Zacharie Robichon
| Zacharie Robichon | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Born | May 31, 1992 Ottawa, Ontario, Canada |
| IMSA SportsCar Championship career | |
| Debut season | 2019 IMSA SportsCar Championship |
| Current team | Wright Motorsports |
| Car number | 32 |
| Former teams | Pfaff Motorsports |
| Starts | 18 |
| Wins | 3 |
| Poles | 1 |
| Fastest laps | 0 |
| Best finish | 1st in 2021 IMSA SportsCar Championship |
| Previous series | |
| 2018 2016–2017 2015 2015 2014 2013 | Ultra 94 GT3 Cup Challenge Canada by Yokohama Ultra 94 Porsche GT3 Cup Canada F2000 F1600 Can Am Cup Toyo Tires F1600 Championship Series - Class A |
| Championship titles | |
| 2021 IMSA SportsCar Championship 2015 | IMSA SportsCar Championship - GTD Can Am Cup |
Zacharie Robichon (b. May 31, 1992, in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada) is a Canadian sportscar racer, who competes in the IMSA SportsCar Championship for Wright Motorsports.
Early career
Robichon got his passion for car racing growing up came from his father who raced Formula cars in the 70s and 80s.
He began karting at 14 years of age and didn't enter a full season of competition until 2009 when he began racing in the Canadian National Karting Championships, Rotax Senior class.
He raced karts in Canada and the U.S. for four seasons. Robichon finished third overall in the 2011 Canadian National Karting Rotax DD2 Championship[1].
In September 2011, Robichon beat seven other karters to win the third "Hinchtown.com Canadian Karting Award" sponsored by IndyCar Series driver James Hinchcliffe. The prize was a fully-paid, three-day "Wheel to Wheel" race licensing course at the Bridgestone racing academy.[2]
In 2012, he finished second overall in the 2012 ASN Canada FIA Canadian Karting Rotax DD2 Championship[3].
F1600
After competing for Canada in the annual Formula Ford Festival, Robichon moved to Formula 1600 after his father agreed to fund one season on the condition that he find sponsors to pay for subsequent years. In 2014 he competed in both the Toyo Tires Formula Tour 1600 and 2014 Toyo Tires F1600 Championship "class A" Series with BGR Team Grote, as well as two races in the 2014 F2000 Championship Series. He took two podiums in four starts in the Formula Four and one win and three podiums in eight starts in the F1600 Championship Series.
In September, Robichon won the Can-Am Cup in a photo finish[4], catching leader Tristan DeGrand at the last turn on the final lap and then out-dragging his rival to the finish line.
He did and stayed in F1600 for three seasons. While racing in F1600, Robichon also worked as an engineer and mechanic for other drivers[5].
In 2015, Robichon joined Brian Graham Racing and finished second overall in the Toyo Tires F1600 Championship "class A" Series, with three wins, eight podiums and five poles in eight starts.
Porsche GT3Cup (Canada and USA)
After three seasons of Formula 1600, Robichon made the switch to sportscars, racing in the Ultra 94 Porsche GT 3 Canada Series for Mark Motors Racing in Ottawa in 2016.
He raced for three seasons in the Ultra 94 Porsche GT3 Cup Canada finishing third overall in 2016, with two wins and 10 podiums in 12 starts. He also started two races in the 2016 Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge USA scoring one podium for Mark Motors Racing.
He returned to Ultra 94 Porsche GT3 Cup Canada with Mark Motors in 2017, taking second overall with 2 two wins, 11 podiums and one pole in 12 races.
Robichon dominated the 2018 Ultra 94 GT3 Cup Challenge Canada by Yokohama on his way to the title, taking 11 wins, 12 podiums and nine poles in 12 starts. In August, Robichon got an emergency call[6] while participating in a ride along event at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park from the Moorespeed team which needed a replacement driver for the Porsche GT3 Challenge USA race at Road America. Robichon swept both races that weekend[7] and stayed with Morrespeed for the rest of the season.
In all, he started eight Porsche GT3 Challenge USA races for Moorespeed in 2018, finishing taking home seven wins, seven podiums and eight poles. He finished 12th overall despite starting only half the races.
IMSA SportsCar Championship
In 2019, Robichon teamed with fellow Canadian Scott Hargrove at Pfaff Motorsports in the IMSA SportsCar Championship GTD class, driving a Porsche 911 GT3#991 GT3 R (2019–) to third overall, with wins in the 2019 Northeast Grand Prix and the 2019 Road Race Showcase at Road America.
Although the plan for 2020 was to challenge for the GTD title[8], it got derailed due to COVID-19 pandemic. Robichon's planned full-time teammates for the season were Lars Kern and Dennis Olsen (racing driver). In addtion, Patrick Pilet joining the squad for the 24 Hours of Daytona.
Pfaff Motorsoport's Toronto base combined with border restraictions made comnpeteling in a full season impossible. In the end, Robichon only started two races in GTD, the pre-COVID-19|COVID 2020 24 Hours of Daytona where Pfaff started on pole but finished 13th. In its other start in 2020, the team finished 5th in the 2020 IMSA SportsCar Weekend at Road America.
With Pfaff Motorsport Porsche's plaid livery quickly becoming a fan favorite, the team arrived at the 2020 season opening Rolex 24 at Daytona with custom race suits that made the driver look like lumberjacks wearing plaid shirts and blue jeans[9].
In 2021, Robichon welcomed new teammate Laurens Vanthoor[10] at Pfaff Motorsports. The pair struggled in the first half of the 10-race season, managing only one win in the first five starts, although the victory came in the prestigious 12 Hours of Sebring.
The Pfaff team began a comeback in the second half with a GTD win in the Road Race Showcase at Road America|IMSA Sports Car Weekend followed by another victory in the , and followed it with another in the Hyundai Monterey Sports Car Championship. After a second in Long Beach, the pair were victorious again at the GT Challenge at VIR|Michelin GT Challenge at VIR, setting the stage for a title showdown at the season finale.
A second in the Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta was enough to deliver the GTD team championship to Pfaff Motorsports and the drivers’ title to Robichon and Vanthoor. The podium in the season finale ended an impressive string of three victories and two second-place finishes in the second half. In all, the pair took four wins and six podiums in 10 starts to win the IMSA SportsCar Championship GTD class title.
With Pfaff Motorsport moving the GTD Pro in 2022[11], Robichon joined Wright Motorsports in its Porsche 911 GT3#991 GT3 R (2019–)|Porsche 911 GT3 R GTD class entry[12].
In his first race with his new team, he took a class victory in the 2022 24 Hours of Daytona with teammates Ryan Hardwick, Jan Heylen, and Richard Lietz.
Personal life
Robichon has degrees in business and finance.
Outside of racing, He owns an event management company that runs all the driving related activities for Porsche Canada. The company has a 30 staff that offers driving experiences for Porsche owners, track days, and winter safety courses.
References
- ↑ "Zach Robichon". Driver database. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
- ↑ Pappone, Jeff (June 28, 2013). "Young racer didn't start young enough for the big leagues". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 13 March 2022.
- ↑ "Zach Robichon". Driver Database. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
- ↑ Auto123.com. "Zacharie Robichon wins Can Am Cup". Auto123.com. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
- ↑ Lenzo, Anthony. "Sharing Lunch With……OOE Race Car Driver Zach Robichon". Mainstreeter. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
- ↑ McDonald, Norris. "All hail Zach Robichon". Toronto Star Wheels. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
- ↑ Sinclair, Adam. "Robichon completes weekend sweep for Moorespeed". Speedway Digest. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
- ↑ Dagys, John. "Olsen Joins Pfaff for Full Season Campaign". Sportscar 365. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
- ↑ Makse, Brian. "Canada's Pfaff Motorsports' Porsche was destined to wear plaid". IMSA.com. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
- ↑ Malsher-Lopez, David. "Vanthoor joins Robichon at Pfaff Motorsports in IMSA". Autosport. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
- ↑ McDonald, Norris. "Pfaff Motorsports moves up to IMSA pro class". Toronto Star Wheels. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
- ↑ Kish, Ryan. "Wright Motorsports calls on MPC champions for '22 GTD campaign". Racer. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
External links
This article "Zacharie Robichon" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical. Articles taken from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be accessed on Wikipedia's Draft Namespace.