Oliver Webb

Oliver Webb
Nationality	British
Born	March 20, 1991 (1991-03-20) (age 20) Manchester (United Kingdom)
2011 British Formula Three
Debut season	2010
Current team	Fortec Motorsport
Car no.	6
Starts	3
Wins	0
Poles	0
Fastest laps	0
Previous series
2009 2008–09 2008 2008 2007–08 2007 2005 2005–06	Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 Formula Renault 2.0 UK FR2.0 Portugal Winter Series Formula Renault 2.0 NEC FR2.0 UK Winter Series Formula BMW UK T Cars Autumn Trophy T Cars
Awards
2006	Formula BMW Scholarship

Oliver "Oli" Webb (born March 20, 1991 in Manchester) is a British auto racing driver.

Career

Karting

Webb began his career in karting at the age of nine, progressing up through the ranks in the Greater Manchester karting scene with the help of management from British Touring Car Championship driver Michael Bentwood.^[1] With more experience, Webb started to win races at the Three Sisters Karting Circuit in Wigan, eventually winning that circuit's Mini Max Championship in 2004. He finished fourth in the Junior Max Championship in 2005, combining that with a season in T Cars.

T Cars

Webb moved into T Cars with Graham Hathaway Engineering in 2005,^[2] combining the campaign with schoolwork and his karting career. He continued into the 2005 Autumn Trophy, finishing second to Adrian Quaife-Hobbs.^[3] He finished third in the 2006 main series,^[3] winning three races, a non-championship double-header at Brands Hatch,^[4] and achieved a record seven fastest laps in a season.^[1]

Formula BMW

At the conclusion of the 2006 season, Bentwood entered Webb into the Formula BMW Scholarship Programme where drivers had the opportunity to be awarded with a financial contribution towards their racing budget, and an education and coaching programme from BMW Motorsport. Webb was one of the six chosen drivers for the scholarship, moving into Formula BMW UK in 2007. Webb drove for Carlin Motorsport, alongside Henry Surtees. Webb finished ninth in the championship, despite not finishing on the podium in any of the twenty races.^[3]

Formula Renault

Webb competing during the 2008 Formula Renault UK season at Oulton Park.

He moved to the British Formula Renault Championship to compete in the Winter Series in 2007. Competing for Fortec Motorsport, Webb finished fifteenth in the four-race series, with a best race result of eleventh at Croft.^[5] Webb continued his progression up the British motorsport ladder, by moving into the main British series for the 2008 season. Staying with Fortec, Webb finished every single race in the points en route to eighth in the overall championship.^[3] His best result was fourth place at round seventeen, at Silverstone.^[6] He finished third in the Graduates Cup for first-year drivers, behind Dean Stoneman and James Calado.

Webb competing during the 2009 Formula Renault UK season at Oulton Park.

Webb competed in three other Formula Renault series during the season, competing in the Northern European Cup, and the British and Portuguese Winter Series championships. In the NEC, he recorded a fourth place finish at Spa, and added a twelfth at Zolder to wind up 25th in the standings.^[7] In the UK Winter Series, Webb finished fourth overall in the four-race series, finishing on the podium at Rockingham.^[8] A retirement in the second race cost him a top-three championship spot.^[3] Finally, he finished as runner-up to team-mate Calado in the Portuguese Winter Series, with the two taking all four victories, Calado with three and Webb with one.

In 2009, Webb returned for a second season in Formula Renault UK.^[3] Consistency was the key for Webb, as he finished all but one race of the season, winning two races at Brands Hatch and at Silverstone. Webb was never outside the top-five in the championship standings, leading the championship after fourteen races before falling behind Dean Smith and Calado later in the season. Webb achieved ten podiums over the course of the season.^[3] He also made his first foray into the Eurocup, taking part in the rounds in Barcelona and at Le Mans.

Formula Three

For the 2010 season, Webb continued to drive for Fortec, but stepped up to compete in the British Formula Three Championship.^[9][10] Webb finished third in the championship with three wins, thirteen podium finishes, and four fastest laps.

Formula Renault 3.5

For 2011 Webb signed with the Spanish Pons Racing team to race in Formula Renault 3.5. Through seven rounds of the championship Webb sits 23rd in the championship, only finishing in the points twice.

Indy Lights

Webb made his debut in the American Firestone Indy Lights series at the 2011 double-header at Edmonton for Jensen MotorSport. Webb finished on the podium in third in the first attrition-filled race and finished fifth in the second. He will rejoin the team for the race in Baltimore and make his oval racing debut at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway season finale.^[11]

Racing record

Career summary

Season	Series	Team	Races	Wins	Poles	F/Laps	Podiums	Points	Position
2005	T Cars	Graham Hathaway Engineering	?	?	?	?	?	?	?
	T Cars Autumn Trophy		?	?	?	?	?	117	2nd
2006	T Cars	Graham Hathaway Engineering	20	3	3	?	11	133	3rd
2007	Formula BMW UK	Carlin Motorsport	18	0	0	0	0	406	9th
	British Formula Renault 2.0 Winter Series	Fortec Motorsport	4	0	0	0	0	29	15th
2008	British Formula Renault 2.0	Fortec Motorsport	20	0	0	0	0	267†	8th
	Formula Renault 2.0 NEC		4	0	0	0	0	25	27th
	British Formula Renault 2.0 Winter Series		4	0	0	0	0	64	4th
	Portuguese Formula Renault 2.0 Winter Series		4	1	1	0	1	28	2nd
2009	British Formula Renault 2.0	Fortec Motorsport	20	2	0	2	10	419†	3rd
	Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup		4	0	0	0	0	0	29th
2010	British Formula Three Championship	Fortec Motorsport	30	3	4	4	14	250	3rd

• * Season in progress. † - After dropped scores.

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "Biography". Oliver Webb (Electric Studio). http://www.oliwebbracing.com/biography. Retrieved 2009-12-15. 
2. ^ "Second place keeps Williams' championship hopes alive". James Williams (MSO). 2005-08-22. http://www.jameswilliamsracing.co.uk/SECOND_PLACE_KEEPS_WILLIAMS_CHAMPIONSHIP_HOPES_ALIVE. Retrieved 2009-12-15. "Starting race two from fourth on the grid, James dropped down at the start to sixth but had got back up to fourth before a collision on lap seven between Barry Russell and Oliver Webb brought out the red flag." 
3. ^ ^{a b c d e f g} http://www.driverdb.com/drivers/9230/career/ Career statistics at Driver Database
4. ^ "MSVR's inaugural race meeting runs without a hitch". MotorSport Vision (Brands Hatch). 2006-03-22. http://www.motorsportvision.co.uk/brands-hatch/news/article.asp?NewsID=1428. Retrieved 2009-12-15. 
5. ^ "2007 Formula Renault UK with Michelin Winter Cup; Race 4 - CLASSIFICATION" (Portable Document Format). tsl-timing.com (Timing Solutions Ltd.): p. 29. 2007-11-10. http://www.tsl-timing.com/barc/2007/74521.pdf. Retrieved 2009-12-15. 
6. ^ "2008 Formula Renault UK Championship with Michelin; Round 17 - CLASSIFICATION". tsl-timing.com (Timing Solutions Ltd.). 2008-08-31. http://www.tsl-timing.com/?loc=major&season=2008&series=BTCC&event=races&source=toca2006&eventid=83503&table=83503rc1frn&tabletype=gif. Retrieved 2009-12-15. 
7. ^ "Tabelle Northern European Cup Formula Renault 2.0 2008". renault-sport.de (Renault Sport). http://www.renault-sport.de/index.php?id=557. Retrieved 2009-12-15. 
8. ^ "2008 Formula Renault UK with Michelin Winter Cup; Race 2 - CLASSIFICATION" (Portable Document Format). tsl-timing.com (Timing Solutions Ltd.): p. 24. 2008-11-08. http://www.tsl-timing.com/barc/2008/84522.pdf. Retrieved 2009-12-15. 
9. ^ "Webb signs to Fortec for 2010 Formula 3 campaign". fota.co.uk (British Formula Three Championship). 2009-11-30. http://www.fota.co.uk/news.php?action=showArticle&params%5Bid%5D=1070. Retrieved 2009-12-13. 
10. ^ Simpson, Andrew (2009-12-03). "Knutsford teenager Oliver Webb to race in British F3 championship". Knutsford Guardian (Newsquest Media Group). http://www.knutsfordguardian.co.uk/sport/4776257.Motorsport__Delight_for_Oli_at_joining_F3/. Retrieved 2009-12-15. 
11. ^ Webb returns to Jensen for BGP, Vegas, IndyCar, August 29, 2011, Retrieved 2011-08-29

External links

• Official website
• Career statistics at Driver Database

Persondata
Name	Webb, Oliver
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	March 20, 1991
Place of birth	Manchester (United Kingdom)
Date of death
Place of death