Ralph David Firman, Jr. (born May 20, 1975 in Norwich, Norfolk, England) is an Anglo-Irish racing driver, who took part in the 2003 Formula One Season for Jordan. He was brought into the seat after Eddie Irvine turned down an offer to drive for them, and thus retired from the sport.
He sat out of the Hungarian and Italian Grands Prix after suffering a huge accident in practice at the Hungaroring where his Jordan slammed backwards into the tyre wall at 180mph after the rear wing flew off. He was replaced by Zsolt Baumgartner for those two rounds. Baumgartner, as a result, became the first Hungarian driver in Formula One.
Firman scored his first and only point in the Spanish Grand Prix, while his team-mate Giancarlo Fisichella fared a much better season, winning the Brazilian Grand Prix, his first win and Jordan's last.
Formula One Career[]
Pre-Formula One[]
Ralph Firman drove for Formula Nippon from 1997 to 2002. Overall, he achieved a total of six pole positions, four fastest laps and seven wins, including a title in 2002. After the 2002 season, he signed a contract to drive for Jordan Grand Prix in Formula One.
2003[]
Post-Formula One[]
After Formula One, he drove in the 2004 24 Hours of Le Mans, retiring after 313 laps of racing.
He then returned to Japan to race instead in the JGTC/Super GT series from 2005 until 2013.
Formula One Statistical Overview[]
Formula One Record[]
| Year | Entrant | Team | WDC Points | WDC Pos. | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Lucky Strike BAR Honda | BAR-Honda | Test Driver | ||
| 2003 | Jordan Ford | Jordan-Ford | 1 | 19th | Report |
| 2004 | Jordan Ford | Jordan-Ford | Test Driver | ||
Career Statistics[]
| Entries | 15 |
| Starts | 14 |
| Pole Positions | 0 |
| Race Wins | 0 |
| Podiums | 0 |
| Fastest Laps | 0 |
| Points | 1 |
| Laps Raced | 639 |
| Distance Raced | 2,990 km (1,860 mi) |
Career Results[]
| Complete Formula One Results | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Year | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | Pts | Pos | |||||||
| 2003 | 
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1 | 19th | |||||||
| Ret | 10th | Ret | Ret | 8th | 11th | 12th | Ret | 11th | 15th | 13th | Ret | PO | INJ | Ret | 14th | ||||||||||
| Key | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Symbol | Meaning | Symbol | Meaning | ||
| 1st | Winner | Ret | Retired | ||
| 2nd | Podium finish | DSQ | Disqualified | ||
| 3rd | DNQ | Did not qualify | |||
| 5th | Points finish | DNPQ | Did not pre-qualify | ||
| 14th | Non-points finish | TD | Test driver | ||
| Italics | Fastest Lap | DNS | Did not start | ||
| 18th† | Classified finish (retired with >90% race distance) | NC | Non-classified finish (<90% race distance) | ||
| 4thP | Qualified for pole position | [+] More Symbols | |||