Robert Doornbos

Robert Doornbos is a Dutch former racing driver whose diverse career spanned Formula One, Champ Car, A1GP, and IndyCar. Though his time in F1 was relatively short, he raced under both Dutch and Monégasque licences and competed in Formula One for Minardi and Red Bull Racing between 2005 and 2006, alongside stints as a test and third driver with Jordan and Red Bull.

Nationality	Monégasque (2005) Dutch (2006)
Born	Robert Michael Doornbos 23 September 1981 Rotterdam, Netherlands

Formula One Career

Jordan: 2004–2005

Doornbos made his first official appearance in the Formula One paddock during the 2004 Chinese Grand Prix weekend. With Timo Glock promoted to a race seat following Giorgio Pantano’s exit, Doornbos stepped in as Jordan’s Friday test driver. His performances over the remaining rounds were strong enough to earn him a retained testing role for 2005, even after the team changed ownership.

He appeared regularly on Fridays throughout the early part of the 2005 season, missing only two of the first 11 events—one due to Jordan’s third-car ban in Canada and the other when Franck Montagny tested in his place at the 2005 European Grand Prix. His consistent pace and development feedback helped lay groundwork for a full-time drive later that year.

Minardi: 2005

Doornbos’s break came in July 2005, when he was promoted to a race seat at Minardi ahead of the 2005 German Grand Prix. He replaced Patrick Friesacher, who was sidelined due to sponsorship issues. This marked Doornbos’s F1 race debut and the beginning of an eight-race stint with the team.

His first outing wasn’t without drama—he tangled with former world champion Jacques Villeneuve, the very man who had once advised him to pursue a racing career. Despite a best result of 13th (achieved in both Turkey and Belgium), Doornbos showed composure and promise in a backmarker car.

Had he been racing under a Dutch licence, Doornbos and teammate Christijan Albers would have been the first all-Dutch lineup in a Formula One race since 1962. However, at the time, Doornbos competed with a Monégasque licence, keeping that bit of trivia just out of reach.

Doornbos became part of Minardi F1 history as well—effectively the team’s final driver. Red Bull acquired the outfit just before the 2005 Belgian Grand Prix and rebranded it for the following season. In his last race for Minardi, Doornbos retired on the final lap of the 2005 season finale, while teammate Albers had dropped out earlier.

Red Bull Racing: 2006

With Minardi rebranded as Scuderia Toro Rosso, Doornbos was left without a race seat for 2006. However, Christian Horner—his former Formula 3000 team boss and now Red Bull Racing’s Sporting Director—brought him into the main Red Bull fold as their official test and reserve driver.

Doornbos assumed the role, regularly topping timesheets during Friday practice sessions. He was often found inside the top 10, and occasionally cracked the top three—a testament to his raw pace and confidence on low-fuel runs. During this time, he also became involved in a high-profile spat with Fernando Alonso during practice at the 2006 Hungarian Grand Prix, which led to the Spaniard receiving a two-second penalty in qualifying.

After the 2006 Italian Grand Prix, Red Bull dropped Christian Klien from their race line-up and promoted Doornbos to partner David Coulthard for the final three races of the season. In his first race back at the 2006 Chinese Grand Prix, Doornbos qualified inside the top 10 and was poised for a strong finish until contact with Robert Kubica at Turn 1 dropped him back. He eventually finished 12th.

Despite the promising showing, Doornbos was not retained as a race driver for 2007. Red Bull signed Mark Webber to partner Coulthard, and Doornbos returned to a test role, now alongside Michael Ammermüller.

Formula One Demonstrations

Even outside of competitive sessions, Doornbos became known for his high-speed demos. In 2005, he participated in the Monaco aan de Maas event in his hometown of Rotterdam, driving a Formula One car through city streets.

In August 2006, he made headlines with a high-speed charity stunt. As part of a fundraiser for Dutch children’s charity Stichting Geluk en Vrijheid (“Happiness and Freedom Foundation”), Doornbos piloted a Red Bull Formula One car over the Afsluitdijk causeway in the Netherlands, hitting a blistering 326 km/h (204 mph) on the public A7 highway.

Robert Doornbos Formula One World Championship career

F1 Career	2005–2006
Teams	Minardi, Red Bull
Entries	11
Championships	0
Wins	0
Podiums	0
Career points	0
Pole positions	0
Fastest laps	0
First entry	2005 German Grand Prix
Last entry	2006 Brazilian Grand Prix

Robert Doornbos Teammates

10 drivers	Involvement	First Year	Last Year
Timo Glock	3	2004
Nick Heidfeld	3	2004
Tiago Monteiro	9	2005
Narain Karthikeyan	9	2005
Christijan Albers	8	2005
Chanoch Nissany	1	2005
Enrico Toccacelo	3	2005
David Coulthard	18	2006
Christian Klien	15	2006
Michael Ammermuller	3	2006

Robert Doornbos Complete Formula One Results

Year	Entrant	Chassis	Engine	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	WDC	Points
2004	Jordan Ford	Jordan EJ14	Ford RS2 3.0 V10	AUS	MAL	BHR	SMR	ESP	MON	EUR	CAN	USA	FRA	GBR	GER	HUN	BEL	ITA	CHN TD	JPN TD	BRA TD		–	–
2005	Jordan Grand Prix	Jordan EJ15	Toyota RVX-05 3.0 V10	AUS TD	MAL TD	BHR TD	SMR TD	ESP TD	MON TD	EUR	CAN	USA TD											25th	0
		Jordan EJ15B	Toyota RVX-05 3.0 V10										FRA TD	GBR TD									25th	0
	Minardi F1 Team	Minardi PS05	Cosworth TJ2005 3.0 V10												GER 18	HUN Ret	TUR 13	ITA 18	BEL 13	BRA Ret	JPN 14	CHN 14†	25th	0
2006	Red Bull Racing	Red Bull RB2	Ferrari 056 2.4 V8	BHR TD	MAL TD	AUS TD	SMR TD	EUR TD	ESP TD	MON TD	GBR TD	CAN TD	USA TD	FRA TD	GER TD	HUN TD	TUR TD	ITA TD	CHN 12	JPN 13	BRA 12		24th	0