Gregor Foitek

**Gregor Foitek** (born 27 March 1965) is a Swiss former racing driver.

## Early racing career

A Swiss driver from Zürich, Foitek is the son of Karl Foitek, a well-known 2-litre Lola sports car racer from the early 1970s and successful sportscar dealer. Racing was in his blood, and he won the Swiss Formula Three title in 1986 while driving a Dallara. He also competed in German F3 in a Dallara 386 Volkswagen, finishing equal ninth with 33 points, including one race where he won pole, fastest lap, and race. However, even at this young age, little Gregor shown unusual fearlessness, which resulted in a few too many accidents. When he made his Formula 3000 debut in late 1986, driving a Lola T86/50 Cosworth for the Horag Racing/FTL team at Jarama, he crashed out.

In 1987, Foitek continued in F3000. Gregor began the season with Genoa Racing in a March 87B Cosworth, but after a lacklustre first few races, a mid-season slump saw him record three DNQs in a row. A move to GA Motorsport to drive a Lola T87/50 Cosworth for the final three races of the season resulted in an improvement in fortunes, including a fine third place on the grid for the final race at Jarama, but his year ended without any points. But at least he was prepared for 1988, when he remained with GA Motorsport and drove a Lola T88/50 Cosworth. The promise was realised in the second race of the year at Vallelunga, where he won from pole, but the erratic streak remained, causing Johnny Herbert to collide with the wall. And to demonstrate his inconsistency, he failed to qualify for the next race in Pau.

Following that, he qualified fourth and finished fourth at Silverstone, and fourth again at Monza, despite starting eleventh. Then, at Enna, he qualified third but caused the race to stop by colliding with Roberto Moreno's car at the first corner. However, Foitek is likely best recognised for the following race at Brands Hatch. On the first lap, he crashed with Herbert at 150 mph (241 km/h). Both cars collided with the wall, and Foitek rolled his car many times along the guardrail. Gregor was fortunate to survive with only a fractured wrist. Herbert, on the other hand, was not so fortunate, fracturing both of his legs when his car collided with the wall head-on and then rebounded into the line of oncoming traffic, jeopardising the rest of his career. Foitek, on the other hand, went scoreless for the rest of the season and finished seventh with 15 points.

## Formula One

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## Post Formula One career

Foitek looks to have had a short post-F1 career. He appeared in a sports car at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1991, driving a Kremer Racing Porsche 962CK6 alongside Mexican Tomas Lopez and Tiff Needell. Following a crash, the car retired. Foitek then reunited with Walter Brun, driving a Brun C91 Judd sports car with Oscar Larrauri in practice for the World Sportscar Championship round at the Nürburgring. Their qualifying time would have placed them in midfield, but complications prevented them from starting. Foitek then rejoined Lopez for the round at Magny-Cours, where they finished in eighth place after starting 13th. With those three points, Gregor is tied for 45th place in the WSC.

However, the perils of motor racing may have become too much for him later on. He drove two Indy car races for the great A.J. Foyt's team in 1992, as the American hero wound down his driving career following a near-fatal accident in 1991. Foitek was given a year-old Lola T91/00 Chevrolet that lacked the ability to compete. However, on his CART debut at Surfers Paradise in Australia, Foitek qualified a fantastic 13th but was forced to retire after only 19 laps due to a puncture. He then improved his qualifying position in Long Beach, starting 12th but retiring after 32 laps. Foitek was entered to drive for the team again in the Indianapolis 500, but according to Foyt, he couldn't believe they were racing at such high speeds so close to the walls! He went home without practising. Given how much of his career he spent up against walls, maybe this conclusion was acceptable.