Adrián Fernández

For other people named Adrián Fernández, seeAdrián Fernández (disambiguation).

In thisSpanish name,the first or paternalsurnameisFernándezand the second or maternal family name isMier.

Adrián Fernández Mier(born April 20, 1963) is a Mexican former professional race car driver and co-owner of theFernandez Racingteam.

Adrián Fernández
Fernández at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, Mexico City
Born	(1963-04-20)April 20, 1963 Mexico City,Mexico
Previous series
1981–1983, 1984–1986, 1987–1989, 1990–1991, 1992, 1993–2003, 2004–2005, 2006, 2007–2011	Mexican Touring Car Racing, Formula Vee, Formula K, Benelux Formula Ford, British Formula Ford, Mexican Formula Three, Indy Lights, CART World Series, IndyCar Series, Rolex Sports Car Series, American Le Mans Series, Le Mans Series, Intercontinental Le Mans Cup
Championship titles
1983, 1991, 2009	Mexican Formula Vee Champion, Mexican Formula Three Champion, American Le Mans Series LMP2 Class Champion
24 Hours of Le Manscareer
Years	2007, 2010–2012
Teams	Barazi-Epsilon, Aston Martin Racing
Best finish	2nd (2007)
NASCARXfinity Seriescareer
10 races run over 4 years
Best finish	74th (2005)
First race	2005 Telcel Motorola 200 (Mexico City)
Last race	2008 Corona Mexico 200 (Mexico City)
Wins Top tens Poles 2

Racing career

Early career

Fernández was born inMexico Cityand began his career in Mexico at the age of eight. He entered his first auto race in 1981 at the "24 Hours of Mexico" race in Mexico City. At the age of 15, he made the permanent transition to cars in 1982. From 1982 to 1984, Fernández competed in theFormula VeeChampionship, winning the title in both 1983 and 1984. He also raced in the Formula K Series in 1984, continuing in that series until 1986, and finished in the top four in the standings all three years in Formula K.

In 1987, he participated in the Benelux Formula Ford 1600 Championship, one race in the British RAC Formula Ford 1600 Championship, and competed in the Formula Ford Festival at Brands Hatch. From 1988 to 1989, he took part in the British RAC and Esso Formula Ford 1600 Championship series before moving to the Mexican F3 Championship in 1990 and 1991, winning the title in 1991.

In 1992, Fernández moved to theUnited Statesto compete in the Firestone Indy Lights Championship, now known as Indy NXT. He finished third in points, winning four races, a rookie record, setting a rookie record, and earned the honors of "Indy Lights Rookie of the Year," along with accumulating more than two million dollars in prize earnings.

CART, IROC, and IRL (1993–2004)

In 1993, Fernández made the jump to theCART IndyCar World Series,competing in five races forGalles Racing International.He participated in his first full season in 1994, with Galles finishing 13th and capturing the "Marco Magaña" and "Luchador Olmeca" awards along with the "JAC" trophy for "Best Driver" outside Mexico.Competing again with Galles in 1995, Fernández finished 12th in the standings, placing with nine top-ten finishes.

Fernández moved toTasman Motorsportsin 1996. He had six top-ten finishes, including his first career CART victory atToronto.Unfortunately, his delight at taking his first win was dampened by the fatal accident suffered byJeff Krosnofflate in the race. The win in Toronto made him the first Mexican to win a CART event sinceHéctor Rebaquein 1982. Fernández went on to finish 12th in the season's points tally. 1997 was a disappointing season for Fernández. The Tasman team ran aLolachassis, which failed to perform to expectations. Through force of will, determination, and talent, Fernández battled to three top-ten finishes and 18th place in the PPG Cup standings.

Fernández joinedPatrick Racingfor the 1998 season and proved his ability to challenge for the championship. He enjoyed 14 top-ten finishes with eight top-five placements and two victories,JapanandMid-Ohio,en route to a 4th place showing in the PPG Cup race during the 1998 FedEx Championship. He captured his first career pole atMichiganand led the championship race for the first time in his career. Unfortunately, Fernández was once again touched by tragedy — a crash at Michigan resulted in an errant wheel from his car flying into the stands and killing three spectators.However, it was his victory during theMiller Lite 200that gave Patrick Racing one of its most memorable moments, when Fernández stood atop the podium next to his teammateScott Pruett.Fernández was also named the "Athlete of the Year" in Mexico.

In 1999, Fernandez enjoyed his most successful season so far in the series, Adrián Fernández, behind the wheel of the #40 Tecate/Quaker State Reynard Ford-Cosworth, completed the year sixth in the championship battle. He led the points' series early in the season for the first time in his CART career. However, an accident atBelle Isle Parkresulted in a fracture in one of his hands, forcing him to sit out for several races. Undeterred, he later won atMotegi,Japanat theFirestone Firehawk 500and at theMarlboro 500inFontana,California — a race marred by the death of good friendGreg Moore.

Later in 1999, Fernández was selected to participate in theIROCseries, where he competed against many top-tier drivers, includingNASCARdriversJeff Gordon,Terry Labonte,andDale Earnhardt.Fernández had 80 total starts in the series. Of those starts, he finished in the top-ten 41 times throughout his seven-year career.

Adrián Fernández

In 2000, Fernández had his best season in the CART series, coming close to winning the championship despite not starting on the front row all season. He scored points in 17 of the 20 races, including two wins atRio de Janeiro,BrazilandAustralia,and three further podium results. He finished second toGil de Ferranin the championship.

In 2001, he foundedFernandez Racing,with formerGanassimanager Tom Anderson as his partner and ex-F1 driverShinji Nakanoas his teammate. He finished 3rd twice and took two poles that year, but his team's first victory came atPortlandin 2003, the first win for an owner-driver sinceBobby Rahalachieved the feat in 1992. That year he also ran anIndy Racing League(IRL) entry for Asian-AmericanRoger Yasukawa,in partnership withAguri Suzuki,and in 2004, he moved the whole team to the series. Despite taking three wins and finishing 4th overall in the 2004 IRL championship, he was unable to secure funding to race in 2005.Delphiwas driverScott Sharp's personal sponsor, while engine suppliersHondainsisted on Japanese driverKosuke Matsuurain the second car.

Busch Series (2005–06)

In 2005, he drove the No. 5Lowe's/HitachiChevroletin Mexico forHendrick Motorsportsin the firstNASCARBusch Seriesrace held outside the United States. In this race (called theTelcel-Motorola 200), Fernández raced in a one-time race to help promote NASCAR racing to the local fans. He led several laps in the race before giving up the lead to eventual race winnerMartin Truex Jr.It was announced that he would run four more races in the Busch Series forHendrick Motorsports,but he did not run up front at any of those races. In 2006, he competed in two Busch races for Hendrick and competed full time in theGrand-Amseries for his own team with Lowe's sponsorship.

ALMS (2007–present)

Adrián Fernández in theAcura ARX-01B in 2008

In 2007, Fernández moved toAmerican Le Mans SeriesLMP2 class as anAcurafactory team. His teammate was fellow Mexican and Grand-Am veteranLuis Díaz.

On October 10, 2009, Fernández and his co-driver Luis Díaz won at theMazda Raceway Laguna SecainMonterey,California.With this victory, theLowe'sFernandez RacingAcura ARX-01B concludes the season with the drivers' championship and teams' championship of the American Le Mans Series in the LMP2 category.

24 Hours of Le Mans

In the2007Fernández made his debut with a second place in the LMP2 category in the famous race with the Barazi-Epsilon teamZytek aboard a 07S/23.4-liter V8 prototype. His teammates wereHaruki KurosawaandRobbie Kerr.This was the firstpodiumfor a Mexican at theCircuit de la Sarthein many years, to remember those achieved byRicardoandPedro Rodríguezin1962and1968respectively. The English-French team tookpole positionon its category.

TheLola-Aston Martin B09/60

After three years of absence, Fernández is now competing in the2010now competing in LMP1 class withAston Martin Racingfinished fifth in his category (sixth absolute) with aLola-Aston Martin B09/60,his co-drivers wereHarold PrimatandStefan Mücke.

The luck did not favor Adrian in2011,when his team, theAston Martin Racingin LMP1 class, could barely afford 2 laps with theirAston Martin AMR-Oneand leave the test due to problems with the engine running at the 56th site.

In the 80th edition of2012,Fernández and the Aston Martin Racing Team got third place in the GTE-Pro class, along with his co-drivers Stefan Mücke andDarren Turner,TheirAston Martin Vantage 4.5 L-V8covered a total of 332 laps (2,811.65miles), on the Circuit de la Sarthe without failure or serious mechanical problems. Also, the team achieved thefastest lapof the category with 3 minutes and 54,928 seconds. Adrián had the honor to drive the last stage of the competition.

On September 12, 2012, Fernández announced that his participation in theFIA World Endurance Championshipwould conclude at the end of the season, as well his relationship with the Aston Martin Racing team that started in 2010. The Mexican driver will focus on competitions in the United States.

Sergio Pérez's manager

On September 28, 2012Formula OnedriverSergio Pérezannounced that Férnandez would be his manager.

Turn 12 Adrián Fernández

In September 2016,Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguezhonored Fernández when they named Turn 12 of the circuit after him.

BRM P153

In 2024, Fernández acquired the legendaryBRM P153/05from a private collector. This Formula One car won the1970 Belgian Grand Prixunder the command of Mexican idolPedro Rodríguez.

BRM P153 on display

Personal life

Fernández retired from motorsports in 2012. He has two children: Valentina and Niko Fernández, and he married longtime girlfriend, former beauty queen, author, and retired actressPriscila Peraleson October 21, 2017. They got marriedon May 4, 2018, inMiami Beach, Florida.The couple announced their son, Adrián Fernández Jr. was born on October 29, 2020.

Motorsports career results

American Open-Wheel

(key)

CART results

Year	Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	Rank	Points	Ref
1993	Galles	SRF	PHX	LBH 23	INDY	MIL 21	DET 7	POR	CLE	TOR	MIS DNS	NHM	ROA 29	VAN	MDO	NZR	LS 12						24th	7
1994	Galles	SRF 13	PHX 10	LBH 8	INDY 28	MIL 16	DET 23	POR 10	CLE 7	TOR 13	MIS 23	MDO 6	NHM 8	VAN 22	ROA 5	NZR 21	LS 7						13th	46
1995	Galles	MIA 11	SRF 26	PHX 12	LBH 18	NZR 9	INDY 21	MIL 10	DET 6	POR 9	ROA 6	TOR 7	CLE 12	MIS 3	MDO 4	NHM 26	VAN 22	LS 10					12th	66
1996	Tasman	MIA 11	RIO 14	SRF 23	LBH 6	NZR 10	500 DNS	MIL 11	DET 4	POR 12	CLE 6	TOR 1	MIS 20	MDO 6	ROA 13	VAN 8	LS 11						12th	71
1997	Tasman	MIA 13	SRF 11	LBH 11	NZR 23	RIO 26	STL 8	MIL 24	DET 27	POR 10	CLE 17	TOR 14	MIS 26	MDO 23	ROA 12	VAN 19	LS 23	FON 3					18th	27
1998	Patrick	MIA 6	MOT 1*	LBH 4	NZR 26	RIO 3	STL 18	MIL 9	DET 2	POR 24	CLE 5	TOR 9	MIS 23	MDO 1	ROA 5	VAN 15	LS 7	HOU 6	SRF 6	FON 4			4th	154
1999	Patrick	MIA 20	MOT 1*	LBH 4	NZR 5	RIO 20	STL 21	MIL 5	POR 4	CLE 19	ROA 3	TOR 6	MIS 6	DET DNS	MDO Inj	CHI Inj	VAN Inj	LS 5	HOU 12	SRF 3	FON 1		6th	140
2000	Patrick	MIA 21	LBH 24	RIO 1	MOT 10	NZR 5	MIL 8	DET 21	POR 12	CLE 7	TOR 2	MIS 6	CHI 5	MDO 6	ROA 2	VAN 3	LS 12	STL 10	HOU 7	SRF 1	FON 5		2nd	158
2001	Fernández	MTY 19	LBH 16	TXS NH	NZR 19	MOT 16	MIL 5	DET 12	POR 19	CLE 21	TOR 3	MIS 25	CHI 10	MDO 22	ROA 3	VAN 21	LAU 24	ROC 23	HOU 14	LS 10	SRF 19	FON 18	18th	45
2002	Fernández	MTY 13	LBH 10	MOT 7	MIL 2	LS 18	POR 14	CHI 13	TOR 9	CLE 11	VAN 8	MDO Inj	ROA 18	MTL 12	DEN 4	ROC 14	MIA 7	SRF 17	FON Inj	MXC Inj			14th	59
2003	Fernández	STP 15	MTY 4	LBH 2	BRH 12	LAU 15	MIL 6	LS 7	POR 1	CLE 11	TOR 9	VAN 12	ROA 12	MDO 7	MTL 8	DEN 5	MIA 8*	MXC 8	SRF 12	FON NH			8th	105

IndyCar Series results

Year	Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	Rank	Points	Ref
2004	Aguri-Fernández Racing	HMS	PHX 20	MOT 18	INDY 7	TXS 5	RIR 7	KAN 6	NSH 10	MIL 8	MIS 12	KTY 1	PPIR 2	NZR 7	CHI 1	FON 1	TX2 5		5th	445
2005	Aguri-Fernández Racing	HMS	PHX	STP	MOT	INDY 14	TXS	RIR	KAN	NSH	MIL	MIS	KTY	PPIR	SNM	CHI	WGL	FON	29th	16

Complete American Le Mans Series results

Year	Entrant	Class	Chassis	Engine	Tires	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	Rank	Points	Ref
2007	Lowe'sFernández Racing	LMP2	Lola B06/43	Acura3.4L V8	M	SEB ovr:3 cls:2	STP ovr:6 cls:4	LNB ovr:8 cls:7	TEX ovr:8 cls:7	UTA ovr:7 cls:5	LIM ovr:Ret cls:Ret	MID ovr:4 cls:3	AME ovr:8 cls:6	MOS ovr:8 cls:6	DET ovr:6 :cls:4	PET ovr:Ret cls:Ret	MON ovr:5 cls:3	11th	102
2008	Lowe'sFernandez Racing	LMP2	Acura ARX-01b	Acura3.4L V8	M	SEB ovr:DSQ cls:DSQ	STP ovr:10 cls:7	LNB ovr:8 cls:6	UTA ovr:5 cls:5	LIM ovr:5 cls:4	MID ovr:5 cls:3	AME ovr:Ret cls:Ret	MOS ovr:4 cls:2	DET ovr:23 cls:9	PET ovr:Ret cls:Ret	MON ovr:9 cls:7		12th	88
2009	Lowe'sFernández Racing	LMP2	Acura ARX-01b	Acura3.4L V8	M	SEB ovr:4 cls:1	STP ovr:2 cls:1	LNB ovr:3 cls:1	UTA ovr:3 cls:1	LIM ovr:7 cls:2	MID ovr:3 cls:1	AME ovr:3 cls:1	MOS ovr:3 cls:1	PET ovr:21 cls:2	MON ovr:2 cls:1			1st	217
2010	Aston Martin Racing	LMP1	Lola-Aston Martin B09/60	Aston Martin6.0 L V12	M	SEB ovr:3 cls:3								PET				NC	-
		LMP					LNB ovr:2 cls:2	MON	UTA	LIM	MID	AME	MOS
2011	Aston Martin Racing	LMP1	Lola-Aston Martin B09/60	Aston Martin6.0 L V12	M	SEB	LNB	LIM	MOS	MID	AME	BAL	MON ovr:1 cls:1	PET ovr:3 cls:3				7th	25
2012	Aston Martin Racing	LMGTE Pro	Aston Martin Vantage GTE	Aston Martin4.5 L V8	M	SEB ovr:34 cls:3												NC	-
		GT					LNB ovr:11 cls:5	MON ovr:17 cls:8	LIM	MOS	MID	AME	BAL	VIR	PET

24 Hours of Le Mans results

Year	Team	Co-Drivers	Car	Class	Laps	Pos.	Class Pos.
2007	Barazi-Epsilon Zytek Engineering	Haruki Kurosawa Robbie Kerr	Zytek07S/2	LMP2	301	27th	2nd
2010	Aston Martin Racing	Harold Primat Stefan Mücke	Lola-Aston Martin B09/60	LMP1	365	6th	5th
2011	Aston Martin Racing	Harold Primat Andy Meyrick	Aston Martin AMR-One	LMP1	2	DNF	DNF
2012	Aston Martin Racing	Stefan Mücke Darren Turner	Aston Martin Vantage GTE	GTE Pro	332	19th	3rd
Sources:

NASCAR

(key) (Bold– Pole position awarded by qualifying time.Italics– Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Nationwide Series

NASCARNationwide Seriesresults
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	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33	34	35	NNSC	Pts	Ref
2005	Hendrick Motorsports	5	Chevy	DAY	CAL	MXC 10	LVS	ATL	NSH	BRI	TEX	PHO	TAL	DAR	RCH	CLT	DOV	NSH	KEN	MLW	DAY	CHI	NHA	PPR	GTY	IRP	GLN	MCH	BRI	CAL 28	RCH	DOV	KAN	CLT 40	MEM	TEX 43	PHO 28	HOM 42	74th	411
2006		57		DAY	CAL	MXC 12	LVS	ATL	BRI	TEX	NSH	PHO	TAL	RCH	DAR	CLT	DOV	NSH	KEN	MLW	DAY	CHI	NHA	MAR	GTY	IRP	GLN 17	MCH	BRI	CAL	RCH	DOV	KAN	CLT	MEM	TEX	PHO	HOM	87th	239
2007		5		DAY	CAL	MXC 9	LVS	ATL	BRI	NSH	TEX	PHO	TAL	RCH	DAR	CLT	DOV	NSH	KEN	MLW	NHA	DAY	CHI	GTY	IRP	CGV	GLN	MCH	BRI	CAL	RCH	DOV	KAN	CLT	MEM	TEX	PHO	HOM	115th	138
2008	JR Motorsports			DAY	CAL	LVS	ATL	BRI	NSH	TEX	PHO	MXC 14	TAL	RCH	DAR	CLT	DOV	NSH	KEN	MLW	NHA	DAY	CHI	GTY	IRP	CGV	GLN	MCH	BRI	CAL	RCH	DOV	KAN	CLT	MEM	TEX	PHO	HOM	110th	121

International Race of Champions

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

International Race of Championsresults
Year	Make	1	2	3	4	Pos.	Points	Ref
1999	Pontiac	DAY 7	TAL 6	MCH 10	IND	10th	28

Bibliography

• CART Communications Staff (2002).CART FedEx Championship Series Media Guide.Championship Auto Racing Teams, Inc.

External links

• Official website
• Adrián Fernándezdriver statistics at Racing-Reference