Roberto Merhi

Roberto Merhi Muntan (born 22 March 1991) is a Spanish racing driver who drove in Formula One for the Manor Marussia F1 Team during the 2015 season. Merhi has also raced in the Formula Renault 3.5 Series for Pons Racing, and won the Formula 3 Euro Series championship, while driving for Prema Powerteam. In 2018, he drove for MP Motorsport and Campos Vexatec Racing in the FIA Formula 2 Championship.

Roberto Merhi
BornRoberto Merhi Muntan
(1991-03-22) 22 March 1991
Castellón, Spain
Formula One World Championship career
Nationality Spanish
Active years2015
TeamsMarussia
Car number98
Entries14 (13 starts)
Championships0
Wins0
Podiums0
Career points0
Pole positions0
Fastest laps0
First entry2015 Australian Grand Prix
Last entry2015 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
Previous series
201415
2014
201213
200911
2009
2008
200708
2007–08
200607
Formula Renault 3.5 Series
Stock Car Brasil
DTM
Formula 3 Euro Series
British Formula 3
Formula Renault 2.0 WEC
Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup
Spanish Formula Three
Formula Renault 2.0 Italia
Championship titles
2011Formula 3 Euro Series

Career

Merhi competing at the opening round of the 2009 Formula 3 Euro Series at Hockenheim.

Merhi was born in Castellón de la Plana, Spain to Brazilian parents of Lebanese descent.[1]

Formula Renault

In 2007, Merhi mainly competed in Italian Formula Renault and the Formula Renault Eurocup, finishing 4th and 18th respectively. In 2008 he competed in the West European Series, where he was runner-up, and he finished 4th in the Eurocup. He also did five races in the Spanish Formula Three Championship.[2]

Formula Three

Merhi made the full-time step-up to Formula Three in 2009 when he was signed by Manor Motorsport for their Formula 3 Euro Series campaign, finishing seventh, with four podiums. He moved to Mücke Motorsport for the 2010 season, improving on his debut season by finishing fifth in the standings, with four podiums, including his maiden win at Hockenheim.[3] 2011 saw another change in teams for Merhi, this time joining Prema Powerteam. Merhi subsequently won the championship, getting 20 top-3 finishes, including 11 wins.

DTM

Merhi at Brands Hatch during the 2012 DTM season.

On 3 April 2012, Mercedes announced the revival of the Mercedes-Benz Junior Team that has guided several notable drivers in their racing careers like Heinz-Harald Frentzen, Karl Wendlinger and Michael Schumacher. With that announcement came the news that Roberto Merhi, together with the reigning Formula Renault 3.5 Series champion Robert Wickens and DTM-sophomore Christian Vietoris, would become a part of the new Junior Team and that the three of them would drive for the Junior Team in the 2012 DTM season. In addition to that, 7-time F1 World Champion Michael Schumacher will be involved with the three drivers by serving as a mentor. Merhi's entry into the DTM meant that he would be one of two Spaniards in the drivers field, together with Miguel Molina.[4]

Merhi scored no points in 2012 for Persson Motorsport. In his second season, he switched to HWA Team. He collected a 7th place at the Norisring and two 10th finishes. In the final race of the season he recorded his best finish of 2nd to end the season 15th in the standings.

Formula Renault 3.5 Series

Merhi moved to Formula Renault 3.5 Series in 2014 with Zeta Corse.[5] He finished third in the championship.

Merhi switched to Pons Racing for the 2015 season. He competed in the first round at Aragon, but was replaced by Alex Fontana so as to focus on his commitments with Marussia during the second round in Monaco, which had their races on the same date. He rejoined the team following the event.

In round five in Austria, Merhi was deemed at fault for a massive collision with Nicholas Latifi when Merhi slowed at the finish line. He was disqualified from the race and banned from the next two events, and has since not returned to the series.

Formula One

Merhi competing in the 2015 Belgian Grand Prix.

Caterham (2014)

Merhi made his first appearance in a Formula One car for the Caterham team during practice for the 2014 Italian Grand Prix.[6] It is believed that he was being evaluated for a race seat in place of Kamui Kobayashi, but had yet to qualify for an FIA Super Licence.[7]

Marussia (2015)

On 9 March 2015, the Manor Marussia team announced that Merhi would drive in the Australian Grand Prix, alongside Britain's Will Stevens.[8] However, Marussia did not compete in Australia due to a technical problem. In the Malaysian Grand Prix Merhi competed in his first Formula One race despite problems to his teammate Stevens' car. Merhi failed to set a lap time within 107% of the fastest time in Q1, but the race stewards allowed Merhi to start the race. Merhi finished in 15th place, 3 laps down on race winner Sebastian Vettel. In the Chinese Grand Prix, Merhi finished in 16th place behind his teammate Stevens. In Bahrain and Spain Merhi also finished behind Stevens. However, in the Monaco Grand Prix Merhi finished in 16th ahead of Stevens. In the Canadian Grand Prix, Merhi qualified ahead of Stevens and would start in 16th thanks to penalties to Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen. As well as that Jenson Button failed to set a lap time in qualifying because of an engine issue. In the race, Merhi was a minute ahead of Stevens but on lap 56, he was forced to retire due to a drive-shaft problem. It was the first time that Merhi failed to finish a Formula One race that he started, but he remained ahead of Stevens in the Drivers' Championship. In Austria, Merhi finished in 14th position, 3 laps behind race winner Nico Rosberg. Merhi was dropped in favour of Alexander Rossi for five of the last seven Grands Prix of 2015, the exceptions being Russia and Abu Dhabi,[9] before taking a subsequent demotion to Formula E in 2017 and Formula 2 in 2018.

Formula E

In April 2017, it was announced Merhi would be joining the series for the fourth season.[10] However, he did not sign with any team.

FIA Formula 2 Championship

Merhi replaced Stefano Coletti at Campos Racing for the Barcelona round of the championship.[11]

He scored a full-time drive for the 2018 Formula 2 season with MP Motorsport. Before the Belgian round, he left the team and was replaced by their GP3 Series driver Dorian Boccolacci. He then joined Campos for the final two rounds of the season, replacing Roy Nissany.

Racing career

Career summary

Season Series Team Races Wins Poles F/Laps Podiums Points Position
2006 Formula Renault 2.0 Italy Winter Series It Loox Racing 4 0 0 0 3 92 4th
Spanish Formula 3 Championship Porfesa Competición 2 0 0 0 0 0 NC
2007 Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 Jenzer Motorsport 14 0 0 0 0 16 18th
Formula Renault 2.0 Italy 14 1 0 0 2 232 4th
Formula Renault 2.0 Italy Winter Series BVM Minardi 2 0 0 0 1 38 10th
Spanish Formula 3 Championship Novo 2 0 0 0 0 4 17th
Spanish GT Championship – GTA Santiago Garcia 2 0 0 0 1 6 19th
2008 Formula Renault 2.0 WEC Epsilon Euskadi 15 3 5 6 13 184 2nd
Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 14 2 2 1 7 108 4th
Macau Grand Prix Hitech Racing 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC
Masters of Formula 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC
Spanish Formula 3 Championship R. Llusia Racing 5 2 1 2 3 36 13th
2009 Formula 3 Euro Series Manor Motorsport 20 0 0 0 4 42 7th
Macau Grand Prix 1 0 0 0 0 0 17th
British Formula 3 Championship 2 0 0 0 0 0 NC
Masters of Formula 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 10th
2010 Formula 3 Euro Series Mücke Motorsport 18 1 0 0 4 56 5th
GP3 Series ATECH CRS GP 12 0 0 1 3 26 6th
Masters of Formula 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 12th
Macau Grand Prix Prema Powerteam 1 0 0 0 0 0 8th
2011 Formula 3 Euro Series Prema Powerteam 27 11 8 10 20 406 1st
FIA Formula 3 International Trophy 8 4 3 5 6 133 1st
Macau Grand Prix 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC
Masters of Formula 3 Mücke Motorsport 1 0 1 0 0 0 NC
2012 Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters Persson Motorsport 10 0 0 1 0 0 NC
2013 Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters HWA Team 10 0 0 0 1 26 15th
2014 Formula Renault 3.5 Series Zeta Corse 17 3 3 1 7 183 3rd
British Formula 3 Championship Hanier Racing 2 2 2 2 2 39 11th
Formula One Caterham F1 Team Test driver
Macau Grand Prix W66.com Double R Racing 1 0 0 0 0 0 4th
Stock Car Brasil Hanier Racing 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC†
2015 Formula One Manor Marussia F1 Team 14 0 0 0 0 0 19th
Formula Renault 3.5 Series Pons Racing 8 0 0 0 1 26 14th
2016 FIA World Endurance Championship – LMP2 Manor 7 0 0 1 1 35 14th
24 Hours of Le Mans – LMP2 1 0 0 1 0 N/A DNF
2017 FIA Formula 2 Championship Campos Racing 2 0 0 0 0 16 18th
Rapax 8 0 0 0 0
FIA World Endurance Championship – LMP2 CEFC Manor TRS Racing 1 0 0 0 0 2 29th
2018 FIA Formula 2 Championship MP Motorsport 16 0 0 0 1 61 12th
Campos Vexatec Racing 4 0 0 0 1
2019-20 Asian Le Mans Series Eurasia Motorsport 4 0 1 2 3 65 3rd
FIA World Endurance Championship – LMP2 2 0 0 0 0 0 NC†
2020 24 Hours of Le Mans – LMP2 Eurasia Motorsport 1 0 0 0 0 N/A 14th

As Merhi was a guest driver, he was ineligible for championship points.

Complete Formula 3 Euro Series results

(key)

Year Entrant Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 DC Points
2009 Manor Motorsport Mercedes HOC
1

2
HOC
2

10
LAU
1

6
LAU
2

2
NOR
1

5
NOR
2

8
ZAN
1

18
ZAN
2

11
OSC
1

3
OSC
2

5
NÜR
1

18
NÜR
2

Ret
BRH
1

9
BRH
2

11
CAT
1

9
CAT
2

Ret
DIJ
1

5
DIJ
2

2
HOC
1

4
HOC
2

13
7th 42
2010 Mücke Motorsport Mercedes LEC
1

5
LEC
2

4
HOC
1

4
HOC
2

1
VAL
1

4
VAL
2

Ret
NOR
1

5
NOR
2

11
NÜR
1

3
NÜR
2

5
ZAN
1

5
ZAN
2

3
BRH
1

11
BRH
2

10
OSC
1

5
OSC
2

9
HOC
1

5
HOC
2

2
5th 56
2011 Prema Powerteam Mercedes LEC
1

4
LEC
2

1
LEC
3

2
HOC
1

1
HOC
2

4
HOC
3

1
ZAN
1

3
ZAN
2

4
ZAN
3

4
RBR
1

1
RBR
2

1
RBR
3

Ret
NOR
1

4
NOR
2

2
NOR
3

2
NÜR
1

1
NÜR
2

1
NÜR
3

2
SIL
1

1
SIL
2

3
SIL
3

2
VAL
1

3
VAL
2

5
VAL
3

1
HOC
1

1
HOC
2

2
HOC
3

1
1st 406

Complete GP3 Series results

(key) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Entrant 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 DC Points
2010 ATECH CRS GP CAT
FEA
CAT
SPR
IST
FEA
IST
SPR
VAL
FEA

3
VAL
SPR

2
SIL
FEA

Ret
SIL
SPR

19
HOC
FEA

16
HOC
SPR

Ret
HUN
FEA

Ret
HUN
SPR

22
SPA
FEA

2
SPA
SPR

22
MNZ
FEA

6
MNZ
SPR

4
6th 26

Complete Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters results

(key) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Team Car 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Pos Points
2012 Persson Motorsport DTM AMG Mercedes C-Coupé HOC
18
LAU
16
BRH
17
SPL
12
NOR
13
NÜR
Ret
ZAN
11
OSC
14
VAL
Ret
HOC
15
NC 0
2013 HWA Team DTM AMG Mercedes C-Coupé HOC
10
BRH
16
SPL
20
LAU
10
NOR
7
MSC
14
NÜR
19
OSC
14
ZAN
Ret
HOC
2
15th 26

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
2014 Zeta Corse MNZ
1

2
MNZ
2

9
ALC
1

6
ALC
2

6
MON
1

9
SPA
1

Ret
SPA
2

13
MSC
1

4
MSC
2

1
NÜR
1

2
NÜR
2

1
HUN
1

1
HUN
2

2
LEC
1

5
LEC
2

4
JER
1

Ret
JER
2

Ret
3rd 183
2015 Pons Racing ALC
1

Ret
ALC
2

9
MON
1
SPA
1

Ret
SPA
2

Ret
HUN
1

2
HUN
2

7
RBR
1

DSQ
RBR
2

EX
SIL
1
SIL
2
NÜR
1
NÜR
2
BUG
1
BUG
2
JER
1
JER
2
14th 26

Complete Formula One results

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

Year Entrant Chassis Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 WDC Points
2014 Caterham F1 Team Caterham CT05 Renault Energy F12014 1.6 V6 t AUS MAL BHR CHN ESP MON CAN AUT GBR GER HUN BEL ITA
TD
SIN JPN
TD
RUS
TD
USA BRA ABU    
2015 Manor Marussia F1 Team Marussia MR03B Ferrari 059/3 1.6 V6 t AUS
DNP
MAL
15
CHN
16
BHR
17
ESP
18
MON
16
CAN
Ret
AUT
14
GBR
12
HUN
15
BEL
15
ITA
16
SIN JPN RUS
13
USA MEX BRA ABU
19
19th 0

Complete FIA World Endurance Championship results

Year Entrant Class Car Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Rank Points
2016 Manor LMP2 Oreca 05 Nissan VK45DE 4.5 L V8 SIL
6
SPA
3
LMS
Ret
NÜR
Ret
MEX COA
Ret
FUJ
7
SHA BHR
7
14th 35
2017 CEFC Manor TRS Racing LMP2 Oreca 07 Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8 SIL SPA LMS NÜR
9
MEX COA FUJ SHA BHR 29th 2
2019–20 Eurasia Motorsport LMP2 Ligier JS P217 Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8 SIL FUJ SHA BHR COA SPA
8
LMS
14
BHR NC† 0†

Complete 24 Hours of Le Mans results

Year Team Co-Drivers Car Class Laps Pos. Class
Pos.
2016 Manor Tor Graves
Matt Rao
Oreca 05-Nissan LMP2 283 DNF DNF
2020 Eurasia Motorsport Nick Foster
Nobuya Yamanaka
Ligier JS P217-Gibson LMP2 351 18th 14th

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 23 24 DC Points
2017 Campos Racing BHR
FEA
BHR
SPR
CAT
FEA

19†
CAT
SPR

12
MON
FEA
MON
SPR
BAK
FEA
BAK
SPR
RBR
FEA
RBR
SPR
SIL
FEA
SIL
SPR
HUN
FEA
HUN
SPR
18th 16
Rapax SPA
FEA

7
SPA
SPR

6
MNZ
FEA

11
MNZ
SPR

5
JER
FEA
JER
SPR
YMC
FEA

16
YMC
SPR

10
2018 MP Motorsport BHR
FEA

DNS
BHR
SPR

11
BAK
FEA

8
BAK
SPR

7
CAT
FEA

13
CAT
SPR

Ret
MON
FEA

3
MON
SPR

7
LEC
FEA

DSQ
LEC
SPR

15
RBR
FEA

4
RBR
SPR

16
SIL
FEA

11
SIL
SPR

9
HUN
FEA

11
HUN
SPR

5
SPA
FEA
SPA
SPR
MNZ
FEA
MNZ
SPR
12th 61
Campos Vexatec Racing SOC
FEA

9
SOC
SPR

6
YMC
FEA

8
YMC
SPR

3

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

References

  1. Rodríguez, Jaime (14 March 2015). "Un volante a dos millones" [A flyer to two million]. El Mundo (in Spanish). Unidad Editorial. Retrieved 16 March 2015.
  2. http://www.driverdb.com/drivers/5067/career/ Roberto Merhi career statistics at Driver Database
  3. Beer, Matt (9 December 2009). "Merhi switches to Mucke for 2010". autosport.com. Haymarket Publications. Archived from the original on 24 December 2009. Retrieved 27 January 2010.
  4. "Mercedes-Benz Junior Team: Back for 2012!". Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters. Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix Limited. 3 April 2012. Retrieved 3 April 2012.
  5. Valeev, Elmir (4 April 2014). "WSR: Мери и Мавланов — пилоты российской Zeta Corse" [WSR: Merhi and Mavlanov — drivers of the Russian Zeta Corse] (in Russian). F1News.ru. Retrieved 4 April 2014.
  6. "Caterham confirms Kobayashi's Monza F1 return and Merhi's FP1 run". autosport.com. Haymarket Publishing. 4 September 2014. Retrieved 5 September 2014.
  7. Noble, Jonathan; Beer, Matt (4 September 2014). "F1 newcomer Roberto Merhi waiting on FIA superlicence decision". autosport.com. Haymarket Publishing. Retrieved 5 September 2014.
  8. "Roberto Merhi to race for Manor F1 team in Australian Grand Prix". autosport.com. Autosport. 10 March 2015. Retrieved 10 March 2015.
  9. Benson, Andrew (16 September 2015). "Singapore GP: Surreal to be making F1 debut – Alexander Rossi". BBC Sport. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
  10. "Roberto Merhi competirá en la Fórmula E a partir de septiembre (Roberto Merhi will compete in Formula E starting in September)". 4 April 2017. Retrieved 9 April 2017.
  11. "Ex-F1 driver Roberti Merhi to replace Stefano Coletti at Campos in F2". 15 May 2017.
Sporting positions
Preceded by
Edoardo Mortara
Formula 3 Euro Series
Champion

2011
Succeeded by
Daniel Juncadella
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