Norman Nato

Norman Nato (born 8 July 1992) is a professional racing driver from France who is currently driving for Venturi Racing in the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship. Nato is known for finishing as the runner-up in the 2010 F4 Eurocup 1.6 season and the 2012 Formula Renault 2.0 Alps season, and for winning both in Monaco and Hungary in the 2014 Formula Renault 3.5 Series season.

Norman Nato
Nato at 2019 4 Hours of Monza podium.
Nationality French
Born (1992-07-08) 8 July 1992
Cannes, France
FIA Formula E World Championship career
Debut season2020-2021
Current teamROKiT Venturi Racing
Car number71
Starts0
Wins0
Podiums0
Poles0
Fastest laps0
Previous series
2019-2020

2018-2019
2017
2015-2016
2013-14
2012
2011
2010
FIA World Endurance Championship
European Le Mans Series
FIA Formula 2 Championship
GP2 Series
Formula Renault 3.5 Series
Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0
Formula Renault 2.0 Alps
Formula Renault 2.0 NEC
F4 Eurocup 1.6

Career

Karting

Born in Cannes, Nato began his karting career at the age of nine[1] and won the Championnat de France “Minimes” and “Cadet” categories in 2004 and 2005 before winning the Copa Campeones Trophy KF2 in 2007. In 2009, Nato won the French KZ2 Championship which he followed with a win at the KZ2 Monaco Kart Cup in 2010.[2]

Formula Renault

Nato made his debut in single-seater competition in 2010 by joining the F4 F4 Eurocup 1.6 series with the Autosport Academy team. The Frenchman won on debut at the Ciudad del Motor de Aragón and took one further victory at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. Nato ended the season with eight podium finishes and 123 points to finish as runner-up to Stoffel Vandoorne.[3]

In 2011, Nato graduated to Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 with the R-ace GP team. He finished 11th overall after taking two podiums at the Nürburgring and the closing race of the season in Barcelona, with another five points-scoring finishes.[4] He also partially competed in Formula Renault 2.0 Northern European Cup with the same team, bringing another podium at Nürburgring.[5]

For 2012, Nato continued to race in the Eurocup but joined debutants RC Formula.[6] He took one victory at Spa alongside three podium finishes at Aragon, the Nürburgring and the Hungaroring to finish fourth overall with 96 points.[7]

Nato also raced in Formula Renault 2.0 Alps in 2012 and battled against Daniil Kvyat for the title. In the final race of the season in Barcelona, he was involved in an accident with Kvyat and finished as the runner-up with a three-point deficit.[8] He ended the season with four wins and four further podium finishes.

Nato graduated to the highest tier of the World Series by Renault in 2013 by joining DAMS in the Formula Renault 3.5 Series as a team-mate to Kevin Magnussen.[9] He took one pole position and finished 13th in the Drivers’ Championship with 33 points.

The Frenchman stayed on with the team for the 2014 season, this time partnering Carlos Sainz Jr. Nato took two victories which included a Grand Slam performance at the prestigious Monaco race in which he won from pole position and set the fastest lap. He finished seventh in the standings with 89 points.

GP2 Series

On 29 January 2015, it was confirmed that Arden International had signed Nato as its number one driver in the GP2 Series.[10] He finished 18th overall with 20 points.

Nato joined Racing Engineering for the 2016 GP2 Series[11] and won the opening race of the season in Barcelona. He finished on the podium again in Monaco, Hungary and Malaysia, and took one further victory at Monza to finish fifth in the Drivers’ Championship with 136 points.[12]

In 2017, Nato returned to Arden to start his third season in the Formula One feeder series, now renamed as Formula 2.[13] He took one win after beating eventual champion Charles Leclerc at the Baku City Circuit and recorded two further podiums, finishing as the runner-up in the Bahrain and Silverstone Feature Races. Nato finished ninth overall, accumulating 91 points.[14]

European Le Mans Series

For the 2018 season, Nato made a switch to sportscar racing by joining the European Le Mans Series with Racing Engineering in the LMP2 class.[15] He won the opening race of the season at Le Castellet alongside team-mates Paul Petit and Olivier Pla. Nato took one further podium at the Red Bull Ring to finish third in the championship standings with 66 points.[16]

Alongside his ELMS campaign, Nato contested his first 24 Hours of Le Mans in which he finished in 10th place with SMP Racing. He also raced at the 2018 Petit Le Mans in the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, finishing in 11th place with Tequila Patron ESM.[17]

For 2019, the Frenchman joined reigning ELMS champions G-Drive Racing and contested the opening two races of the season, taking fourth place at Le Castellet and winning at Monza.[18]

World Endurance Championship

Nato made his debut in the FIA World Endurance Championship in 2019 in which he raced at the 6 Hours of Spa with LMP2 team TDS Racing, taking fourth in class.

For the 2019-20 season, Nato joined LMP1 team Rebellion Racing.[19] The Frenchman took his first FIA World Endurance Championship victory at the 4 Hours of Shanghai and also won the 2020 Lone Star Le Mans at the Circuit of the Americas.

Nato took second place at the 88th running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. He ended the campaign in third place in the Drivers’ Championship alongside team-mates Gustavo Menezes and Bruno Senna, finishing on the podium on six occasions in seven entries.[20]

For 2021, Nato joined Realteam Racing to compete in LMP2, partnering Loic Duval and team owner Esteban Garcia.[21]

Formula E

In 2018, Nato was named as Venturi Racing’s Reserve Driver in Formula E.[22] The Frenchman took part in the series’ official Rookie Test in Marrakesh and set the 10th-fastest time.[23]

Venturi re-hired Nato as its Reserve Driver for the 2019-20 season.[24] He again took part in Formula E’s official Rookie Test and took sixth position.[25]

In 2020, Nato was promoted to a full-time race seat with Venturi to replace 11-time Formula One race winner Felipe Massa. He will partner Edoardo Mortara for the 2020-21 season.[26]

Racing record

Career summary

Season Series Team Races Wins Poles F/Laps Podiums Points Position
2010 F4 Eurocup 1.6 Autosport Academy 14 2 0 1 8 131 2nd
2011 Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 R-ace GP 14 0 0 0 2 58 11th
Formula Renault 2.0 NEC 7 0 1 0 1 56 25th
2012 Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 RC Formula 14 1 0 1 4 96 4th
Formula Renault 2.0 Alps 14 4 5 5 8 214 2nd
2013 Formula Renault 3.5 Series DAMS 17 0 1 0 0 33 13th
2014 Formula Renault 3.5 Series 17 2 1 1 2 89 7th
2015 GP2 Series Arden International 21 0 0 1 0 20 18th
2016 GP2 Series Racing Engineering 22 2 1 1 5 136 5th
2017 FIA Formula 2 Championship Pertamina Arden 22 1 0 0 3 91 9th
2018 European Le Mans Series Racing Engineering 6 1 0 2 2 66 3rd
24 Hours of Le Mans – LMP2 SMP Racing 1 0 0 0 0 N/A 10th
WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Tequila Patrón ESM 1 0 0 0 0 20 56th
2018-19 FIA World Endurance Championship – LMP2 TDS Racing 1 0 0 0 0 12 16th
2019 European Le Mans Series G-Drive Racing 2 1 1 0 1 38 11th
Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup Belgian Audi Club Team WRT 3 0 0 0 0 0 NC
24 Hours of Le Mans - LMP2 RLR M Sport/Tower Events 1 0 0 0 0 N/A NC
2019-20 FIA World Endurance Championship Rebellion Racing 7 2 4 1 6 145 3rd
2020 24 Hours of Le Mans 1 0 0 0 1 N/A 2nd
2021 Formula E ROKiT Venturi Racing

Complete Formula Renault 3.5 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 17 Pos Points
2013 DAMS MNZ
1

10
MNZ
2

6
ALC
1

5
ALC
2

20
MON
1

Ret
SPA
1

15
SPA
2

15
MSC
1

13
MSC
2

10
RBR
1

Ret
RBR
2

10
HUN
1

15
HUN
2

11
LEC
1

18
LEC
2

9
CAT
1

Ret
CAT
2

5
13th 33
2014 DAMS MNZ
1

15
MNZ
2

11
ALC
1

11
ALC
2

10
MON
1

1
SPA
1

5
SPA
2

5
MSC
1

17
MSC
2

16
NÜR
1

12
NÜR
2

6
HUN
1

8
HUN
2

1
LEC
1

10
LEC
2

Ret
JER
1

8
JER
2

10
7th 89

Complete GP2 Series results

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

Year Entrant 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 DC Points
2015 Arden International BHR
FEA

Ret
BHR
SPR

16
CAT
FEA

8
CAT
SPR

7
MON
FEA

18
MON
SPR

21
RBR
FEA

20
RBR
SPR

13
SIL
FEA

18
SIL
SPR

23
HUN
FEA

11
HUN
SPR

6
SPA
FEA

Ret
SPA
SPR

20
MNZ
FEA

6
MNZ
SPR

Ret
SOC
FEA

12
SOC
SPR

9
BHR
FEA

24
BHR
SPR

10
YMC
FEA

Ret
YMC
SPR

C
18th 20
2016 Racing Engineering CAT
FEA

1
CAT
SPR

16
MON
FEA

2
MON
SPR

6
BAK
FEA

Ret
BAK
SPR

Ret
RBR
FEA

7
RBR
SPR

12
SIL
FEA

7
SIL
SPR

22†
HUN
FEA

7
HUN
SPR

3
HOC
FEA

Ret
HOC
SPR

18
SPA
FEA

Ret
SPA
SPR

8
MNZ
FEA

5
MNZ
SPR

1
SEP
FEA

3
SEP
SPR

Ret
YMC
FEA

6
YMC
SPR

5
5th 136

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

Complete FIA Formula 2 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 17 18 19 20 21 22 DC Points
2017 Pertamina Arden BHR
FEA

2
BHR
SPR

Ret
CAT
FEA

16
CAT
SPR

13
MON
FEA

Ret
MON
SPR

Ret
BAK
FEA

5
BAK
SPR

1
RBR
FEA

Ret
RBR
SPR

7
SIL
FEA

2
SIL
SPR

6
HUN
FEA

7
HUN
SPR

5
SPA
FEA

8
SPA
SPR

4
MNZ
FEA

13
MNZ
SPR

10
JER
FEA

11
JER
SPR

10
YMC
FEA

13
YMC
SPR

18†
9th 91

Complete European Le Mans Series results

Year Entrant Class Chassis Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 Rank Points
2018 Racing Engineering LMP2 Oreca 07 Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8 LEC
1
MNZ
5
RBR
2
SIL
Ret
SPA
7‡
ALG
5
3rd 66
2019 G-Drive Racing LMP2 Aurus 01 Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8 LEC
4
MNZ
1
CAT SIL SPA ALG 11th 38

Half points awarded as less than 75% of race distance was completed.

Complete 24 Hours of Le Mans results

Year Team Co-Drivers Car Class Laps Pos. Class
Pos.
2018 SMP Racing Viktor Shaytar
Harrison Newey
Dallara P217-Gibson LMP2 345 14th 10th
2019 RLR M Sport/Tower Events John Farano
Arjun Maini
Oreca 07-Gibson LMP2 295 NC NC
2020 Rebellion Racing Gustavo Menezes
Bruno Senna
Rebellion R13-Gibson LMP1 382 2nd 2nd

Complete FIA World Endurance Championship results

Year Entrant Class Chassis Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Rank Points
2018–19 TDS Racing LMP2 Oreca 07 Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8 SPA LMS SIL FUJ SHA SEB SPA
4
LMS 16th 12
2019–20 Rebellion Racing LMP1 Rebellion R13 Gibson GL458 4.5 L V8 SIL
9
FUJ
3
SHA
1
BHR
3
COA
1
SPA
3
LMS
2
BHR 3rd 145

Complete WeatherTech SportsCar Championship results

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

Year Team Class Make Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Pos. Points
2018 Tequila Patrón ESM P Nissan Onroak DPi Nissan VR38DETT 3.8 L Turbo V6 DAY
SEB
LBH MDO DET WGL
MOS ELK LGA PET
11
56th 20

* Season still in progress.

References

  1. "Norman Nato". venturiracing.com. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
  2. "Norman Nato". driverdb.com. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
  3. "F4 Eurocup 1.6 2010". driverdb.com. Driver Database. Retrieved 6 December 2012.
  4. "Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup 2011". driverdb.com. Driver Database. Retrieved 6 December 2012.
  5. "Formula Renault 2.0 NEC 2011". driverdb.com. Driver Database. Retrieved 6 December 2012.
  6. "New boys and old hands raring to go". Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0. Renault Sport. 27 April 2012. Retrieved 6 December 2012.
  7. "Maiden victory for Norman Nato". Renault Sport. World Series by Renault. 2 June 2012. Archived from the original on 13 February 2013. Retrieved 6 December 2012.
  8. "In Barcelona Daniil Kvyat (Koiranen Motorsport) seizes 2012 Formula Renault 2.0 ALPS title". RenaultSport Italia. Fast Lane Promotion. 21 October 2012. Retrieved 6 December 2012.
  9. "Norman Nato with DAMS in 2013, 30/11/2012". DAMS.fr. DAMS. 30 November 2012. Archived from the original on 6 January 2013. Retrieved 6 December 2012.
  10. http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/117494
  11. Barstow, Ollie. "Nato completes Racing Engineering line-up". Crash.net. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
  12. "GP2 Series 2016 standings". www.driverdb.com/. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
  13. Khorounzhiy, Valentin. "GP2 race winner Norman Nato and Sean Gelael join Arden for 2017". Autosport.com. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
  14. "FIA Formula 2 Championship 2017 standings". driverdb.com. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
  15. Klein, Jamie (8 February 2018). "FE points leader Jean-Eric Vergne adds ELMS campaign". Autosport. Motorsport Network. Archived from the original on 9 February 2018. Retrieved 9 February 2018. Racing Engineering, will not participate in Formula 2 this season, is one of the new additions on the entry list with Norman Nato its only confirmed driver in its Oreca 07.
  16. "European Le Mans Series - LMP2 2018 standings". www.driverdb.com/. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
  17. "IMSA WeatherTech Sportscar Championship - Prototype 2018 standings". www.driverdb.com/. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
  18. "European Le Mans Series - LMP2 2019 standings". www.driverdb.com/. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
  19. Kilbey, Stephen. "Rebellion Racing signs Nato for 2019-20". racer.com. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
  20. "LMP World Endurance Drivers Championship 2020 standings". driverdb.com. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
  21. Thukral, Rachit. "Duval makes full-time WEC return alongside Nato with new LMP2 team". Autosport.com. Retrieved 20 January 2021.
  22. Larkam, Lewis. "Nato named Venturi's Formula E reserve driver for 2018/19". Crash.net. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
  23. Kalinauckas, Alex. "Marrakech Formula E: Muller tops rookie test for second year in row". Autosport.com. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
  24. "Venturi retains Norman Nato and Arthur Leclerc as test/reserve drivers". Motorsport Week. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
  25. Khorounzhiy, Valentin. "Cassidy smashes lap record in Formula E rookie test". Motorsport.com. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
  26. Kew, Matt. "Nato to replace ex-F1 driver Massa at Venturi for 2020-21 Formula E season". Autosport.com. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
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