CART (2000 and 2001) and a total of 12 victories in the IndyCar Series, of which he finished second in 2003.

He also raced in the American Le Mans Series, where he won five of ten races in 2009 with his Ferran Motorsports Acura ARX-01b team.

De Ferran holds the closed-course average speed record in history: 386 km/h at the California Speedway in October 2000.

Moreover, He worked as sports director for the BAR-Honda Formula 1 team. from 2005 to 2007 and then held the same position McLaren (2018-2021), where he was in charge of the two-time F1 world champion, the Spaniard Fernando Alonso.

McLaren mourned his loss: “Gil was a beloved member of our family, an important and integral part of our racing team. He was a formidable force on and off the track and had a lasting impact on all who raced and worked under him. side”.