Dean Canto

Dean Canto
Nationality	Australian
Born	24 September 1980 (1980-09-24) (age 31) Sydney, Australia
V8 Supercar
Years active	1999–2011
Teams	Owen Parkinson Racing Graphic Skills Racing Dean Canto Racing Glenn Seton Racing Briggs Motor Sport Triple Eight Race Engineering Dick Johnson Racing Garry Rogers Motorsport Ford Performance Racing Rod Nash Racing
Starts	67
Wins	0
Best finish	16th in 2007 V8 Supercar Championship Series
Previous series
1998 1999 2000, 2005, 2008 2001 2010	Australian GT Production Australian Super Touring Development V8 Supercar Nations Cup Aust. Mini Challenge
Championship titles
2000 2001 2005	Development V8 Supercar Sandown 1 Hour Development V8 Supercar

Dean Justin Canto is a multiple-championship winning Australian motor racing driver. Best noted as a V8 Supercar driver, Canto was the inaugural winner of the second-tier V8 Supercar development series in 2000, and the first to become a multiple-champion five years later. Canto has been a regular in the main V8 Supercar series for a variety of teams racing both full-time and as a part-time endurance race co-driver. No longer racing full time, Canto now runs a performance driving school.^[1]

Racing career

After winning a national and two state titles in kart racing, Canto graduated to the Australian GT Production Car Championship and finished the Championship in 11th overall, and second within Class B in which his Subaru Impreza WRX raced. He then backed up this performance with a victory in the 1998 Sandown 1 Hour driving a Maserati Ghibli co-driving with Alfredo Costanzo.^[2] Another second in class placing followed in 1999 driving a Ford Mondeo in the Indepedants class of the Australian Super Touring Championship.

Later that year, Canto made his V8 Supercar début in the Shell Championship Series at Oran Park Raceway then went on to drive in the Queensland 500 and Bathurst Classic as well as racing his Mondeo at the Bathurst 1000.

In 2000, Canto won the inaugural V8 Supercar Development Series^[2] driving a Ford EL Falcon under the banner of Dean Canto Racing. In 2001 Canto drove with Ford Tickford Racing at the Queensland 500 and Bathurst 1000. He achieved a ninth placing in the Queensland 500 and fifth with team-mate Jim Richards in the Bathurst 1000.^[2] Canto added another title with his victory in the Young Guns races at the Honda IndyCar Carnival, a one-make event for emerging young drivers in road specification Honda Integras.

In 2002, Canto became co-driver to Max Wilson at Briggs Motor Sport and in 2003, achieved a full time drive with the same team. Canto was diagnosed with Alopecia Universalis, a very rare medical condition that causes rapid hair loss to the body. Medical advice reassured Canto that the condition would, in no way, affect his overall health. With concerns allayed, Canto then took the time to adjust to the condition, renew his confidence and focus, stronger than ever, on more driving success.^{[citation needed]}

In the later half of the 2003 season, Canto pulled off a number of strong performances and top 10 finishes and was awarded the VIP Top Dog award, however it was not enough for Canto to keep his full-time drive. Canto was retained as the endurance race codriver with team under its new ownership identity of Triple Eight Race Engineering for the 2004 season.

The following year Dick Johnson Racing appointed Canto to drive the Gatorz Racing Development Series Ford Falcon. The season proved a success. Canto won five of the seven rounds, qualified on pole position on six of seven occasions, won nine of the ten races where he started on the front row of the grid and won ten races in total. Canto's times were so fast that he could qualify in the top 20 (even though the Development cars had a 100 kg lead weight disadvantage). He set new Development Series lap records at Adelaide and Wakefield Park and new qualifying lap records at the Clipsal 500 and Queensland rounds. At the season's conclusion he became the first driver ever to win two Development Series Championships.^[3]

Canto proved once again his worth as an endurance driver teaming up with Glenn Seton at the endurance rounds in a DJR Falcon. The pair finished ninth at Bathurst even with an engine misfire.

Canto's performance in 2005 caught the attention of Garry Rogers Motorsport team Principal Garry Rogers. He asked Canto to fill the vacant seat of the #34 Valvoline Repco Cummins VZ Commodore for the Indy 300 and Tasmanian rounds of the V8 Supercar Championship Series. The car finished well and both team and driver realised that a longer term relationship would be beneficial for team and driver. Canto signed a multi year deal with GRM as the team's lead driver for their assault on the 2006 V8 Supercar Championship Series.

The 2006 series saw Canto achieve his first win in the main category, the reverse grid race at Barbagallo Raceway. After a lack lustre 2007 season Canto's GRM contract was cut leaving Canto without a full time drive in 2008.^[4] Canto returned to the Development series with Howard Racing but just missed out on his third title, finishing second to Steve Owen.^[5]

Since then Canto has competed as an endurance co-driver with Ford Performance Racing or its satellite teams from 2008–2010. Canto is currently competing full time in the Australian Mini Challenge^[6] sponsored by his own business Stunt Driving School which he runs with fellow part-time V8 Supercar driver, Luke Youlden.^[7]

Career results

Season	Series	Position	Car	Team
1998	Australian GT Production Car Championship	11th	Subaru Impreza WRX
1999	Australian Super Touring Championship	7th	Ford Mondeo	Knight Racing
2000	V8 Supercar Development Series	1st	Ford EL Falcon	Dean Canto Racing
2001	Shell Championship Series	32nd	Ford AU Falcon	RPM International Racing Glenn Seton Racing
2002	V8 Supercar Championship Series	44th	Ford AU Falcon	Briggs Motor Sport
2003	V8 Supercar Championship Series	24th	Ford BA Falcon	Team Betta Electrical
2005	V8 Supercar Championship Series	35th	Ford BA Falcon Holden VZ Commodore	Dick Johnson Racing Garry Rogers Motorsport
2005	V8 Supercar Development Series	1st	Ford BA Falcon	Dick Johnson Racing
2006	V8 Supercar Championship Series	17th	Holden VZ Commodore	Garry Rogers Motorsport
2007	V8 Supercar Championship Series	16th	Holden VE Commodore	Garry Rogers Motorsport
2008	V8 Supercar Development Series	2nd	Ford BA Falcon	Howard Racing
2008	V8 Supercar Championship Series	38th	Ford BF Falcon	Ford Performance Racing
2009	V8 Supercar Championship Series	52nd	Ford FG Falcon	Ford Performance Racing
2010	V8 Supercar Championship Series	41st	Ford FG Falcon	Rod Nash Racing
2010	Australian Mini Challenge	13th	Mini John Cooper Works Challenge

Sporting positions
Preceded by inaugural	Winner of the V8 Supercar Development Series 2000	Succeeded by Simon Wills
Preceded by Andrew Jones	Winner of the V8 Supercar Development Series 2005	Succeeded by Adam Macrow

References

1. ^ "Our Drivers". stuntdrivingschool.com.au. http://www.stuntdrivingschool.com.au/meetourdrivers.html. 
2. ^ ^{a b c} "VESRIX Driver Profile: Dean Canto". conrod.com.au. http://www.conrod.com.au/stats/drprof.cgi?id=204. 
3. ^ "Fujitsu Series Driver Points: Championship Points 2005". The official website of the Australian V8 Supercar Championship Series. http://www.v8supercars.com.au/tabid/86/series/2/season/3/entity/driver/default.aspx. 
4. ^ Statement regarding Dean Canto and the 2008 series Dean Canto Racing retrieved on 12 January 2008
5. ^ "Fujitsu Series Driver Points: Championship Points 2008". The official website of the Australian V8 Supercar Championship Series. http://www.v8supercars.com.au/tabid/86/series/2/season/4/entity/driver/default.aspx. 
6. ^ "Latest from my blog". Official site of Dean Canto. http://www.canto.com.au/blog/index.php?entry=entry100504-155300. 
7. ^ "Our Drivers". stuntdrivingschool.com.au. http://www.stuntdrivingschool.com.au/meetourdrivers.html. 

Persondata
Name	Canto, Dean
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	24 September 1980
Place of birth	Sydney, Australia
Date of death
Place of death