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Nicolas Todt has sold his shares in ART Grand Prix to current shareholders within the team, cutting his ties with the junior driver outfit. Todt co-founded the team with current Sauber team principal Frederic Vasseur in 2004.
The team has gone on to find major success in the junior racing categories, working with drivers who have gone on to find fortune in F1, including Nico Rosberg, Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc. It has won every GP3 teams' championship, bar one, in 2014.
It has also been a long-time front-runner in the GP2/Formula 2 series. In 2015 and 2016, it competed in DTM, before returning its main focus to the Formula 1 junior categories.
"I founded ART Grand Prix with Nicolas at a time when pooling our individual areas of expertise could benefit all parties involved,” Vasseur said. “There has certainly been synergy since its birth in 2004, with ART Grand Prix achieving most of the goals it had set and Nicolas playing a large part in the overall success of the company. Without him, this development would not have been possible.
“Today the evolution of ART Grand Prix, mine and that of Nicolas, naturally led us to take different paths in a win-win strategy that will allow everyone to continue their career in the best conditions. I thank Nicolas for these years of collaboration which have been extremely rich in results and wish him the best for 2019 and the years to come.”
Todt added: “I am very proud to have contributed to the creation and development of this team, which has always enjoyed great success,” Todt said. “Its corporate culture, which focuses on young people and allows them to flourish, is a trademark of ART Grand Prix and to its credit.
“ART Grand Prix has allowed the emergence of young talents at all levels of the company: mechanics, engineers and of course drivers who are the visible part of this iceberg and some of whom have subsequently made their mark in the history of F1.
“My experience at ART Grand Prix has been rich in lessons as well as a catalyst for my activities in motorsport. I wish ART Grand Prix and all those who are associated with it to continue on the same path of excellence and to fight at the forefront in the various championships in which they will participate.”
Grand Prix of Belgium
G. Zhou
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calle.itw
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Very well-written article, but it might be prudent in the future to have Nicolas' full name in the header, since there are at least 2 Todts around in motorsport. :)