Robert Doornbos is no longer 26 years young. He’s 27 now! Congratulations to the man also known as Bobby D.
Although Tom Coronel considers Carlo van Dam (he impressed this season by winning the Japanese Formula 3 title) as the most talented Dutch driver at the moment, it’s Doornbos who’s making the headlines. After a disastrous first weekend in the new Superleague Formula he got his revenge with a pole and a win at the Nürburgring. And recently Jan Lammers announced Robert as one of the Team Netherlands drivers for the upcoming A1 Grand Prix season, along with Porsche Supercup champion Jeroen Bleekemolen.
The Dutch team will replicate what A1 Team France did in the inaugural season by alternating the drivers. Bleekemolen will take the opening round at Zandvoort, while Doornbos will make his debut at the Chinese Chengdu circuit. Bleekemolen will then drive at the Malaysian, Indonesian and Portuguese rounds as well as the yet to be announced venue on 29 March. Doornbos will be competing in the A1GP events in New Zealand, South Africa, Mexico and the season finale at Brands Hatch.
This will be a new chapter in his racing career for Doornbos. He fast tracked into Formula One, first as a test driver at Jordan and later at Minardi, via Formula 3 and F3000. He also impressed Red Bull Racing with drives that included the Chinese Grand Prix at the Shanghai International Circuit. This is the circuit where I witnessed his debut in Formula One in 2004 as Jordan’s Friday tester. There I first met the man with the everlasting smile on his face. He jumped in his yellow car, went to work and never looked back.
The same he did in the US. Once Doornbos jumped to the Champ Car World Series the fearless driver from Rotterdam was a serious title contender for most of the season with Minardi Team USA. He finished a very respectable third behind Bourdais and Wilson after a number of wins and podium finishes. For this he was crowned Rookie of the Year.
The Superleague Formula and A1 Grand Prix won’t satisfy Doornbos needs. If you look into Robert’s heart you’ll see a driver who would jump of the Euromast to get a drive in the Indy Car Series next year. His hopes were on Chip Ganassi, but Indy’s top team signed 2007 champ Dario Franchitti to replace Dan Wheldon. Brand new champ Scott Dixon will stay put with Ganassi, so Robert has to look elsewhere to find himself a seat. Last May we did the commentary on the Indy 500 together for Sport1. During that race he told the viewers that his race future lies in the Promised Land. Bobby D. belongs in America. Just give this man an Indy Car.
Ronald van Dam
(F1 watcher)
Ronald van Dam is the former chief editor of the Dutch magazine FORMULE 1. Currently he’s working as a commentator on auto sport for RTL GP.
