Fairuz Fauzy

Mohamed Fairuz Fauzy is a Malaysian racing driver who spent six seasons in Formula Renault 3.5 Series and GP2 Series, two single-seater competitions which were just a step beneath Formula 1.

He never got a chance to race in Formula 1, serving just as a test driver for Lotus Racing in 2010. Fairuz currently competes in different Asian GT competitions.

Fairuz Fauzy

Fairuz started car racing career in the UK

Born in October 1982 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Fairuz started a racing career in karting competitions in 1994. He switched to bigger cars in 2000, moving to the UK and participating in British Formula Ford.

A year later, he raced in the Formula Renault 2.0 UK and then in National Class of the British Formula 3 in 2002. He stayed in the main class of the Formula 3 for two more seasons, driving for four different teams.

GP2 Series debut in 2005

In 2005, Fairuz made a debut in the GP2 Series with French DAMS team. He failed to score points in 23 races, finishing best in seventh place. In the off-season, he joined A1 Team Malaysia in three rounds of the A1 Grand Prix Series.

Despite disappointing results in his rookie season, Fairuz stayed in the GP2 Series in 2006, moving to British Super Nova Racing.  He again scored no points, with seventh place at Silverstone as his best result.

Moving to  Formula Renault 3.5 Series in 2007

In 2007, Fairuz moved to another single-seater series, participating with Cram Competition in the Formula Renault 3.5 Series. His performance significantly improved and he scored three podiums, finishing 11th in the points. In the same year, he had an opportunity for a test drive in a Formula 1 car with Spyker MF1 team.

In the 2008 FR 3.5 Series season, he joined Fortec Motorsport in the third round and stayed with the team until the end of the season. He was on a podium in Monaco, finishing third. In the same season, he contested with Super Nova International in the GP2 Asia Series, scoring one victory and two more podiums for the 4th-place finish.

Runner-up in the 2009 Formula Renault 3.5 Series

The season 2009 was his best in ladder single-seater competitions. He was driving for Fortec Motorsport in the Formula Renault 3.5 Series, finishing second in the final standings, behind Bertrand Baguette. Fairuz scored his maiden win at Hungaroring and added four more podiums later in the season.

Such a good result finally secured him a place in the Formula 1 team. In December 2009, he was confirmed as a third driver for Lotus Racing in the 2010 Formula 1 season.

Fairuz Fauzy in 2010

Participating in five Formula 1 Grand Prix weekends

Jarno Trulli and Heikki Kovalainen were the main drivers for Lotus in 2010. Fairuz had a first opportunity to participate in a practice session at his home race, the Malaysian Grand Prix at Sepang.

The next event was the British Grand Prix at Silverstone in December. Until the end of the season, he participated in three more Grand Prix events – German GP, Singapore GP and Abu Dhabi GP. At the end of the season, Fairuz and Lotus parted their ways.

Fairuz Fauzy in 2010 as Lotus Racing driver

Return to GP2 and FR 3.5 Series

For the 2011 F1 season, the Group Lotus withdrew his backing from Lotus Racing and switched to Renault, taking Fairuz as one of reserve drivers, but he never drove an F1 car again. He returned to GP2 Series instead, joining Super Nova Racing. In 18 races, his best result was the fifth place and he finished 18th in the points. He also participated in four races of the GP2 Asia Series.

In the mid-season, Fairuz also joined Mofaz Racing in the Formula Renault 3.5 Series, as a replacement for Chris van der Drift. He participated in five rounds until the end of the season, finishing best in the third place at Nürburgring.

Fairuz Fauzy in 2013

Switching to sports car racing in 2012

The end of the season 2011 was also the end of the single-seater racing career for Fairuz. In 2012, he made a debut in the sports car racing, participating as a guest at Sepang 300 km race, a part of the Japanese Super GT Series. He was sharing the #69 Mosler MT900 M with Hiroki Yoshida, not finishing the race.

In 2013, Fairuz started in two Super GT races, driving the #30 Audi R8 LMS for apr team at Okayama and Fuji Speedway. He and Yuki Iwasaki finished 14th in the GT300 class at Okayama and 15th at Fuji. In 2013, Fairuz also appeared in one race of the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia.

Fairuz Fauzy in 2017

Diverse GT programme with different teams and cars

His sports car racing career continued in the Lamborghini Super Trofeo in 2014 and then in the Asian GT Championship with OD Racing's Lamborghini Gallardo in 2015. He also joined ARC Bratislava to drive an Audi R8 LMS in the 2015/2016 Asian Le Mans Series.

For the next season in the Asian Le Mans Series, he joined OD Racing to drive a McLaren 650S GT3. In 2017, he also joined Arrows Racing in the Blancpain GT Series Asia, driving a Porsche 911 GT3 R.

Photos: Fairuz Fauzy Official FB, Getty Images,