# Karen Gaillard

Karen Gaillard (born 29 June 2001 in Fribourg) is a Swiss racing driver competing for Schumacher CLRT in Porsche Carrera Cup France.

## Career
### Beginnings (2019–2023)

After being a finalist in the AutoScout24 and CUPRA Young Driver Challenge 2019, Gaillard made her touring car racing debut in the 2019 ADAC TCR Germany Touring Car Championship, racing at the Nürburgring round as a guest driver. In her maiden TCR outing, Gaillard scored her first top-ten finish in race two by finishing ninth. At the end of the year, Gaillard won the AutoScout24 and CUPRA scouting programs, earning her a drive in the 2020 24H TCE Series. In the pandemic-affected season, Gaillard made her debut in the third round of the season at Monza Circuit, and scored a class podium in the following round at Hockenheim.
Returning to the 24H Series for 2021, Gaillard switched to the GTX class alongside Lionel Amrouche, her first incursion into sportscar racing. In the three races contested by Gaillard, she scored her first podiums in GTX with a runner-up finish at Dubai and a third at Mugello. In 2022, Gaillard switched to the Mitjet Series, joining Racing Spirit of Léman for her first full-time season in motorsports. The Swiss driver scored a best result of sixth at Barcelona and finished 18th in the standings.
In 2023, Gaillard competed in the NP02 class of the European Endurance Prototype Cup, joining DIMAB Motorsport by ANS alongside Grégory de Sybourg. Despite not taking a win throughout the season, Gaillard scored three pole positions and four podiums to finish runner-up in her maiden season in the championship.

### Iron Dames (2024–present)

2024 was a landmark season for Gaillard, as she joined the Iron Dames for her GT3 debut in the Le Mans Cup, sharing a Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo 2 alongside Célia Martin. Racing on an equal footing against several Gold-rated drivers, Gaillard showcased pace, scored regular points and achieved a maiden podium at Paul Ricard, on her way to sixth in the standings. Alongside her Le Mans Cup campaign, Gaillard returned to the NP02 class of the European Endurance Prototype Cup, scoring a best finish of fourth at the season-ending Paul Ricard round.
In late 2024, Gaillard won the Porsche Carrera Cup France shootout, becoming the first woman to win the selection and earning her a drive in the 2025 Porsche Carrera Cup France season with Schumacher CLRT. In preparation for her rookie season, Gaillard competed in select rounds of the Porsche Sprint Challenge Southern Europe.
In 2025, Gaillard also made her debut with the main Iron Dames quartet in the IMSA SportsCar Championship, racing a 992-spec Porsche 911 GT3 R in that year's 24 Hours of Daytona. Despite falling three laps down due to a long pit stop under green, Gaillard played a role in the team's charge to an eighth place finish in GTD.

## Racing record
### Racing career summary

| Season | Series | Team | Races | Wins | Poles | F/Laps | Podiums | Points | Position |
| 2019 | ADAC TCR Germany Touring Car Championship | Young Driver Challenge | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | NC |
| 2020 | 24H TCE Series – TCR | TOPCAR sport by Bas Koeten Racing | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 28 | 14th |
| 2021 | 24H GT Series – GTX | Vortex V8 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 56 | 5th |
| 2022 | Trophée MitJet 2L France | Racing Spirit of Léman | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 86.5 | 18th |
| 2022 | Trophee Mitjet 2L Benelux Central | | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ?? | ?? |
| 2023 | European Endurance Prototype Cup – NP02 | DIMAB Motorsport by ANS | 6 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 99 | 2nd |
| 2024 | Le Mans Cup – GT3 | Iron Dames | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 43 | 6th |
| 2024 | European Endurance Prototype Cup – NP02 | ANS Motorsport | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 45.5 | 11th |
| 2025 | IMSA SportsCar Championship – GTD | Iron Dames | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 251 | 8th |
| 2025 | Porsche Sprint Challenge Southern Europe | Schumacher CLRT | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 32nd |
| 2025 | Porsche Carrera Cup France | Schumacher CLRT | | | | | | | |
| Sources: ||||||||||

### Complete Le Mans Cup results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; results in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Entrant | Class | Car | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | Rank | Points |
| 2024 | Iron Dames | GT3 | Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo 2 | BAR 7 | LEC 2 | LMS 1 7 | LMS 2 16 | SPA 11 | MUG 5 | ALG 7 | 6th | 43 |

### Complete IMSA SportsCar Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Entrant | Class | Make | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | Rank | Points |
| 2025 | Iron Dames | GTD | Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) | Porsche M97/80 4.2 L Flat-6 | DAY 8 | SEB | LBH | LGA | WGL | MOS | ELK | VIR | IMS | PET | 8th* | 251* |
$^*$ Season still in progress.