Stéphane Jean-Marc Sarrazin (born 2 November 1975) is a French racing and rally driver whose unusually diverse career has included Formula One, endurance prototypes, GT cars, the World Rally Championship, Formula E and Extreme E.
Driver Bio
| Nationality | French |
| Birthplace | Barjac, France |
| Born | 2 November 1974 |
| First Grand Prix | 1999 Brazilian Grand Prix |
| Last Grand Prix | 1999 Brazilian Grand Prix |
| Years Active | 1999 |
| Current/Last Team | Minardi |
Sarrazin won the French Formula Renault title in 1994 and became Le Mans Series champion in 2007 and 2010. Although victory in the 24 Hours of Le Mans has eluded him, he has stood on its podium six times—including four finishes as overall runner-up.
Career
Single-seaters and Formula One
Sarrazin established himself in junior single-seaters before progressing into International Formula 3000. During the 1999 season, he won at the Hungaroring.
That year also brought his only Formula One start. Minardi selected Sarrazin for the Brazilian Grand Prix after regular driver Luca Badoer injured his wrist.
Sarrazin’s debut ended on lap 31 with a major spin approaching the start-finish straight. He scored no championship points and never received another Grand Prix start.
His involvement in Formula One continued behind the scenes. Sarrazin tested for Prost Grand Prix from 1999 through 2001, then joined Toyota’s testing programme for the manufacturer’s inaugural season in 2002.
He returned to competitive single-seaters in the 2003 Superfund World Series.
Rallying
Sarrazin made an ambitious switch to rallying in 2004. He contested two World Rally Championship events and achieved a best result of fourth.
Subaru subsequently signed him to drive its second car alongside Australian newcomer Chris Atkinson, supporting reigning world champion Petter Solberg. Sarrazin also appeared in the 2004 Race of Champions.
His rallying results later included third place at the 2009 Monte Carlo Rally and fourth overall on the same event when it formed part of the 2010 Intercontinental Rally Challenge.
In November 2014, Sarrazin claimed his first international rally victory by winning the Tour de Corse, the final round of that year’s European Rally Championship.
Peugeot and Le Mans
After racing an Aston Martin DBR9 in the GT1 category of the 2006 American Le Mans Series, Sarrazin joined Peugeot Sport as a factory driver for 2007.
He shared the new diesel-powered Peugeot 908 HDi FAP with Pedro Lamy in the Le Mans Series. Three victories carried the pair to the championship title.
At Le Mans, Sarrazin qualified the Peugeot on pole and finished second alongside Lamy and Sébastien Bourdais. It was one of four occasions on which he would finish runner-up in the great race.
Sarrazin added another major endurance victory in 2008, winning the 24 Hours of Spa in a Vitaphone Racing Team Maserati MC12.
He returned to the second step of the Le Mans podium in 2009 and later secured his second Le Mans Series championship in 2010.
Toyota and the World Endurance Championship
Peugeot’s withdrawal from endurance racing forced Sarrazin to seek a new programme. He signed with Starworks Motorsport for the inaugural 2012 FIA World Endurance Championship.
Toyota also recruited him temporarily for Le Mans after Hiroaki Ishiura withdrew on medical grounds, placing Sarrazin in the hybrid TS030 prototype.
The arrangement became permanent in 2013. As a full-time Toyota Racing driver, Sarrazin helped the manufacturer finish second at Le Mans and collected his first victory with the team in Bahrain.
He remained with Toyota for the 2014 season.
Formula E
Sarrazin added electric single-seaters to his résumé by joining Venturi Grand Prix for the inaugural Formula E championship.
At the first race in series history—the 2014 Beijing ePrix—he reached the finish in ninth place.
Extreme E
In 2021, Sarrazin entered another new electric championship, joining Veloce Racing for the inaugural Extreme E season.
He suffered a spectacular rollover during the Island X-Prix. Sarrazin emerged uninjured, although he attended the medical centre for precautionary checks.
From a one-off Formula One debut to works drives with Peugeot and Toyota, top-level rally results and competition in two pioneering electric series, Sarrazin built a career defined less by one category than by an ability to be quick in almost anything.
Grand Prix Stats
| Race Entries | 1 |
| Race Starts | 1 |
| Did Not Start | 0 |
| Best Race Start | 18th |
| Best Race Finish | – |
| Retirements | 1 |
| First-Lap Retirements | 0 |
| Not Classified | 0 |
| Disqualified | 0 |
| Did Not Qualify | 0 |
Qualifying
| Qualifying Sessions | 1 |
| Reached Q3 | 0 |
| Q2 Eliminations | 0 |
| Q1 Eliminations | 0 |
| Did Not Qualify | 0 |
Stats by Season
| Year | Constructor | Entries | Starts | Wins | Podiums | Poles | Fastest Laps | Front Rows | DNF | Best Start | Best Result | Pts Finishes | Points | Championship |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Minardi | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 18 | n/a | 0 | 0 | NC |
Stats by Constructor
| Constructor | Years | Entries | Starts | Wins | Podiums | Poles | Fastest Laps | Front Rows | DNF | Best Start | Best Result | Pts Finishes | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minardi | 1999 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 18 | n/a | 0 | 0 |
