Timo Glock

2007:    GP2 Series: 1st (5 wins), Formula 1 - BMW Sauber: Test driver
2006:    GP2 Series: 4th (2 wins)
2005:    Champ Car World Series: 8th (Rookie of the Year)
2004:    Formula 1 - Jordan: Test driver/race driver
2003:    Formula 3 Euro Series: 5th (3 wins)
2002:    German Formula 3 Championship: 3rd (Rookie of the Year)
2001:    ADAC Formula BMW: 1st
2000:    ADAC Formula BMW Junior Cup: 1st
1998:    Began his motorsport career aged 15, racing in karts

He might be just 25, but Timo Glock has already had a varied and successful career in motorsport, arriving at Panasonic Toyota Racing as a proven champion.
For those who had not already spotted the young German on his globetrotting rise through the ranks, his 2007 GP2 Series campaign certainly brought him to the attention of the motorsport world. The GP2 Series is renowned as the toughest proving ground for young drivers in the world but Timo showed his fighting spirit and speed to win the championship at a nerve-wracking final round in Valencia. “Of course, to return to Formula 1 racing as GP2 Series champion is a real honour and we’ve all seen how well Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton have performed as champions so that is very encouraging,”
Timo says. “In the end, it did not make a difference to my Formula 1 plans whether I finished first or second in GP2 but it was a big achievement to win the title and a special moment for me.” Timo was born in Lindenfels, around 250km away from the Panasonic Toyota Racing factory in Cologne, Germany, and he quickly became fascinated by motorsport.
Motorsport is the focus of Timo’s life both on the track and away from it, and even when he has the chance to relax and have some fun, he is not too far away from four wheels. Like most aspiring drivers, he began racing in karts and he still enjoys a race with his friends - for him, racing and relaxation are inseparable.
He says: “When I have spare time I like to go karting with my friends. A lot of people ask why I would spend my spare time away from motorsport doing more motorsport but for me this is just natural. It’s what I love doing. I find it relaxing and I can really enjoy myself.” Timo not only has passion for motorsport, he has great determination to succeed, as he showed in his first test for the team in December.

2006, Timo Glock

Q+A with Timo Glock January 2008
What were your feelings on being named a Panasonic Toyota Racing driver?
It was a very special moment for me because to become a full-time Formula 1 race driver has been my goal for the past few years and it feels great to achieve that. I have worked hard over the past few years to get this opportunity and I must say I am grateful to the team for having faith in me. I am confident we will be able to work well together.

What were your first impressions of the team when you tested in December?
I enjoyed working with the team, we work well together and since I first met the guys at the factory in Cologne for the seat fitting, everything has been great. It was good fun to work with them, they do a really good job, everything is calm, there is no panic and they are concentrating the whole time – that is important.

How did you find driving without traction control?
I drove without traction control at Jerez in December but I am used to that from GP2 so it wasn’t a big problem, although of course in a Formula 1 car everything is a bit different. For me, I am looking forward to driving without driver aids and I think the new regulation will suit me.

How will it feel to line up on the grid in Australia for the first time as a full-time Formula 1 race driver?
I can’t wait. It will be a very proud and exciting moment for me but I will also be focused on getting the best possible result in the race, as always. Formula 1 will be a little different compared to the other series
I have raced in because I am racing against 21 of the best drivers in the world, but my job is still the same – to get the best possible result from my car.

How much experience do you have of the Formula 1 circuits?
I know almost all of the circuits on the calendar. I know the European tracks very well from GP2 but also from 2004, when I was test driver at Jordan. During that season some teams were able to run three cars
on a Friday so I drove at most of the tracks, which gives me a good start for next season. There are two or three tracks which are new to me but I learn quickly and the new computer games are pretty useful for learning new circuits! It shouldn’t be a problem.

What are your targets for 2008?
I want to have the most successful season possible. I aim to be consistent and to help the team move upwards. My first goal will be to regularly challenge for points and I believe we will be able to do that.

Are you optimistic for the future of Panasonic Toyota Racing?
Very much so. The facility in Cologne and the resources available are just perfect at the moment. There is a huge amount of potential at Toyota - everything is very professional and it is clear the team is determined to move forwards. Our challenge is to bring it all together to get the results we want and I am quite confident about that.

Do you feel any pressure as the new race driver for a works team like Panasonic Toyota Racing?
There is always pressure to succeed as a racing driver. When I moved to Champ Cars and GP2 there was pressure to prove I deserved another chance in Formula 1. I have proved that and now there is pressure
to prove I belong in Formula 1 - I am confident I can prove that this year. As a racing driver you accept this kind of pressure and it doesn’t affect you.

How easy will it be to adjust to racing in F1 again?
Even though I have not raced in Formula 1 since 2004, I have tested quite regularly so I expect it will take very little time for me to get back in the groove. I have been lucky enough to race and succeed in several different championships in my career but my goal has always been to 36 become a full-time Formula 1 race driver. I believe my experience has made me stronger as a driver and as a person.

How important was the GP2 title to you?
Of course, to return to Formula 1 racing as GP2 Series champion is a real honour and we’ve all seen how well Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton have performed as champions so that is very encouraging.
In the end, it did not make a difference to my Formula 1 plans whether I finished first or second in GP2 but it was a big achievement to win the title and a special moment for me.

Timo Glock will race for Panasonic Toyota Racing in 2008.

Timo, the reigning GP2 Series champion, has signed a multi-year contract and the team hopes an agreement can be reached with BMW Sauber to allow him to test at Jerez on December 4-6.

Chairman and Team Principal Tadashi Yamashina said: "It is with great pleasure that we confirm Timo Glock will race for Panasonic Toyota Racing in 2008. I am convinced Timo has the potential to help this team move forward and achieve its aims."

"Timo has great experience of motorsport in several different categories and he reinforced his reputation by winning the highly competitive GP2 Series, which we have already seen is fantastic preparation for Formula 1. He has demonstrated a fighting spirit and good race craft in GP2 so we believe he is the right man for the job."

Timo said:"It's a great feeling to be a Formula 1 race driver again and I am really looking forward to this new challenge. I have worked hard over the past few years to get this opportunity and I must say I am grateful to Panasonic Toyota Racing for having faith in me."
 

"From what I have seen of the team at the track I am confident we will be able to work well together to move forward. Even though I have not raced in Formula 1 since 2004, I have tested quite regularly so I expect it will take very little time for me to get back in the groove."

"I have been lucky enough to race and succeed in several different championships in my career but my goal has always been to become a full-time Formula 1 race driver. I believe this experience has made me stronger as a driver and as a person.
Of course, to return to Formula 1 racing as GP2 Series champion is a real honour and we've all seen how well Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton have performed as champions so that is very encouraging. I hope I can also make a strong impression next season.
Now I have achieved my goal of returning to Formula 1, my next target is to work towards making 2008 a successful season for myself and Panasonic Toyota Racing."

The 25-year-old German is, like his new team, relatively young but has a wealth of different experience behind him since taking his first steps into the world of motorsport as a 15-year-old in karts.

After just two years of kart racing he stepped up to single-seaters and enjoyed an impressive rise through the ranks to Formula 1, via ADAC Formula BMW and Formula 3. At just 22 he was a Grand Prix racer with an unexpected Jordan debut in Canada in 2004, where he joined an exclusive list of drivers to score points in their first race, thanks to his seventh place.

Three more races followed at the end of the season before a switch to the United States for 2005, where he marked himself out as a rising star by taking Rookie of the Year honours, with a best finish of second, coincidentally also in Montreal.

However, the lure of Formula 1 was too great and he returned to prove his credentials in GP2. That looked a wise move this year when he came out on top of a tough title battle and he follows previous champions Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton into a full-time Formula 1 race drive.

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Timo Glock (born March 10, 1982 in Lindenfels, Germany) is a motor racing driver. At the 2004 Formula One Canadian Grand Prix, standing in for Giorgio Pantano who had a contract dispute with Jordan Grand Prix, he joined a select group of drivers who have scored a World Championship point in their first Formula One race.

He began his motorsport career in 1997 at age 15. He has won several karting championships as well as the BMW ADAC Formula Junior Cup in 2000 and the BMW ADAC Formula Championship in 2001. In his first International German Formula 3 season in 2002, he finished third in the standings en route to rookie of the year honors. In 2003, he competed in the European Formula 3 Championship, winning three races and scoring three other podium finishes, which were enough to place him in fifth position in the Championship. In addition to making his Formula 1 debut in Canada in 2004, he finished out the season for Jordan Grand Prix, taking over for the last three races.

In 2005, Glock shifted his racing career to the United States, racing in the Champ Car World Series with Paul Gentilozzi's Rocketsports team. His best finish of the year was a second place finish at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal on August 28, where he was defeated by Oriol Servia. In the closing laps of the race Glock twice managed to retain the lead over Servia by missing the track's final chicane. As the rules require drivers who blatantly gain or retain a position by driving off the racing surface to give way, Timo was asked to move over by Champ Car officials, and let Servia take the lead. Timo obliged midway through the final lap, giving him enough time to try and take the lead back, but to no avail. Glock went on to finish 8th in the final season points standings and win Champ Car World Series Rookie of the Year honors. He will race in the GP2 Series in 2006 with hopes to getting a Formula One drive back.