Jérôme d'Ambrosio (pronounced[ʒeʁomdambrɔzjo]; born 27 December 1985) is a Belgian formerracing driver andmotorsport executive who competed inFormula One from2011 to2012. Since 2024, d'Ambrosio has served as deputy team principal ofFerrari in Formula One, as well as the head of theFerrari Driver Academy.
Born and raised inBrussels, d'Ambrosio began competitivekart racing aged 13, winning thedirect-driveKarting World Cup three years later. Graduating tojunior formulae in 2003, d'Ambrosio won his first title inBelgian Formula Renault that year. After four seasons inFormula Renault, he progressed toInternational Formula Master, winning the championship in its inaugural2007 season. D'Ambrosio moved up to theGP2 Series in2008 withDAMS, achieving several podiums across three seasons, amongst finishing runner-up toKamui Kobayashi in theAsia Series.
D'Ambrosio has previously driven forMarussia Virgin Racing, as well asLotus F1, in the2011 and2012 Formula One World Championships. From 2014 to 2020, he competed in Formula E driving forDragon Racing andMahindra Racing. D’Ambrosio achieved three victories in the series, winning the2015 Berlin ePrix,2016 Mexico City ePrix, and2019 Marrakesh ePrix. He was formerly the Team Principal ofVenturi Racing inFormula E.
Jérôme d'Ambrosio was born on 27 December 1985 inEtterbeek,Brussels, Belgium. His father is Henri d'Ambrosio, and his mother is Giselle d'Ambrosio.
D’Ambrosio began his career inkarting in 1999. By 2002, he was a three-time Belgian champion after winning the Mini class in 1999, Junior class in 2000 and Formula A in 2002. Alongside national success, he won theJunior Monaco Kart Cup in 2000 and was the winner of the World Cup Formula A championship in 2002.
D’Ambrosio graduated to single-seater competition in 2003 and won theBelgian Formula Renault championship with five wins, driving forThierry Boutsen Racing. He also contested the German-basedFormula König series where he finished fourth in the standings.[1]
For 2004, d’Ambrosio earned a place on theRenault F1Driver Development Programme and moved into theFrench Formula Renault 2.0 series where he finished fourth in the Drivers' Championship as the highest-placed rookie. He also contested seven races inFormula Renault 2.0 Eurocup.[2] In 2005, he switched toItalian Formula Renault and finished third in the championship's Winter Series and fourth overall in the regular season, recording three wins and six podiums across both. He also started six races in the Eurocup, taking two podiums.
D’Ambrosio graduated to the highest category of Formula Renault in 2006, racing in the3.5 Series forTech 1 Racing but left the championship after seven races. After leaving the Formula Renault 3.5 Series, d’Ambrosio switched toEuroseries 3000 withEuronova Racing and finished fifth in the final standings, despite missing the first half of the season. He also participated in one round of theFIA GT Championship, driving aGillet Vertigo in the GT2 class.
In 2007, d’Ambrosio participated in the inaugural season of theInternational Formula Master series. Racing forCram Competition, he secured five wins, 11 podiums and seven fastest laps in 16 races to win the championship.
D’Ambrosio joined Formula One feeder championship, theGP2 Series, in 2008 and also raced in the newly createdGP2 Asia Series, both for theDAMS team.[3] He finished 11th in both championships, with two podiums in each series. He extended his relationship with DAMS in 2009 and finished as the vice-champion in the2008–09 GP2 Asia Series with four podiums. D’Ambrosio started the2009 GP2 Series well and recorded three podiums in the first four races and finished ninth in the final standings.
In2010, d’Ambrosio experienced a breakout season with DAMS and secured his first victory in the championship atMonaco.[4] He later took his first series pole position at hishome event at theCircuit de Spa-Francorchamps but retired from the race when leading. He took one further podium atMonza and finished 12th in the standings.
In January 2010, d’Ambrosio was named as the Reserve Driver of theRenault F1 Team after rejoining the outfit's young driver programme.[5] Later in the year on 16 September, it was announced that d’Ambrosio would make his Formula One race weekend debut, making four practice appearances with Virgin Racing at the Singapore, Japanese, Korean and Brazilian Grands Prix.[6] He placed 21st in his first FP1 appearance at theMarina Bay Street Circuit, finishing two-tenths behind experienced team-mateTimo Glock.[7]
On 21 December 2010, it was officially announced that d’Ambrosio would race forVirgin Racing in the2011 Formula One World Championship, replacingLucas di Grassi and partnering Glock.[8] In the Virgin garage, d’Ambrosio was affectionately known as "Custard", with the word pasted on his cockpit when he began testing for the 2011 season at Valencia.Ambrosia is a well-known UK brand of custard and rice pudding.[9]
Driving the largely uncompetitiveVirgin MVR-02, d’Ambrosio finished 16 of the season's 19 races and retired from theMalaysian,Italian andAbu Dhabi Grands Prix due to poor reliability with problems with his electronics, gearbox and brakes. D’Ambrosio became the first Belgian driver to compete at theBelgian Grand Prix since Thierry Boutsen in 1993 and finished 17th, beating team-mate Glock. He finished the season 24th in the Drivers' Championship with a best of two 14th-place finishes inAustralia andCanada. Despite beating Glock, d’Ambrosio was replaced byCharles Pic for the2012 season.[10]
On 24 January 2012, d’Ambrosio was named as the official Reserve Driver forLotus F1 for the 2012 season, supporting full-time driversKimi Räikkönen andRomain Grosjean. Throughout the season, he did co-commentary work forSky Sports F1 for Formula One practice sessions, GP2 and GP3 races, and also commentated for the Belgian French-speaking channel,RTBF.
D’Ambrosio replaced Grosjean at the2012 Italian Grand Prix to make his debut for Lotus after the Frenchman received a one-race ban for causing a multi-car collision at the previous round inBelgium.[11] He qualified 16th for the race and started in 15th due to a 10-place grid penalty forPastor Maldonado.[12] D’Ambrosio finished in 13th and on the lead lap, 76 seconds behind winnerLewis Hamilton.[13] D'Ambrosio continued as Lotus F1's Reserve Driver for2013 until the end of the season.
In 2014, d’Ambrosio switched from single-seaters to GT racing and joinedBentley to race aContinental GT3 in theBlancpain Endurance Series. Alongside team-matesDuncan Tappy and Anthoine Leclerc, d’Ambrosio secured a best result of sixth at the first race of the season atMonza.[14]
D’Ambrosio joinedDragon Racing to contest theinaugural season of theFIA Formula E Championship, partneringOriol Servià andLoïc Duval.[15]
D'Ambrosio scored points on debut by finishing sixth at the2014 Beijing ePrix and secured his first victory in the series at the2015 Berlin ePrix, winning the race after initial victor, Lucas di Grassi, was disqualified after violating technical regulations.[16][17] D’Ambrosio scored back-to-back podiums at the double-header2015 London ePrix to finish fourth in the Drivers' Championship with 113 points. During the year, d’Ambrosio was the only driver on the grid to finish every race and completed every racing lap in the2014/15 season, missing out on the top 10 only twice. Dragon Racing finished second in the Teams' Championship.
D’Ambrosio remained with Dragon Racing for the2015–16 Formula E Championship and was again partnered by Duval. The team used powertrains developed byVenturi Racing.[18] He finished fifth in the first race of the season inBeijing and scored his first pole position in the series at the2015 Punta del Este ePrix and went on to finish third.[19] D’Ambrosio recorded his second career victory at the2016 Mexico City ePrix after original winner, Lucas di Grassi, was disqualified due to a technical infringement.[20] By finishing third at the season finale inLondon, d’Ambrosio finished fifth in the Drivers' Championship with 83 points.
D’Ambrosio continued to race for Dragon Racing in the2016–17 Formula E Championship, with the team manufacturing its own powertrains for the first time after entering a four-year technical partnership with American technology start-up,Faraday Future.[21] He secured his best finish of the year at the season-opening race inHong Kong, in which he finished seventh. D’Ambrosio scored further points inBuenos Aires,New York, andMontreal and finished 18th in the Drivers' Championship with 13 points.
D’Ambrosio raced for Dragon Racing for a fourth successive season in the2017/18 FIA Formula E Championship. The team's technical partnership withFaraday Future came to an early conclusion as a result of financial difficulties for the startup.[22] The team's package again proved to be uncompetitive and d’Ambrosio registered his first points of the season at the2018 Santiago ePrix by finishing eighth. He took further points inPunta del Este andRome. At the2018 Zürich ePrix, d’Ambrosio returned to the podium for the first time since the2016 London ePrix by finishing third.[23] This result marked his best result of the season, in which he finished 14th in the Drivers' Championship with 27 points, beating team-matesJosé María López andNeel Jani.
On 13 October 2018, it was announced that d’Ambrosio would leave Dragon Racing to joinMahindra Racing for the2018–19 Formula E Championship.[24]
D'Ambrosio finished third in the first race of the season inDiriyah and secured his third victory in the series at the2019 Marrakesh ePrix.[25][26] After taking further points finishes inSantiago,Mexico City,Sanya andRome, d’Ambrosio led the Drivers' Championship at the mid-way point of the season. The second half of his campaign was much less successful, with points only falling inNew York. He ended the season in 11th in the Drivers' Championship with 67 points, beating team-matePascal Wehrlein.
D’Ambrosio continued with Mahindra Racing for the2019–20 Formula E Championship, with the team entering a powertrain partnership withZF Friedrichshafen.[27] The team's car struggled for efficiency in race conditions. D’Ambrosio scored points in the first race of the season in Diriyah and registered his best finish in the first part of the2020 Berlin ePrix following Formula E's five-month hiatus as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. He finished 16th in the Drivers' Championship with 19 points, beating team-mates Wehrlein andAlex Lynn. At the end of the season, d’Ambrosio announced his official retirement from professional competition and ended his career with an 18th-placed finish in Berlin.[28]
D'Ambrosio featured in the first episode of the Amazon motoring show "The Grand Tour" as a test driver putting in lap times for theLaFerrari,Porsche 918 andMcLaren P1.[citation needed]
On 30 October 2020, d’Ambrosio joinedROKiT Venturi Racing as Deputy Team Principal for the2020–21 Formula E World Championship, taking his first steps into motor racing team management.[29] In November, 2021, he was promoted to the role of Team Principal following a management restructure, with former team boss,Susie Wolff, being appointed to the position of chief executive officer.[30]
Under d’Ambrosio's leadership, ROKiT Venturi Racing experienced its most successful campaign to date in the2021–22 Formula E World Championship, with the team winning five races and scoring 10 podiums in 16 races while also finishing second in the World Teams' Championship with 295 points. On 16 September 2022, it was announced that d'Ambrosio had left the team ahead of its transition to Maserati MSG Racing forSeason 9.[31]
D'Ambrosio had been working closely withMercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team Team PrincipalToto Wolff at the start of the2023 Formula One World Championship on an informal basis. At the2023 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, Wolff announced that d'Ambrosio had acquired a formal role as the Driver Development Director for the team.[32] He looked after and managed all of Mercedes' young drivers in various motorsports categories. After Wolff underwent knee surgery following theSingapore Grand Prix, d'Ambrosio replaced Wolff inJapan until theQatar Grand Prix.[33]
Scuderia Ferrari announced in May 2024 that d'Ambrosio would be joining their team beginning on 1 October 2024, working as Deputy Team Principal and Head of theFerrari Driver Academy, the outfit's young driver development program.[34]
In 2013, d'Ambrosio married theAmerican-Chilean model Natalie "Natty" Sifferman at St. Nicholas Catholic Church inLa Hulpe, Belgium. They divorced after two years of marriage.[35] In 2020, d'Ambrosio married Austrian jewellery designer,Eleonore von Habsburg at the Civil Registry ofMonaco, in a ceremony conducted by the Monaco mayorGeorges Marsan.[36] On 20 October 2021, Eleonore gave birth to their son, Otto d'Ambrosio, named after her grandfather,Otto von Habsburg.[37] In August 2024, a daughter, Zita d'Ambrosio, was born, named after her Eleonore's great-grandmotherZita von Habsburg.[citation needed]
† As d'Ambrosio was a guest driver, he was ineligible for points.
(key) (Races inbold indicate pole position) (Races initalics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | Pos | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Graff Racing | NOG 1 8 | NOG 2 26 | VIE 1 Ret | VIE 2 4 | PAU 1 4 | PAU 2 4 | DIJ 1 3 | DIJ 2 3 | ALB 1 4 | ALB 2 4 | LEM 1 9 | LEM 2 Ret | MAG 1 4 | MAG 2 4 | 4th | 156 |
(key) (Races inbold indicate pole position) (Races initalics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | Pos | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Euronova Racing | VLL 1 3 | VLL 2 5 | IMO 1 27 | IMO 2 7 | SPA 1 2 | SPA 2 4 | MNZ1 1 12 | MNZ1 2 6 | MNZ1 3 5 | MUG 1 3 | MUG 2 7 | MIS 1 5 | MIS 2 4 | MIS 3 7 | VAR 1 | MNZ2 1 9 | MNZ2 2 4 | 4th | 179 |
(key) (Races inbold indicate pole position) (Races initalics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | Pos | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Euronova Racing | ADR | VLL | BRN | IMO | MUG | MAG 12 | MNZ | MIS | 32nd | 0 | ||||||||||
| 2006 | Euronova Racing | ADR 1 | ADR 2 | IMO 1 | IMO 2 | SPA 1 | SPA 2 | HUN 1 | HUN 2 | MUG 1 5 | MUG 2 Ret | SIL 1 2 | SIL 2 5 | CAT 1 4 | CAT 2 Ret | VLL 1 2 | VLL 2 5 | MIS 1 3 | MIS 2 4 | 5th | 39 |
(key) (Races inbold indicate pole position; races initalics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Entrant | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | DC | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Euronova Racing | ZOL 1 3 | ZOL 2 2 | VAL 1 | VAL 2 | LMS 1 | LMS 2 | BIL 1 | BIL 2 | OSC 1 | OSC 2 | DON 1 | DON 2 | EST 1 20 | EST 2 28 | MNZ 1 Ret | MNZ 2 15 | 15th | 22 |
(key) (Races inbold indicate pole position) (Races initalics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | Pos | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Tech 1 Racing | ZOL 1 19 | ZOL 2 19† | MON 1 12 | IST 1 14 | IST 2 22 | MIS 1 16 | MIS 2 19 | SPA 1 | SPA 2 | NÜR 1 | NÜR 2 | DON 1 | DON 2 | LMS 1 | LMS 2 | CAT 1 | CAT 2 | 36th | 0 |
† Driver did not finish the race, but was classified as he completed more than 90% of the race distance.
(key) (Races inbold indicate pole position) (Races initalics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | Pos | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Cram Competition | VAL 1 6 | VAL 2 2 | PAU 1 3 | PAU 2 3 | BRN 1 1 | BRN 2 1 | BOA 1 3 | BOA 2 Ret | AND 1 2 | AND 2 16 | OSC 1 1 | OSC 2 8 | BRH 1 1 | BRH 2 5 | MNZ 1 1 | MNZ 2 2 | 1st | 100 |
(key) (Races inbold indicate pole position)
| Year | Entrant | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | DC | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | DAMS | CAT FEA Ret | CAT SPR 15 | IST FEA Ret | IST SPR Ret | MON FEA 9 | MON SPR 7 | MAG FEA 6 | MAG SPR Ret | SIL FEA 9 | SIL SPR 12 | HOC FEA Ret | HOC SPR 11 | HUN FEA 9 | HUN SPR Ret | VAL FEA 5 | VAL SPR 2 | SPA FEA 8 | SPA SPR 2 | MNZ FEA 7 | MNZ SPR 6 | 11th | 21 |
| 2009 | DAMS | CAT FEA 3 | CAT SPR 3 | MON FEA 6 | MON SPR 2 | IST FEA Ret | IST SPR 15 | SIL FEA 19 | SIL SPR 12 | NÜR FEA 10 | NÜR SPR 7 | HUN FEA 16 | HUN SPR Ret | VAL FEA 9 | VAL SPR 4 | SPA FEA Ret | SPA SPR Ret | MNZ FEA 4 | MNZ SPR 4 | ALG FEA Ret | ALG SPR 10 | 9th | 29 |
| 2010 | DAMS | CAT FEA Ret | CAT SPR 10 | MON FEA 8 | MON SPR 1 | IST FEA 10 | IST SPR 8 | VAL FEA Ret | VAL SPR 8 | SIL FEA 11 | SIL SPR 11 | HOC FEA | HOC SPR | HUN FEA 6 | HUN SPR Ret | SPA FEA Ret | SPA SPR Ret | MNZ FEA 5 | MNZ SPR 2 | YMC FEA 14 | YMC SPR 8 | 12th | 21 |
(key) (Races inbold indicate pole position; races initalics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Entrant | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | DC | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | DAMS | DUB1 FEA 11 | DUB1 SPR 8 | SEN FEA Ret | SEN SPR Ret | SEP FEA 3 | SEP SPR Ret | BHR FEA 11 | BHR SPR 12 | DUB2 FEA 7 | DUB2 SPR 3 | 11th | 12 | ||
| 2008–09 | DAMS | SHI FEA 9 | SHI SPR 5 | DUB FEA 7 | DUB SPR C | BHR1 FEA 2 | BHR1 SPR 3 | LSL FEA 5 | LSL SPR 7 | SEP FEA DNS | MYS SPR DSQ | BHR2 FEA 3 | BHR2 SPR 2 | 2nd | 36 |
Source:[39] | |||||||||||||||
(key)
| Year | Entrant | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | WDC | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Virgin Racing | VirginVR-01 | Cosworth CA2010 2.4V8 | BHR | AUS | MAL | CHN | ESP | MON | TUR | CAN | EUR | GBR | GER | HUN | BEL | ITA | SIN TD | JPN TD | KOR TD | BRA TD | ABU | – | – | |
| 2011 | MarussiaVirgin Racing | VirginMVR-02 | Cosworth CA2011 2.4V8 | AUS 14 | MAL Ret | CHN 20 | TUR 20 | ESP 20 | MON 15 | CAN 14 | EUR 22 | GBR 17 | GER 18 | HUN 19 | BEL 17 | ITA Ret | SIN 18 | JPN 21 | KOR 20 | IND 16 | ABU Ret | BRA 19 | 24th | 0 | |
| 2012 | Lotus F1 Team | LotusE20 | Renault RS27-2012 2.4V8 | AUS | MAL | CHN | BHR | ESP | MON | CAN | EUR | GBR | GER | HUN | BEL | ITA 13 | SIN | JPN | KOR | IND | ABU | USA | BRA | 23rd | 0 |
(key) (Races inbold indicate pole position; races initalics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | Chassis | Powertrain | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | Pos | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014–15 | Dragon Racing | SparkSRT01-e | SRT01-e | BEI 6 | PUT 5 | PDE 8 | BUE 14 | MIA 4 | LBH 6 | MCO 5 | BER 1 | MSC 11 | LDN 2 | LDN 2 | 4th | 113 | ||
| 2015–16 | Dragon Racing | SparkSRT01-e | Venturi VM200-FE-01 | BEI 5 | PUT 14† | PDE 3 | BUE 16 | MEX 1 | LBH 7 | PAR 11 | BER 16 | LDN 8 | LDN 3 | 5th | 83 | |||
| 2016–17 | Faraday Future Dragon Racing | SparkSRT01-e | Penske 701-EV | HKG 7 | MRK 13 | BUE 8 | MEX 14 | MCO Ret | PAR Ret | BER 13 | BER 13 | NYC Ret | NYC 10 | MTL 11 | MTL 9 | 18th | 13 | |
| 2017–18 | Dragon Racing | SparkSRT01-e | Penske EV-2 | HKG NC | HKG 15 | MRK 15 | SCL 8 | MEX 11 | PDE 9 | RME 7 | PAR 12 | BER 19 | ZUR 3 | NYC 13 | NYC Ret | 14th | 27 | |
| 2018–19 | Mahindra Racing | SparkSRT05e | Mahindra M5Electro | ADR 3 | MRK 1 | SCL 10 | MEX 4 | HKG Ret | SYX 6 | RME 8 | PAR Ret | MCO 11 | BER 17 | BRN 13 | NYC 9 | NYC 11 | 11th | 67 |
| 2019–20 | Mahindra Racing | SparkSRT05e | Mahindra M6Electro | DIR 9 | DIR DNS | SCL NC | MEX 10 | MRK 13 | BER 5 | BER DSQ | BER 7 | BER 15 | BER 16 | BER 18 | 16th | 19 | ||
† Driver did not finish the race, but was classified as he completed more than 90% of the race distance.
| Year | Team | Co-Drivers | Car | Class | Laps | Pos. | Class Pos. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 |  Belgian Racing | Sylvie Delcour Renaud KuppensBas Leinders | Gillet Vertigo Streiff | G2 | 84 | DNF | DNF |
| 2006 | Belgian Racing | Renaud KuppensBas Leinders | Gillet Vertigo Streiff | G2 | 43 | DNF | DNF |
| 2014 |  M-SportBentley |  Antoine LeclercDuncan Tappy | Bentley Continental GT3 | Pro Cup | 512 | 17th | 11th |
| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | International Formula Master Champion 2007 | Succeeded by |
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