Buddy Rice

Albert Lee "Buddy" Rice<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> (born January 31, 1976) is an American former race car driver. He is best known for winning the 2004 Indianapolis 500 while driving for Rahal Letterman Racing, and the 2009 24 Hours of Daytona for Brumos Racing.

Career

Early years

Born in Phoenix, Arizona, Buddy Rice is the son of a former drag racer. Rice's grandfather was from Indianapolis and passed on his interest in racing to Rice's father. Rice saw his first race when he was six years old. He started racing in go-karts when he was 11. Rice played baseball in high school in Phoenix, Arizona, and attracted the attention of college and professional scouts. However, both Rice and his father decided he would pursue a career in racing instead.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Rice's professional career began in 1996, when he drove in one U.S. F2000 event; he finished eighth after starting second. He also drove in the Dodge Shelby Pro Series, winning from the pole at Las Vegas, Nevada.

In 1997, Rice drove in F2000 for Lynx Racing/DSTP Motorsports, finishing fourth in points and winning at Phoenix. He also won the 1997 Valvoline Team USA Scholarship, where he represented the United States in Europe’s Nations Cup.

In 1998, he won from the pole at Nazareth. He finished seventh in Toyota Atlantic points, and won the Gilles Villeneuve Memorial Award. He finished fifth in the Toyota Atlantic championship in 1999, driving for Lynx Racing.

He won the 2000 Toyota Atlantic Series championship, which gained the attention of Red Bull Cheever Racing. In 2001, he tested with Red Bull Cheever Racing in November at California.

IRL IndyCar Series

In August 2002, Rice had his first race in the IRL for Red Bull Cheever Racing at Michigan International Speedway. Hired initially to replace crash-prone Tomas Scheckter, team owner Eddie Cheever discovered that Scheckter's contract was more iron-clad than first thought. Team Cheever then ran three entries (joined by their team owner), and the best crew and parts were given to Rice.Template:Citation needed Rice lost the race by inches to Scheckter, but made a mark in the series. He competed in the final five races of the IRL IndyCar Series season with Red Bull Cheever Racing, scoring four top-10 finishes and two top-five finishes in five starts.

In 2003, Rice competed in 13 of 16 races for Red Bull Cheever Racing but was replaced by the more experienced Alex Barron.

In November 2003, he dabbled with a one-off drive in a NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at the Homestead circuit before being called by Bobby Rahal to drive the No. 15 Argent Mortgage Honda when Kenny Bräck was injured in a late-race crash at Texas Motor Speedway in 2003.

File:2004 Buddy rice MIS winner.jpg

Buddy Rice in 2004 @ Michigan International Speedway, winner of the Michigan Indy 400

In 2004, Rice started on pole and won a rain-shortened Indianapolis 500, his first Indycar race victory. He finished 3rd in the IRL championship that year, earning five poles, three wins and leading 342 laps. After his Indy 500 win, his sponsors told him that they would buy him any car he wanted, he chose a 1949 Mercury Eight.

File:2004 MIS Buddy Rice winner cricle.jpg

Buddy Rice & Crew in 2004 @ Michigan International Speedway, in winner's circle of the Michigan Indy 400

File:BuddyRiceMil2007.jpg

Rice driving at the Milwaukee Mile in 2007

For 2005 he and Vítor Meira were joined by Danica Patrick. However, Rice was injured in a crash at Indianapolis during practice, and was not cleared to race. In an ironic twist, Bräck then substituted for Rice.

The 2006 season began tragically for Rice at the season-opening race at Homestead-Miami Speedway when teammate Paul Dana of Rahal Letterman Racing team was killed in the final practice session. Rice and his other teammate Danica Patrick immediately withdrew from the race. Rice started his 2006 season in the following race at St. Petersburg, Florida. His Indianapolis 500 race ended early in a crash with Hélio Castroneves. After the IRL season ended, he raced in the Champ Car World Series race at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez for Forsythe Racing and finished 10th.

File:BuddyPostQualify.JPG

Buddy Rice recovers from a tough qualification attempt prior to the 2007 Indianapolis 500.

For 2007, Rice joined Sarah Fisher at Dreyer & Reinbold Racing. He captured 3 top-five finishes in the first half of the season and finished 9th in points, his best result since 2004. He was retained by the team for the 2008 IndyCar season, the high point of which came with a 4th-place finish at Watkins Glen. He ultimately finished 16th in points.

He did not participate in the 2009 IndyCar Series season after being released from Dreyer & Reinbold Racing at the end of the 2008 season. Further, his long-standing partnership with Red Bull also expired and was not renewed.Template:Citation needed

He raced for Panther Racing in the 2011 Indianapolis 500 as a teammate to J. R. Hildebrand driving the No. 44 Honda Dallara.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

A1 Grand Prix

Starting the 2007-08 season, Rice signed to drive for A1 Team USA in the A1 Grand Prix international racing series.<ref>Buddy Rice, an American champion, to drive for A1 TEAM USA in season opener at Zandvoort Template:Webarchive, A1 Grand Prix, September 25, 2007. Retrieved 2009-12-8.</ref> He drove in the first two rounds of the season with a best finish of 13th in the Zandvoort feature race before ceding the seat to Jonathan Summerton for the remainder of the season.

Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series

Rice competed in a few Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series in the early 2000s. In his debut in 2000, he finished second at Watkins Glen on a TRP Lola Nissan. In 2002 he resulted second at the 6 Hours of Watkins Glen and fourth in Homestead and Phoenix, driving a Miracle Riley & Scott Ford.

The driver competed at the 24 Hours of Daytona from 2005 to 2008, with a best result of 9th in 2006. He also raced at Utah from 2006 to 2008, collecting a 7th again in 2006.

In 2009, Rice won the 24 Hours of Daytona on a Brumos Racing Riley Porsche. He spent the second half of the season as teammate of Antonio García in a Spirit of Daytona Coyote Porsche, where he finished 4th at Barber in his only top 10.

Rice raced full-time for Spirit of Daytona in the 2010 Rolex Sports Car Series, joining again García. He helped Spirit of Daytona get the first podium finish for the team at the Six Hours of the Glen in 2010, collecting a third place. He also resulted 5th in three races and ended the season in 11th place.

His last Grand-Am race was the 2011 24 Hours of Daytona, where he finished 9th in an Action Express Racing Riley Porsche.

Personal

In his free time, Rice collects and restores classic cars. He has a child, Mina, who was born on April 9, 2008.

Motorsports career results

American open–wheel racing results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

USF2000 National Championship

Year	Entrant	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	Pos	Points
1996	???	WDW	STP	PIR Template:Small	DSC1 Template:Small	MOS	IRP Template:Small	RIR	WGI1	WGI2	MDO	NHS	LVS Template:Small	???	???
1997	Lynx Racing	WDW Template:Small	STP Template:Small	PIR Template:Small	DSC1 Template:Small	DSC2 Template:Small	SAV Template:Small	PPI Template:Small	CHA1 Template:Small	CHA2 Template:Small	MDO Template:Small	WGI Template:Small	WGI Template:Small	4th	153

Atlantic Championship

Year	Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	Rank	Points
1998	Lynx Racing	LBH Template:Small	NAZ Template:Small	GAT Template:Small	MIL Template:Small	MTL Template:Small	CLE Template:Small	TOR Template:Small	TRR Template:Small	MDO Template:Small	ROA Template:Small	VAN Template:Small	LS Template:Small	HOU	7th	108
1999	Lynx Racing	LBH Template:Small	NAZ Template:Small	GAT Template:Small	MIL Template:Small	MTL Template:Small	ROA Template:Small	TRR Template:Small	MDO Template:Small	CHI Template:Small	VAN Template:Small	LS Template:Small	HOU Template:Small		5th	113
2000	DSTP Motorsports	HMS1 Template:Small	HMS2 Template:Small	LBH Template:Small	MIL Template:Small	MTL Template:Small	CLE Template:Small	TOR Template:Small	TRR Template:Small	ROA Template:Small	LS Template:Small	GAT Template:Small	HOU Template:Small		1st	185
2002	DSTP Motorsports	MTY	LBH	MIL	LS Template:Small	POR Template:Small	CHI Template:Small	TOR Template:Small	CLE Template:Small	TRR	ROA	MTL	DEN		17th	31

IRL IndyCar Series

Year	Team	Chassis	No.	Engine	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	Rank	Points	Ref
2002	Red Bull Cheever	Dallara	53	Infiniti	HMS	PHX	FON	NZR	INDY	TXS	PPIR	RIR	KAN	NSH	MIS Template:Small	KTY Template:Small								22nd	140	<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
			52														STL Template:Small	CHI Template:Small	TX2 Template:Small
2003	Cheever Racing			Chevrolet	HMS Template:Small	PHX Template:Small	MOT Template:Small	INDY Template:Small	TXS Template:Small	PPIR Template:Small	RIR Template:Small	KAN Template:Small	NSH Template:Small	MIS Template:Small	STL Template:Small	KTY Template:Small	NZR Template:Small	CHI	FON	TX2				16th	229	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2004	Rahal Letterman Racing	G-Force	15	Honda	HMS Template:Small	PHX Template:Small	MOT Template:Small	INDY Template:Small	TXS Template:Small	RIR Template:Small	KAN Template:Small	NSH Template:Small	MIL Template:Small	MIS Template:Small	KTY Template:Small	PPIR Template:Small	NZR Template:Small	CHI Template:Small	FON Template:Small	TX2 Template:Small				3rd	485	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2005		Panoz			HMS Template:Small	PHX Template:Small	STP Template:Small	MOT Template:Small	INDY Inj	TXS Template:Small	RIR Template:Small	KAN Template:Small	NSH Template:Small	MIL Template:Small	MIS Template:Small	KTY Template:Small	PPIR Template:Small	SNM Template:Small	CHI Template:Small	WGL Template:Small	FON Template:Small			15th	295	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2006					HMS Wth1	STP Template:Small	MOT Template:Small	INDY Template:Small	WGL Template:Small								SNM Template:Small							15th	234	<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
		Dallara								TXS Template:Small	RIR Template:Small	KAN Template:Small	NSH Template:Small	MIL Template:Small	MIS Template:Small	KTY Template:Small		CHI Template:Small
2007	Dreyer & Reinbold Racing				HMS Template:Small	STP Template:Small	MOT Template:Small	KAN Template:Small	INDY Template:Small	MIL Template:Small	TXS Template:Small	IOW Template:Small	RIR Template:Small	WGL Template:Small	NSH Template:Small	MDO Template:Small	MIS Template:Small	KTY Template:Small	SNM Template:Small	DET Template:Small	CHI Template:Small			9th	360	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2008					HMS Template:Small	STP Template:Small	MOT2 Template:Small	LBH2 Template:Small	KAN Template:Small	INDY Template:Small	MIL Template:Small	TXS Template:Small	IOW Template:Small	RIR Template:Small	WGL Template:Small	NSH Template:Small	MDO Template:Small	EDM Template:Small	KTY Template:Small	SNM Template:Small	DET Template:Small	CHI Template:Small	SRF3 Template:Small	16th	306	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2011	Panther Racing		44		STP	ALA	LBH	SAO	INDY Template:Small	TXS1	TXS2	MIL	IOW	TOR	EDM	MDO	NHM	SNM	BAL	MOT	KTY Template:Small	LVS Template:Small		34th	42	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>

¹ Rahal-Letterman Racing withdrew both Rice and teammate Danica Patrick from competition when fellow teammate Paul Dana was killed in a race-morning practice session accident.

² Races run on same day.

³ Non-points-paying, exhibition race.

Years	Teams	Races	Poles	Wins	Podiums (Non-win)	Top 10s (Non-podium)	Indianapolis 500 Wins	Championships
8	4	99	5	3	5	35	1 (2004)	0

Indianapolis 500

Year	Chassis	Engine	Start	Finish	Team
2003	Dallara	Chevrolet	19	11	Cheever
2004	G-Force	Honda	1	1	Rahal Letterman
2005	Panoz	Honda	Practice crash		Rahal Letterman
2006	Panoz	Honda	14	26	Rahal Letterman
2007	Dallara	Honda	16	25	Dreyer & Reinbold
2008	Dallara	Honda	17	8	Dreyer & Reinbold
2011	Dallara	Honda	7	18	Panther

Champ Car World Series

Champ Car results
Year	Team	No.	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	Rank	Points	Ref
2006	Forsythe Championship Racing	7	LBH	HOU	MTY	MIL	POR	CLE	TOR	EDM	SJO	DEN	MTL	ROA	SRF	MXC Template:Small	23rd	11	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Complete A1 Grand Prix results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year	Entrant	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	DC	Points
2007–08	USA	NED SPR Template:Small	NED FEA Template:Small	CZE SPR Template:Small	CZE FEA Template:Small	MYS SPR	MYS FEA	ZHU SPR	ZHU FEA	NZL SPR	NZL FEA	AUS SPR	AUS FEA	RSA SPR	RSA FEA	MEX SPR	MEX FEA	SHA SPR	SHA FEA	GBR SPR	GBR SPR	12th	56

International Race of Champions

(key) (Bold – Pole position. * – Most laps led.)

International Race of Champions results
Season	Make	1	2	3	4	Pos.	Points	Ref
2005	Pontiac	DAY Template:Small	TEX Template:Small	RCH Template:Small	ATL Template:Small	4th	46	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Camping World Truck Series

NASCAR Camping World Truck Series results
Year	Team	No.	Make	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	Template:Tooltip	Pts	Ref
2003	SealMaster Racing	88	Chevy	DAY	DAR	MMR	MAR	CLT	DOV	TEX	MEM	MLW	KAN	KEN	GTW	MCH	IRP	NSH	BRI	RCH	NHA	CAL	LVS<	SBO	TEX	MAR	PHO	HOM 20	103rd	103	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>

External links

• Official Site
• Template:Racing-Reference driver
• IndyCar Driver Page
• Buddy Rice on the Honda site