Ana Beatriz
Ana "Bia" Beatriz Caselato Gomes de Figueiredo, or Bia Figueiredo (born March 18, 1985) is a Brazilian racing driver. She won her first Indy Lights race at Nashville Superspeedway on 12 July 2008, becoming the first woman to win a race in the Indy Lights series.[1] On June 20, 2009, Bia won her second Indy Lights race and became the first woman to win a race car event at Iowa Speedway in Newton, Iowa.[2]
| Ana Beatriz de Figueiredo | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
De Figueiredo in 2023 | |||||||
| Nationality | Brazilian | ||||||
| Born | Ana Beatriz Caselato Gomes de Figueiredo March 18, 1985 São Paulo, Brazil | ||||||
| Awards | 2008 Firestone Indy Lights Rookie of the Year 2003 Formula Renault 2.0 Brazil Rookie of the Year | ||||||
| IndyCar Series career | |||||||
| 29 races run over 4 years | |||||||
| 2013 position | 29th | ||||||
| Best finish | 21st (2011) | ||||||
| First race | 2010 São Paulo Indy 300 (São Paulo) | ||||||
| Last race | 2013 Iowa Corn Indy 250 (Iowa) | ||||||
| |||||||
| Statistics current as of March 31, 2014. | |||||||
Career edit
Early career edit
Ana started her career in karting races. Initially funded by her family, "Bianinha" ("Little Bia") began kart racing at age eight.[3]
At the age of 12, racing coach Nailor Campos, former coach of racers Tony Kanaan, Rubens Barrichello, Enrique Bernoldi and Andre Ribeiro, became her coach and chief mechanic. When Bia's family could no longer fund her racing endeavors at the age of 15, Campos helped her attain sponsorship from the Medley pharmaceutical company, owned by former racer Xandy (Pollini) Negrão, father of racer Alexandre Sarnes Negrão.[3]
With formal sponsorship, Bia finished as runner-up in a variety of karting championships and won the Sorriso Petrobrás Kart Cup championship in 2003.
After three seasons in the Brazilian Formula Renault championship, Ana started competing in Formula Three Sudamericana in 2006, driving for the well-established Cesario Formula team. In 2006, she also drove a Red Bull Volkswagen Touareg for PPD Sports, owned by Pedro Diniz.
2008 edit
In 2008, Bia began racing in the American Firestone Indy Lights Series for defending championship-winning team Sam Schmidt Motorsports under the name Ana Beatriz.[4] Prior to racing in the United States, she was referred to as "Bia", not "Ana", and many people, including Bia herself, continue to call her "Bia". Several American reporters have begun to use the name Ana "Bia" Beatriz in their written articles.
Bia placed fifth in the Firestone Freedom 100 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on 23 May 2008, the highest finishing position by a female driver in that race.[5] On 12 July 2008, she led the most laps and won her first Indy Lights race at Nashville Superspeedway.[1]
With the excitement surrounding Bia's victory a reporter asked if she was the next Danica Patrick. She responded "Everybody is making that comparison... But I always say that I'm always going to be Bia. I'm never going to be Danica... I hope there is a place for a Bia now."[6]
2008 Awards edit
The results she demonstrated on and off the track gained the attention of many, and as a result, she was awarded the Tony Renna Rising Star Award. Named after the late driver, the award was given to Beatriz for demonstrating qualities as Renna—teamwork, physical fitness, and resourcefulness.
Also, her third-place result in the final championship standings earned her "Rookie of the Year" honors and places her in a position to be a championship contender in 2009.
2009 edit
Bia returned to the #20 Sam Schmidt car for 2009. She was forced to miss the Milwaukee Mile race due to a lack of funding caused by a hard crash in the Freedom 100 the prior week. However, a week later she won the race at the Iowa Speedway, her second series win.[7] She also skipped the final race of the season due to funding issues. She finished 8th in points despite missing the two races.
2010 edit
Bia's official Portuguese language site revealed on 23 February 2010 that she will drive a third car for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing in the São Paulo Indy 300 in March 2010.[8] Further participation in the 2010 IndyCar Series season was confirmed and announced on May 12, 2010.[9] Bia qualified for the 2010 Indianapolis 500 on the outside of row seven with a four–lap average of 224.243 MPH and finished in 21st position after retiring on the final lap of the race, as she was involved in an accident with Ryan Hunter-Reay and teammate Mike Conway.
In December, she won the second race of the Brazilian karting event, Desafio Internacional das Estrelas. Bia became a fan favorite in the event as she went from her starting position of 11th to 1st, overtaking experienced drivers such as Tony Kanaan, Felipe Massa and Rubens Barrichello in the process. She ended 4th in the final standings despite scoring the same number of points as the winner, Lucas di Grassi (it was a four-way tie).[citation needed]
2011 edit
For the 2011 IndyCar Series season she competed full-time for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing in the #24 car.[10] Bia broke her wrist in the opening laps of the first race at St. Petersburg causing her to miss the next race and requiring her to compete with a brace for the large part of the season.
2012 edit
On March 8, 2012, Bia tested for Andretti Autosport, driving James Hinchcliffe's car #27 during a session of the open test at Sebring, with an eye to her running that team's fourth car at April's IndyCar Series event in her home town of São Paulo.[11] On April 5 it was announced that she would compete in the 2012 São Paulo and Indianapolis races for Andretti Autosport with assistance from Conquest Racing.
2014–present edit
In 2014, De Figueiredo began competing in Stock Car Brasil.[12] Competing in around 120 races, she scored two top-five race finishes and a best championship result of 24th in 2018 before taking maternal leave. De Figueiredo returned to racing full-time in 2023 via the Copa Truck series.[13] She became the first female to win in Copa Truck and is fighting for the championship
Motorsports career results edit
| Year | Category | Result | Awards | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win, PP, FL | Overall | |||
| Karting | ||||
| 2000 | São Paulo Championship (Category B) | Runner-up | Price Racing of 2000 - Kart | |
| 2001 | Brazilian Championship (Category A) | 3rd place | Capacete de Ouro - Kart | |
| São Paulo Championship (Category A) | Runner-up | |||
| Brazil Kart Cup | Runner-up | |||
| 2002 | Brazilian Championship (Category A) | Runner-up | Capacete de Ouro - Kart | |
| São Paulo Championship (Category A) | 3rd place | |||
| 2003 | Sorriso Petrobrás Kart Cup | Champion | ||
| Petrobrás Karting Selective | Runner-up | |||
| Open–wheel | ||||
| 2003 | Brazilian Formula Renault | 2 FL | Rookie of the year - Brazilian Formula Renault | |
| 2004 | Brazilian Formula Renault | 5th place | ||
| 2005 | Brazilian Formula Renault | 3 win, 3 PP | 3rd place | Capacete de Ouro - Fórmula |
| 2006 | Formula Three Sudamericana | 5th place | Capacete de Ouro - São Paulo Citizen Driver | |
| 2008 | Firestone Indy Lights Series | 1 win | 3rd place | Rookie of the Year, Tony Renna rising star award |
| 2009 | Firestone Indy Lights Series | 1 win | 8th place | |
| 2010 | IndyCar Series | 30th place | ||
American open–wheel results edit
(key)
Indy Lights edit
| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | Rank | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Sam Schmidt Motorsports | HMS 7 | STP1 3 | STP2 16 | KAN 14 | INDY 5 | MIL 19 | IOW 3 | WGL1 4 | WGL2 3 | NSH 1 | MDO1 14 | MDO2 5 | KTY 16 | SNM1 6 | SNM2 3 | CHI 2 | 3rd | 449 |
| 2009 | Sam Schmidt Motorsports | STP1 4 | STP2 23 | LBH 5 | KAN 4 | INDY 17 | MIL | IOW 1 | WGL 9 | TOR 13 | EDM 12 | KTY 3 | MDO 12 | SNM 5 | CHI 14 | HMS | 8th | 320 |
IndyCar Series edit
| Year | Team | Chassis | No. | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | Rank | Points | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Dreyer & Reinbold Racing | Dallara IR-05 | 23 | Honda | SAO 13 | STP | ALA | LBH | KAN | 30th | 55 | [14] | ||||||||||||||
| 25 | INDY 21 | TXS | IOW | WGL | TOR | EDM | MDO | SNM | ||||||||||||||||||
| 24 | CHI 24 | KTY | MOT | HMS 26 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2011 | STP 14 | ALA | LBH 19 | SAO 24 | INDY 21 | TXS1 22 | TXS2 22 | MIL 17 | IOW 23 | TOR 11 | EDM 13 | MDO 17 | NHM 14 | SNM 13 | BAL 16 | MOT 19 | KTY 24 | LVS C | 21st | 212 | [15] | |||||
| 2012 | Andretti Autosport | Dallara DW12 | 25 | Chevrolet | STP | ALA | LBH | SAO 20 | INDY 23 | DET | TXS | MIL | IOW | TOR | EDM | MDO | SNM | BAL | FON | 29th | 28 | [16] | ||||
| 2013 | Dale Coyne Racing | 18 | Honda | STP 22 | ALA 24 | LBH 14 | SAO 25 | INDY 15 | DET1 | DET2 | TXS | MIL 19 | IOW 22 | POC | TOR1 | TOR2 | MDO | SNM | BAL | HOU1 | HOU2 | FON | 29th | 72 | [17] | |
| Years | Teams | Races | Poles | Wins | Podiums (Non-win) | Top 10s (Non-podium) | Indianapolis 500 Wins | Championships |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 3 | 29 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Indianapolis 500 edit
| Year | Chassis | Engine | Start | Finish | Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Dallara IR-05 | Honda HI7R V8 | 21 | 21 | Dreyer & Reinbold Racing |
| 2011 | Dallara IR-05 | Honda HI7R V8 | 32 | 21 | Dreyer & Reinbold Racing |
| 2012 | Dallara DW12 | Chevrolet IndyCar V6t | 13 | 23 | Andretti Autosport/Conquest Racing |
| 2013 | Dallara DW12 | Honda HI13TT V6t | 29 | 15 | Dale Coyne Racing |
Complete Stock Car Brasil results edit
† Driver did not finish the race, but was classified as she completed over 90% of the race distance.
Complete IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship results edit
(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 | 11 | 12 | Rank | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Heinricher Racing w/ Meyer Shank Racing | GTD | Acura NSX GT3 | Acura 3.5 L Turbo V6 | DAY 12 | SEB 8 | MDO | DET | WGL 4 | MOS 6 | LIM | ELK 13 | VIR | LGA | PET 7 | 16th | 137 | |
| 2021 | Team Hardpoint EBM | GTD | Porsche 911 GT3 R | Porsche 4.0 L Flat-6 | DAY | SEB 5 | MDO | DET | WGL | WGL | LIM | ELK | LGA | LBH | VIR | PET | 51st | 280 |
| Source:[18] | ||||||||||||||||||
References edit
- ^ a b IndyCar.com. (12 July 2008) History -- Again[permanent dead link] IndyCar. Accessed 12 July 2008.
- ^ DesMoinesRegister.com. (20 June 2009) [1][permanent dead link] Des Moines Register. Accessed 20 June 2009.
- ^ a b Wagner, Phillip. (30 July 2008) Is Bia Brazil's Danica Patrick (Part 1) September 22, 2008, at the Wayback Machine Motorsport.com. Accessed 31 July 2008.
- ^ Knapp Schilke, Nancy. (1 January 2008) Schmidt gives opportunity to Beatriz-Figueiredo July 22, 2009, at the Wayback Machine Motorsport.com. Accessed 1 January 2008.
- ^ Lewandowski, Dave. (1 January 2008) Battistini holds off Antinucci at the Yard of Bricks[permanent dead link] IndyCar. Accessed 24 May 2008.
- ^ Braun, Travis. (16 July 2008) Beatriz looks to carve out own image among women racers USA Today. Accessed 3 August 2008.
- ^ Lewandowski, Dave. (June 20, 2009) SSM Sweep[permanent dead link], IndyCar. Accessed 16 October 2009.
- ^ BiaFigueiredo.com (23 February 2010) Fórmula Indy: Ana Beatriz fecha com a equipe Dreyer & Reinbold Racing February 28, 2010, at the Wayback Machine BiaFigueiredo.com. Accessed 23 February 2010.
- ^ GPUpdate.net (12th May 2010) Beatriz to compete in 500 with Dreyer & Reinbold GPUpdate.net. Accessed 30 January 2011.
- ^ Dreyer & Reinbold Racing names Ana Beatriz as driver March 9, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, AutoWeek, March 3, 2011, Retrieved 2011-03-03
- ^ The Indianapolis Star, March 9, 2012, edition
- ^ "Ana Beatriz".
- ^ "Bia Figueiredo to race in Brazilian Copa Truck". Racers: Behind the Helmet. 19 January 2023.
- ^ "Ana Beatriz – 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 1, 2023.
- ^ "Ana Beatriz – 2011 IZOD IndyCar Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 1, 2023.
- ^ "Ana Beatriz – 2012 IZOD IndyCar Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 1, 2023.
- ^ "Ana Beatriz – 2013 IZOD IndyCar Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 1, 2023.
- ^ "Ana Beatriz Results". motorsportstats.com. Retrieved November 11, 2023.
External links edit
- Official website
- Ana Beatriz driver statistics at Racing-Reference
- at IndyCar.com
- New York Times feature on Bia, October 2006
- IndyCar 11 in '11 video