Giancarlo Fisichella

Interesting facts

Born in Rome, Fisichella showed early promise (1994 Italian F3 title) before debuting in F1 with Minardi in 1996. His maiden win came surprisingly late, at the 2003 Brazilian Grand Prix, only confirmed after five days of deliberation and court proceedings over a timekeeping error that had initially classified him second - making him the only F1 driver to win a race without ever standing on top of the podium. From 2005 to 2007 he partnered Fernando Alonso at Renault, winning the 2005 season-opening Australian Grand Prix and the 2006 Malaysian Grand Prix from pole. His most celebrated moment came in 2009 at Force India: he took the team's first-ever pole position at the Belgian Grand Prix, then finished second behind Räikkönen for the team's maiden podium - a Cinderella story for a previously winless outfit. Days later his lifelong dream came true when Ferrari signed him to replace the injured Felipe Massa for the final five races, letting him race for the Scuderia at his home Italian Grand Prix. Giancarlo Fisichella raced in Formula 1 from 1996 to 2009, across 14 seasons as an Italian driver. He scored a total of 275 championship points over his career.