Derek Hill (driver)

Derek John Hill (born March 28 1975) is an American racing driver. He is the son of F1|1961 Formula One World Champion Phil Hill.

Career

Early career

Hill initially raced karts in California and Ferrari sports cars (his father won his F1 title with the team).cite news| title =The Hills are alive...| publisher =grandprix.com| url =http://www.grandprix.com/ns/ns06830.html| date =2002-08-10| accessdate =2007-09-13] Winning three of three races in the championship runoffs in Italy at the Mugello circuit in the Ferrari 355, Hill attracted the attention of the Alfa Romeo Factory DTM team and was invited to test the DTM car at Mugello in November 1995.

Barber Dodge Pro Series

Hill competed in the US-based Barber Dodge Pro Series in 1996, finishing third overall, taking Rookie-of-the-Year honors. In 1997, he took the championship title, winning four races in the process.

American Le Mans Series

Also in 1997, Hill raced the Factory BMW M3 for the Prototype Technology Group in GTS3 Class. He won the GTS3 class at the Daytona 24 Hours and the Sebring 12 Hours as well as scoring two other wins with teammate, Javier Quiros.

Formula Toyota Atlantic

Hill moved up to Formula Toyota Atlantic for 1998, finishing 13th in the championship.

Formula Palmer Audi

Hill moved into European racing in 1999 by taking part in the second season of the Formula Palmer Audi series, organised by former F1 driver Jonathan Palmer. He finished 19th in that year's championship.

Formula 3000

For 2000, Hill competed in six races of the Italian Formula 3000 series, failing to score any points. The following year, he moved up to the more prestigious FIA-backed series with the DAMS team with teammate, Sebastian Bourdais, and remained there in 2002 (a part-season with Durango, replacing Alexander Müller) and 2003 (with Super Nova). In three years, he scored a total of four points and was dropped mid-way through 2003 in favour of Nicolas Kiesa, who had been left without a drive due to the withdrawal of the Super Nova-run Den Blå Avis outfit. [cite news| title =Double points haul for new-look Super Nova| publisher =crash.net| url =http://www.crash.net/news_view~cid~7~id~71794.htm| date =2003-07-20| accessdate =2007-09-13]

Nonetheless, Hill was often the most prominent American driver competing in Europe at this time. [cite news| title =Formula 1 on American television| publisher =grandprix.com| url =http://www.grandprix.com/ns/ns03896.html| date =2001-03-16| accessdate =2007-09-13] During this period he also hired Brigitte Hill – daughter and sister of unrelated namesakes Graham and Damon respectively – as his manager. He is currently involved in historic racing and working as a racing instructor after moving back to the USA to help look after his elderly father, [cite web| first=Jenkins| last=Richard| title=The Formula 3000 drivers — Where are they now?| publisher=oldracingcars.com| url=http://www.oldracingcars.com/drivers/watn/?lastname=Hill&firstname=Derek| accessdate=2007-09-13] who died in August 2008.

Other career highlights

In 1996, Hill competed in the Daytona 24 Hours in a Bugatti EB110 Competizione in the GT1 category, setting fastest lap in the Daytona Test Days. Leading the class in the 7th hour, the car experienced mechanical failure. This was the last time a Bugatti raced professionally in the United States.

In 2002, Hill raced in the Grand Am, Fontana 4 Hour California Grand Prix, in the Saleen S7. He won the category and finished 4th overall.

Racing record

Complete Formula 3000 results

() (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in "italics" indicate fastest lap.)

References

* [http://www.driverdb.com/racingdriver445.html Career statistics] from "driverdb.com". Retrieved on September 13 2007.