Niall Quinn (racing driver)
Encyclopedia
Niall Quinn is an Irish motor racing driver, currently living in County Meath
, Ireland.
2000- 1st place in Irish Karting Championship in Cadet
2002- 3rd place in Irish Karting Championship in Junior Intercontinental "A" (JICA
)
2003- 1st place in Irish Karting Championship in Junior Intercontinental "A" (JICA)
2004- 5th place in Irish Karting Championship in Formula A
2005- 1st place in Irish Karting Championship in Formula A
Niall Quinn is the only driver in Irish karting history to win Cadet, JICA and Formula "A", the three premier categories in Irish Karting.
At the end of 2005 Quinn won a worldwide driver shoot-out to win a contract to drive in the Red BullJunior team.
, he was the early leader in the Rookie Cup Championship, for first-time car racers. Quinn finished 3rd in the Rookie Cup Standings, and an 11th position and 5th place in the Formula BMW World Finals (the end of year world championship) with Holzer RennSport was the highlight of the year.
Quinn was dropped by Red Bull and came 3rd in the 2006 Motorsport Ireland Young Racing Driver of the year awards.
Niall was named Motorsport Ireland Young Racing Driver of the Year in November 2007. As part of this award he won the chance to drive for A1GP Team Ireland in the Australian race at Eastern Creek, Sydney in February 2008.
He drove as Rookie driver for Team Ireland in A1GP World Cup of Motorsport, season 3, for the Australian, South African, Mexican, Chinese and Great British rounds of the series. He was signed again signed up for season 4 as rookie driver.
He competed in early rounds of the British Formula Three series in the National class with Team Loctite in a Dallara Mugen-Honda. Later in the season he raced in the German F3 championship for one round at Oschersleben with Van Amersfoort Racing in a Dallara Volkswagen.
Niall won the Formula Palmer Audi Autumn Trophy, with two wins and 4 podiums.
Despite the success in 2008, Quinn did not race full-time in 2009, only testing for A1 Team Ireland
and appearing in a few exhibition events such as the Goodwood Festival of Speed
and the Dublin Grand Prix.
He has signed on with Team PBIR to race in the Firestone Indy Lights series beginning with the inaugural race at Barber Motorsports Park
in April 2010.
County Meath
County Meath is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Mid-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the ancient Kingdom of Mide . Meath County Council is the local authority for the county...
, Ireland.
Early career
1999- 3rd place in Irish Karting Championship in CadetCadet
A cadet is a trainee to become an officer in the military, often a person who is a junior trainee. The term comes from the term "cadet" for younger sons of a noble family.- Military context :...
2000- 1st place in Irish Karting Championship in Cadet
2002- 3rd place in Irish Karting Championship in Junior Intercontinental "A" (JICA
JICA
KF3 is a kart racing class for top drivers aged 12 to 15 .This class used to be called Junior Intercontinental A and has changed since January 2007 when CIK-FIA decided to replace the 100 cc air-cooled two-stroke engines with 125 cc Touch-and-Go water-cooled two-stroke...
)
2003- 1st place in Irish Karting Championship in Junior Intercontinental "A" (JICA)
2004- 5th place in Irish Karting Championship in Formula A
2005- 1st place in Irish Karting Championship in Formula A
Niall Quinn is the only driver in Irish karting history to win Cadet, JICA and Formula "A", the three premier categories in Irish Karting.
At the end of 2005 Quinn won a worldwide driver shoot-out to win a contract to drive in the Red BullJunior team.
2006
In 2006 Quinn raced in the Formula BMW UK Championship as a Red Bull Junior driver. With Carlin MotorsportCarlin Motorsport
Carlin, formerly Carlin Motorsport, is a motor racing team based in the United Kingdom. It competes in four championships — British Formula Three Championship, GP3 Series, World Series by Renault and GP2 Series.-History:...
, he was the early leader in the Rookie Cup Championship, for first-time car racers. Quinn finished 3rd in the Rookie Cup Standings, and an 11th position and 5th place in the Formula BMW World Finals (the end of year world championship) with Holzer RennSport was the highlight of the year.
Quinn was dropped by Red Bull and came 3rd in the 2006 Motorsport Ireland Young Racing Driver of the year awards.
2007
In 2007 Quinn raced in the Formula BMW Germany Series with Holzer RennSport. He finished 7th in the standings, and scored two podium finishes.Niall was named Motorsport Ireland Young Racing Driver of the Year in November 2007. As part of this award he won the chance to drive for A1GP Team Ireland in the Australian race at Eastern Creek, Sydney in February 2008.
2008-2010
In January 2008 Quinn competed in four rounds of the Asian Formula Three series in Batangas, Philippines with Aran Racing. On his Formula Three debut he scored two second place finishes.He drove as Rookie driver for Team Ireland in A1GP World Cup of Motorsport, season 3, for the Australian, South African, Mexican, Chinese and Great British rounds of the series. He was signed again signed up for season 4 as rookie driver.
He competed in early rounds of the British Formula Three series in the National class with Team Loctite in a Dallara Mugen-Honda. Later in the season he raced in the German F3 championship for one round at Oschersleben with Van Amersfoort Racing in a Dallara Volkswagen.
Niall won the Formula Palmer Audi Autumn Trophy, with two wins and 4 podiums.
Despite the success in 2008, Quinn did not race full-time in 2009, only testing for A1 Team Ireland
A1 Team Ireland
A1 Team Ireland is the Irish team of A1 Grand Prix, an international racing series. The team were the A1 Grand Prix champions for the fourth season, 2008-09.- The Team :...
and appearing in a few exhibition events such as the Goodwood Festival of Speed
Goodwood Festival of Speed
The Goodwood Festival of Speed, commonly abbreviated as FoS and referred within the United Kingdom as simply the Festival of Speed, is an annual hill climb featuring historic motor racing vehicles that is held in the grounds of Goodwood House, West Sussex, England.Typically held in late June or...
and the Dublin Grand Prix.
He has signed on with Team PBIR to race in the Firestone Indy Lights series beginning with the inaugural race at Barber Motorsports Park
Barber Motorsports Park
The Barber Motorsports Park is a multi-purpose racing facility located on the eastern fringes of Birmingham, Alabama, USA near Leeds. The facility was the vision of George Barber, and includes the Barber Vintage Motorsport Museum. In July 2009 officials announced that Barber will be the site of...
in April 2010.