Indianapolis 500 victor Gil de Ferran has passes away at 56
The Brazilian worked for McLaren as a consultant after serving as Sporting Director.
Gil de Ferran, the winner of the 2003 Indianapolis 500 and a two-time CART champion, passed away at the age of 56. The Brazilian suffered a heart attack while racing with his son at The Concourse Club in Florida on December 29th. De Ferran, who secured back-to-back CART titles in 2000 and 2001, set a land speed record in 2000 with a lap speed of 241.428mph at California Speedway, a record that still stands.
After winning the 2003 Indy 500 with Penske, he later ventured into Formula 1 management with BAR-Honda in 2005. He joined McLaren in 2018 as Sporting Director, returned in a consultancy role in 2021, and was present at the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. McLaren Racing expressed deep condolences and highlighted de Ferran’s significant impact on the team, both on and off the track. He is survived by his wife Angela and children Anna and Luke.
