Teo Fabi
Teo Fabi | |
|---|---|
| Born | Teodorico Fabi March 9, 1955 Milan, Italy |
| Occupation | Racing driver |
| Years active | 1975–1996 |
| Known for | Formula One driver, 1991 World Sportscar Champion |
Teodorico "Teo" Fabi (born 9 March 1955) is a retired Italian racing driver who participated in Formula One from to . In the realm of sportscar racing, he clinched the World Sportscar Championship title in 1991 while driving for Jaguar.
Originating from Milan, Fabi is the elder sibling of ex-Formula One competitor Corrado Fabi. Remarkably, as a rookie, he secured pole position at the 1983 Indianapolis 500, a feat unmatched by any other rookie until 2025. Furthermore, during the 1984 Indianapolis 500, Fabi was the last Formula One driver actively competing there until Fernando Alonso's participation in 2017.
Early racing
In 1975, Fabi earned the title of European Karting Champion and subsequently captured the European Formula Ford 1600 championship in 1977.
European Formula Three
During 1978, Fabi took part in the European Formula Three Championship with Forti Corse, piloting a March-Toyota. He contested seven events and concluded the season fourth overall with a total of 45 points.
European Formula Two
In 1979, Fabi competed in European Formula Two representing March Racing. His top result was a second-place finish at Circuit Park Zandvoort, accumulating 13 points throughout the year. The following season, driving for ICI Roloil Racing Team in a March-BMW, he secured three victories—twice at Hockenheimring and once at Nürburgring—along with two pole positions and fastest lap honors at Preis Baden-Württemberg, ultimately finishing third in the championship with 38 points.
Formula One
Fabi made his Formula One debut in 1982 with Toleman behind the wheel of the TG181C-Hart. Despite limited team resources and challenges, he qualified for six out of fourteen races, achieving seventh place at San Marino and twentieth at Austria. The season proved difficult as team priorities favored lead driver Derek Warwick amid changes in sponsorship.
His performance during the 1983 IndyCar season reignited interest from Formula One teams, resulting in a 1984 contract with Brabham as the second driver alongside World Champion Nelson Piquet, supported by Parmalat sponsorship. Due to ongoing commitments in CART, Fabi missed several Grands Prix and posted inconsistent results. After dedicating himself exclusively to Formula One midway through the season, he secured three points-scoring finishes including a podium third place at Detroit and ended twelfth in the championship standings.
In 1985, following his release from Brabham, Fabi returned to Toleman—now sponsored by Benetton—midway through the season. The team encountered tyre supply difficulties that delayed their debut; notwithstanding these setbacks, Fabi achieved Toleman’s sole pole position at Nürburgring but failed to score points owing to mechanical unreliability.
With Benetton’s full acquisition of Toleman for 1986, Fabi drove the B186-BMW alongside teammate Gerhard Berger. Although the car demonstrated impressive speed, it suffered from fragility; Fabi claimed two pole positions (at Austrian and Italian Grands Prix) but managed only one points finish—a fifth place in Spain—finishing fifteenth overall. He showed particular strength on high-speed circuits yet found technical tracks more challenging.
In 1987, Fabi competed in the Benetton B187-Ford Cosworth GBA V6 alongside Thierry Boutsen. Despite early turbocharger reliability issues, he scored points on five occasions including a third-place podium at Austria—one of his preferred venues. For 1988, Benetton signed Alessandro Nannini, leaving Fabi without a seat. His final race was marked by a notable intra-team battle with Boutsen. That year he achieved his highest career championship position, finishing ninth.
Across 71 Formula One Grand Prix starts, Fabi earned three pole positions, two fastest laps, two podium finishes, and accumulated a total of 23 championship points.
CART/Champ Car World Series
Fabi made his debut in the CART/PPG World Series in 1983, competing with Forsythe Racing behind the wheel of the No. 33 Skoal Bandit March 83C-Cosworth DFX. His first race was the Kraco Dixie 200, where he started from ninth position but had to retire after completing 41 laps due to suspension issues. At the 1983 Indianapolis 500, Fabi secured pole position with a new track record speed, marking him as the first rookie to claim pole since 1950. Although he led for 23 laps, a broken fuel filter forced his retirement, resulting in a twenty-sixth place finish and earning him rookie of the year accolades. He also achieved pole position and a fourth-place finish at Milwaukee, followed by victories at Pocono, Mid-Ohio, and Laguna Seca, ultimately finishing second in the championship standings behind Al Unser.
Continuing with Forsythe Racing in 1984 driving the March 84C-Cosworth DFX, Fabi managed a third-place finish at Portland but faced several early retirements including at the Indianapolis 500. Midway through the season, he departed from Indy car racing to concentrate on Formula One commitments, concluding the partial campaign twenty-fifth in points.
After a break from Indy car competition, Fabi returned in 1988 with Porsche Motorsports piloting the No. 8 Quaker State March 88P powered by a Porsche Indy V8 engine. Although Porsche’s power unit lagged behind rivals such as Ilmor-Chevrolet and Cosworth, he secured a fourth-place finish at Nazareth and placed tenth overall in the championship. The Indianapolis 500 that year was disappointing; qualifying seventeenth and retiring early due to mechanical failure placed him thirtieth.
In 1989, Fabi remained with Porsche Motorsports driving the March 89P-Porsche. He claimed pole positions at Portland and Mid-Ohio, where he recorded his final Indy car victory. The team showed improved competitiveness on oval tracks, highlighted by a runner-up finish at Michigan’s Marlboro 500. Nonetheless, reliability problems persisted at Indianapolis where he again retired prematurely. He finished fourth in the championship with a total of 141 points.
For the 1990 season, Fabi competed in the No. 4 Foster's-Quaker State March 90P-Porsche Indy V8. A proposed all-carbon fiber chassis was blocked by rival teams, forcing Porsche to initially utilize an older chassis model. Fabi qualified seventh at Long Beach but finished tenth; he encountered transmission troubles at Indianapolis and crashed after seven laps in Denver despite starting from pole position there. His season-best result was third place at Meadowlands, ending up fourteenth in the overall standings. Following this campaign, Porsche exited Indy car racing; Fabi transitioned to the World Sportscar Championship in 1991 and secured that title.
In 1992, Fabi stepped in for an injured Mario Andretti at Detroit driving Newman-Haas Racing’s No. 2 Texaco Havoline/K Mart Lola-Ford Cosworth XB. He qualified third and completed the race in sixth place.
The following year, Fabi joined Hall VDS Racing behind the wheel of the No. 8 Pennzoil Lola T93/00-Ilmor Chevrolet Indy V8. His best performance was fourth place at Long Beach and ninth at Indianapolis. Consistent top finishes enabled him to end the season eleventh in points.
In 1994, representing the reorganized Hall Racing team with the No. 11 Pennzoil Reynard 94i-Ilmor Indy V8, Fabi secured three podium finishes including third places at Detroit and Michigan’s Marlboro 500. At Indianapolis, he qualified twenty-fourth and achieved his best result there to date by finishing seventh. He concluded the season ranked ninth in points.
Returning to Forsythe Racing for 1995 driving the No. 33 Combustion Engineering/Indeck Reynard 95i-Ford Cosworth XB, Fabi’s notable results included third place at Long Beach and pole position at Milwaukee where he led laps before finishing fourth. At Indianapolis he placed eighth and wrapped up ninth overall with steady top-five finishes throughout the year.
Fabi was unable to secure a full-time drive for the 1996 season after Forsythe signed Greg Moore. He made two substitute appearances for PacWest Racing’s No. 18 Motorola Reynard 96i-Ford Cosworth XD as a replacement for injured Mark Blundell but failed to score points and ended thirty-sixth in the championship standings.
Can-Am
In the 1981 campaign, Fabi raced for Newman Freeman Racing under Paul Newman’s banner, piloting their No. 6 March 817 powered by a Chevrolet V8 and sponsored by Budweiser. He achieved four victories at Mosport Park (twice), Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, and Laguna Seca Raceway. Ultimately, he secured the runner-up position in the championship standings with a total of 456 points.
World Sportscar Championship
Fabi made his World Sportscar Championship debut in 1980, driving for Scuderia Lancia Corse in the No. 51 Lancia Beta Monte Carlo fitted with a Lancia 1.4L Turbo I4 engine in Group 5 competition at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Unfortunately, the car retired after just six laps due to an oil pump malfunction.
He returned to the series in 1982 with Martini Racing, behind the wheel of the No. 51 LC1 equipped with the same turbocharged engine. Alongside Michele Alboreto and Riccardo Patrese, Fabi claimed victory at the 1000km of Nürburgring. At that year’s 1982 24 Hours of Le Mans, competing in Group 6 with Alboreto and Rolf Stommelen, their car qualified fourth but was forced to retire after 92 laps due to engine failure. Fabi concluded the season ranked fourth in the championship with 66 points.
During the 1983 season, he initially drove the No. 4 Martini-sponsored Porsche 956, later switching to the No. 4 LC2 powered by a Ferrari 268C 2.6L Turbo V8. He secured a win at the 1000km of Imola alongside Hans Heyer. At the 1983 24 Hours of Le Mans, Fabi competed in the LC2 with Michele Alboreto and Alessandro Nannini; their effort started from second on the grid but ended prematurely after 27 laps due to gearbox issues. In a second team entry, he retired after completing 121 laps because of fuel pressure problems. Despite his success at Imola, this victory did not contribute to his World Endurance Championship ranking, leaving him unclassified.
Following a difficult stint in the 1990 IndyCar season, Fabi returned to sportscar racing in 1991, joining Tom Walkinshaw Racing’s Silk Cut Jaguar squad. He drove both the No. 34 Jaguar XJR-12 and XJR-14 cars, winning the Castrol BRDC Empire Trophy alongside Derek Warwick. At that year’s 1991 24 Hours of Le Mans, Fabi teamed with Bob Wollek and Kenny Acheson in the Jaguar XJR-12 to finish third overall. He also clinched the World Endurance Championship for Drivers title with a total of 86 points.
In 1992, Fabi competed at Le Mans for Toyota’s Team Tom’s, piloting the No. 8 Toyota TS010 fitted with a Toyota RV10 3.5L V10 engine alongside Jan Lammers and Andy Wallace. They finished eighth overall and fifth within their class. By season’s end, Fabi was placed twenty-seventh in points with eight accumulated.
1993 24 Hours of Le Mans
After the dissolution of the World Sportscar Championship, the 1993 24 Hours of Le Mans was held as an independent event. Fabi drove for Peugeot Talbot Sport in their No. 1 Peugeot 905 Evo 1B, powered by a Peugeot SA35 3.5L V10 engine, sharing duties with teammates Thierry Boutsen and Yannick Dalmas in the C1 category. The trio completed 374 laps to finish as runners-up both overall and within their class.
Career overview
| Season | Competition | Team | Starts | Victories | Pole positions | Fastest laps | Podium finishes | Points scored | Final standing | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1977 | FIA European Formula 3 | Teo Fabi | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | NC | ||||||||||||
| 1978 | Italian Formula Three | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | 36 | 4th place | |||||||||||||
| FIA European Formula 3 | Astra Racing Team | 14 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 7 | 45 | 4th place | |||||||||||||
| 1979 | New Zealand Formula Pacific | 10 | 6 | 8 | ? | 8 | 166 | Champion | |||||||||||||
| European Formula Two | March Engineering | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 13 | 10th place | |||||||||||||
| BMW M1 Procar Championship | BMW Motorsport | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
0 |
0 |
NC |
- |
align=left | World Sportscar Championship |
1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | NC | - |
1980 |
align=left | European Formula Two |
align=left | ICI Racing Team |
12 |
3 |
2 |
2 |
5 |
38 |
"3rd" |
(Note: The table continues with similar formatting and data but has been shortened here for clarity.)
Full European Formula 3 results
( key) (Entries in bold denote pole positions) (Entries in italics indicate fastest laps)
| Year | Team | Engine supplier | 1st race | 2nd race | 3rd race | 4th race | 5th race | 6th race | 7th race | 8th race | 9th race | 10th race | 11th race | 12th race | 13th race | 14th race | 15th race | 16th race | Pos. | Points total | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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nowrap | Teo Fabi |
style="background:#EFCFFF;" |
VLL |
colspan=2 | |
NC |
0 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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nowrap | Astra Racing Team |
style="background:#FFDF9F;" | ZAN |
style="background:#DFDFDF;" | NÜR |
style="background:#FFCFCF;" | ÖST |
style="background:#FFFFBF;" | ZOL |
style="background:#EFCFFF;" | IMO |
style="background:#EFCFFF;" | NÜR |
style="background:#FFFFBF;" | DIJ |
style="background:#EFCFFF;" | MNZ |
style="background:#EFCFFF;" | PER |
style="background:#FFDF9F;" | MAG |
style="background:#FFCFCF;" | KNU |
style="background:#FFDF9F;" | KAR |
style="background:#EFCFFF;" | DON |
style="background:#EFCFFF;" | KAS |
style="background:#FFFFBF;" |
VLL |
4th place ! 45 points |}
Full European Formula Two Championship results(key) (Races shown in bold denote pole position; those in italics represent fastest lap) }Complete Formula One Championship results(key) (Events in bold signify pole position; events in italics indicate fastest lap)
Driver did not complete the event but was classified after covering more than 90% of the total distance. Full 24 Hours of Le Mans outcomesCART World Series performance(Template:American Open Wheel driver results legend#key) (Entries highlighted in bold denote pole position)
Indianapolis 500
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