Didier Maurice Theys[1] (born 19 October 1956[2]) is a Belgian sports car driver.[3] He is a two-time overall winner of the 24 Hours of Daytona (1998 and 2002);[4] a winner of the 12 Hours of Sebring (1998);[5] the Sports Racing Prototype driver champion of the Grand-American Road Racing Association (2002)[6] and the winner of the 24 Hours of Spa (1987 in a factory BMW).[7] He was also the polesitter (1996) and a podium finisher at the 24 Hours of Le Mans (1997, 1998 and 1999). The podium finish in 1999 was a third overall in the factory Audi R8R with co-drivers Emanuele Pirro and Frank Biela.[8] Theys' first appearance at Le Mans was in 1982, while his last start in the world's most famous endurance sports car race came 20 years later in 2002.
| Didier Theys | |
|---|---|
 Didier Theys in 1991 | |
| Nationality |  Belgian |
| Born | 19 October 1956 |
Formula racing
editTheys won the Belgium Karting championship in 1977. Later he competed in several feeder formulae: he won several Formula Ford championships in the late 1970s and early 1980s; the U.S. Bosch Super Vee championship in 1986; and the American Racing Series (now Indy Lights) championship in 1987. He was also successful in the European Formula Three Championship and Formula 2 in the 1980s. He finished third in the Monaco Formula 3 Grand Prix in 1985.
Theys competed in the CART Indy Car Series from 1987 to 1993 with 47 career starts,[9] including the Indianapolis 500 three times (1989, 1990 and 1993).[10] He finished in the top ten 10 times in CART events, and his best career finish in that series was a third position in Miami in 1988.
IMSA
editTheys ran the IMSA GT Championship in 1995 on a Ferrari 333SP. He finished fourth in 1996, 11th in 1997 and 6th in the series' final season in 1998.
1998 season
editTheys' 1998 victories at Daytona and Sebring came in the Kevin Doran-prepared MOMO Ferrari with co-drivers Mauro Baldi, Arie Luyendyk and Giampiero Moretti.[11] His 2002 Daytona victory came in the Doran Lista Dallara Judd with co-drivers Baldi, Fredy Lienhard and Max Papis.[12]
His 1998 season was a record-setter, as in addition to winning Daytona and Sebring, Theys also won the Six Hours of Watkins Glen.
He also finished second overall in the FIA Sportscar Championship that year, winning at Paul Ricard, France.
2000–2002 seasons
editIn addition to his Grand-Am driver championship in 2002, Theys finished third in the driver point standings in that series in 2001 and was the runner-up in 2000. He had four victories in his championship 2002 season, and established the largest margin of victory in series history in winning the race at Mont-Tremblant, Quebec from the pole that year.
After 2002
editPrior to retiring from pro racing in March 2009, Theys also competed in the Le Mans Series in Europe with Horag Racing from 2005 through 2008, winning the Monza 1,000 km race in the LMP2 category in 2007[13] and a similar event at the Nürburgring in 2005 in a Lola Judd. He finished his pro driving career in the Horag Racing-prepared Lista Office Porsche RS Spyder in the Le Mans Series' LMP2 division in 2008, finishing second in class at Spa and Silverstone, third at Monza and winning the Michelin Energy Challenge that season.
Theys also drove a Maserati MC 12 for Doran Racing in the ALMS in 2007, an effort that stunned the GT1 class when it beat the factory Corvettes to win the pole at the Petit Le Mans that year.
Accomplishments
editUpon his retirement from driving professionally, Theys had finished on the podium 61 times in sports car races all over the world, with 18 victories, 22 second-place finishes and 21 third-place finishes through the end of the 2008 season. He has the most professional victories of anyone in a Ferrari 333 SP with 10.
He received the prestigious Driver of the Year Award in his native Belgium in 2002.
Post-retirement
editTheys currently works as a racing driver coach and consultant. He is also the Driving Director of DrivingXllence Archived 20 August 2012 at the Wayback Machine, an automotive event company that allows guests to experience the exhilaration and adrenaline of being behind the wheel of the world's newest and best Supercars.[14][15]
Personal
editAlthough he never gave up his Belgium citizenship, Theys resides in Scottsdale, Ariz., for many years, and still lives there. That municipality honored him with the keys to the city in honor of his GRAND-AM driver championship and second 24 Hours of Daytona victory. He is married to Florence Richardson.
Racing record
editComplete 24 Hours of Le Mans results
edit
Complete 24 Hours of Spa results
edit| Year | Team | Co-Drivers | Car | Class | Laps | Pos. | Class Pos. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | Kinley Luigi Racing
|
Patrick Nève Hans-Joachim Stuck
|
BMW 530i | T +2.5 | DNF | DNF | |
| 1980 |  TWR Mazda Motul Team
|
Jeff Allam Benoit Béguin John Morrison
|
Mazda RX-7 | T +2.5 | 358 | 21st | 4th |
| 1982 | Belgian Audi VW Club
|
Michel Maillien Jean Wansart
|
VW Scirocco GTI | Div.1 | DNF | DNF | |
| 1985 |  Eggenberger Motorsport
|
Pierre Dieudonné Carlo Rossi
|
Volvo 240 Turbo | Div.3 | 489 | 4th | 4th |
| 1986 |  RAS Sport
|
Thomas Lindström Ulf Granberg
|
Volvo 240 Turbo | Div.3 | 460 | DNF | DNF |
| 1987 | Waterloo Motors
|
Jean-Michel Martin Eric van de Poele |
BMW M3 | Div.2 | 481 | 1st | 1st |
| 1988 | Ford Texaco Eggenberger Racing Team
|
Gianfranco Brancatelli Bertrand Gachot
|
Ford Sierra RS 500 Cosworth | Div.3 | 506 | DNF | DNF |
| 1989 | BMW Belgium
|
Marc Duez Steve Soper
|
BMW 635 CSi | Div.2 | 182 | DNF | DNF |
| 1993 | Team Paduwa
|
Paul Belmondo Jean-Paul Libert
|
Porsche 964 Carrera 2 | PRO GT | 279 | 16th | 16th |
American open–wheel racing results
edit(key)
Formula Super Vee
edit| Year | Team | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | Rank | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Martini USA | Martini MK 47, MK 50 | VW Bertils | LBH 4 |
IRP 1 |
MIL |
DET Ret |
MEA 1 |
CLE 1 |
ROA1 13 |
MDO 8 |
ROA2 2 |
LS 2 |
PHX Ret |
MIA 1 |
STP 1 |
1st | 155 |
PPG Indycar Series
edit(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position)
References
edit- ^ "Pilote des 24 heures du Mans : Didier Maurice Theys". www.24h-en-piste.com (in French). Retrieved 3 July 2023.
- ^ Belgium. "Didier Theys «". Oldracingcars.com. Retrieved 11 April 2010.
- ^ "Sports-car ace Didier Theys retires from competition". Autoweek.com. 3 March 2009. Retrieved 11 April 2010.
- ^ O’Malley, J: "Daytona 24 Hours", David Bull Publishing, pps. 377 and 384.
- ^ "12 Hours of Sebring Winners / Sebring 12h >>> MotorSports Etc". MotorSports Etc. Archived from the original on 25 March 2010. Retrieved 11 April 2010.
- ^ Hyde, C: "Grand American Road Racing Yearbook 2002", Stalker International Editions, p. 129
- ^ "24 h spa". Total24hours.com. Archived from the original on 11 February 2010. Retrieved 11 April 2010.
- ^ "Le Mans Register – 1999". Formula2.net. Retrieved 11 April 2010.
- ^ Bridgestone Presents the Champ Car World Series Powered by Ford 2006 Media Guide, Champ Car, p. 236
- ^ Davidson, D. and Shaffer, R: "Autocourse Official History of the Indianapolis 500", Crash Media Group Ltd., pps. 359, 360, 361.
- ^ O’Malley, J: "Daytona 24 Hours", David Bull Publishing, p. 377
- ^ O’Malley, J: "Daytona 24 Hours", David Bull Publishing, p. 384
- ^ "Reflecting on the career of Didier Theys – John Dagys – Motorsports Journalist". Thefastline.net. 3 March 2009. Archived from the original on 24 July 2011. Retrieved 11 April 2010.
- ^ della Cava, Marco R. (21 March 2012). "Two days, seven supercars, 4,000 hp: The ultimate driving experience". Yahoo! News.
- ^ Sky Brown, Laura. "Take a Ferrari Driving Adventure With DrivingXllence". edmunds Inside Line.
- ^ "1986 SCCA Robert Bosch Formula Super Vee Championship Didier Theys - Champion". champcarstats.com. Champ Car Stats. Archived from the original on 8 August 2017. Retrieved 23 June 2021.
- ^ "US Formula Super Vee 1986". oldracingcars.com. Old Racing Cars. Archived from the original on 5 November 2019. Retrieved 23 June 2021.
Despite Theys apparent dominance, Mike Groff led the championship table by eight points going into the last race and all he had to do was finish second to Theys to clinch the title. Theys duly won but Groff was beaten down into fourth by none other than Johnson himself, the 1985 champion returning to the series for the last three races in the same RT5/84 that he and Arie Luyendyk had won the previous two championships.
- ^ "Didier Theys – 1987 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved 16 August 2023.
- ^ "Didier Theys – 1988 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved 16 August 2023.
- ^ "Didier Theys – 1989 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved 16 August 2023.
- ^ "Didier Theys – 1990 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved 16 August 2023.
- ^ "Didier Theys – 1991 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved 16 August 2023.
- ^ "Didier Theys – 1992 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved 16 August 2023.
- ^ "Didier Theys – 1993 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved 16 August 2023.
- ^ "Didier Theys – 1994 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved 16 August 2023.
External links
edit- Didier Theys career summary at DriverDB.com