Nathanaël Antonin Berthon (born 1 July 1989 in

Romagnat Romagnat (; Auvergnat: ''Romanhat'') is a commune in the Puy-de-Dôme department in Auvergne in central France. Population Twin towns * Licciana Nardi, Italy See also * Communes of the Puy-de-Dôme department The following is a list of ...

) is a professional

racing driver Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. In North America, the term is commonly used to describe all forms of automobile sport including non ...

from

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Career

Karting

Berthon began his international

karting Kart racing or karting is a motorsport discipline using open-wheel, four-wheeled vehicles known as go-karts or shifter karts. They are usually raced on scaled-down circuits, although some professional kart races are also held on full-size motor ...

career in 2006, with the highlights being a third-place finish in the Copa Campeones Trophy ICA class and fifth in the French Championship Elite category. The following year he again finished fifth in the French Championship Elite class. He also finished eighth in the South Garda Winter Cup KF1 and 13th in the World Cup KF1 categories.

Formula Renault 2.0

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

, Berthon moved up to single–seaters, taking part in both the Formula Renault 2.0 West European Cup and Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 series for Boutsen Energy Racing. In the West European Cup, he finished in the points on four occasions, scoring nine points to be classified in 18th place, whilst in the Eurocup, he failed to score a point, with his best race result being 12th place at the

Nürburgring The () is a 150,000-person capacity motorsports complex located in the town of Nürburg, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It features a Grand Prix motor racing, Grand Prix race track built in 1984, and a long configuration, built in the 1920s ...

meeting.

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

saw Berthon remain in both series for a second season, this time racing for the

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

team

Epsilon Euskadi EPIC Racing (Euskadi Phil Imanol Claudio Racing) was a racing team from Spain. The team's headquarters were located in Vitoria ( Alava). It was the second major motorsport team from the Basque Country, (Euskadi). Epsilon Euskadi was the bigg ...

. He won his first Eurocup race at the opening round in

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

after teammate

Albert Costa Albert Costa Casals (; born 25 June 1975) is a Spanish former professional tennis player. He is best remembered for winning the men's singles title at the French Open in 2002. Tennis career Costa began playing tennis at the age of five. He ...

was disqualified for a technical infringement. He followed that up with a further podium at the

Hungaroring The Hungaroring is a motorsport racetrack in Mogyoród, Pest County, Hungary where the Formula One Hungarian Grand Prix is held. In 1986, it became the location of the first Formula One Grand Prix motor racing, Grand Prix behind the Iron Curtai ...

to finish sixth in the standings. In the West European Cup, Berthon took a victory at Spa–Francorchamps along with six other podium finishes to finish third in the championship, behind

Jean-Éric Vergne Jean-Éric Serge Raymond Vergne (; born 25 April 1990), also known by his initials JEV, is a French racing driver, who competes in the FIA World Endurance Championship for Peugeot and in Formula E for DS Penske. In formula racing, Vergne compete ...

and champion Costa. He was also crowned as French Formula Renault 2.0 champion, with the series being run as part of the West European Cup season.

Formula Renault 3.5 Series

In October 2009, Berthon sampled a Formula Renault 3.5 Series car for the first time, testing for

Tech 1 Racing Tech 1 Racing is a racing team based in Toulouse, France. Founded in 2000 by racing driver Simon Abadie and his sister Sarah, it has garnered success in the World Series by Renault, the Eurocup Mégane Trophy and the GP3 Series, most notably ...

Motorland Aragón MotorLand Aragón (alternative Spanish name: Circuito de Alcañiz) is a race track used for motorsports located in Alcañiz, Spain. The circuit was designed by German architect Hermann Tilke in conjunction with the British architectural busin ...

in Spain as a reward for winning the French Formula Renault 2.0 title. He drove for the recently–crowned champions Draco Racing during the next test at the Circuit de Catalunya and in December 2009 it was announced that he would drive for the team in the 2010 season. He was joined at the team by

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

n driver Omar Leal. After finishing on the podium at the season–opener in

and again at

Brno Brno ( , ; ) is a Statutory city (Czech Republic), city in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. Located at the confluence of the Svitava (river), Svitava and Svratka (river), Svratka rivers, Brno has about 403,000 inhabitants, making ...

, Berthon secured his first Formula Renault 3.5 Series win on home soil at Magny–Cours, holding off a stiff challenge from

Daniel Ricciardo Daniel Joseph Ricciardo ( , ; born 1 July 1989) is an Australian racing driver, who most recently competed in Formula One from to . Ricciardo won eight Formula One Grands Prix across 14 seasons. Born and raised in Perth to Italian-Australi ...

. He followed that up with another podium finish at

Hockenheim Hockenheim () is a town in northwest Baden-Württemberg, Germany, about 20 km south of Mannheim and 10 km west of Walldorf. It is located in the Upper Rhine Plain, Upper Rhine valley on the tourist theme routes "Baden Asparagus Route" ( ...

to be classified in seventh place in the championship standings. Berthon returned to the series in

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

, replacing Dean Stoneman at

ISR Racing ISR Racing (also known as Coca-Cola Racing Team in FIA GT) is a racing team from Czech Republic, created in 1993 by Igor Salaquarda. The team is currently competing in ADAC GT Masters. History The company was created to develop the Peugeot ...

after the

Briton British people or Britons, also known colloquially as Brits, are the citizens of the United Kingdom, the British Overseas Territories, and the Crown dependencies.: British nationality law governs modern British citizenship and nationality, w ...

was forced to pull out of the championship due to illness. Partnered variously by Ricciardo and

Lewis Williamson Lewis Williamson (born 11 November 1989) is a British racing driver. Career Karting Born in Dundee, Williamson began karting at the age of eight, and spent a successful decade racing in the various classes around the United Kingdom. By the ti ...

, he took a first finish of third place to finish 13th overall in the drivers' championship.

Formula Three

In July 2010, Berthon made his

Formula Three Formula Three (F3) is a third-tier class of open-wheel formula racing. The various championships held in Europe, Australia, South America and Asia form an important step for many prospective Formula One drivers. History Formula Three (adop ...

debut, racing for the

ART Grand Prix ART Grand Prix is a French motor racing team that competes in formula single-seaters in Europe. In 2012, it competed in the GP2 Series and GP3 Series as Lotus GP to reflect sponsorship from British sports and racing car manufacturer Lotus. The ...

team in the

British Formula 3 Championship The British Formula Three Championship was an international motor racing series that took place primarily in the United Kingdom with a small number of events in mainland Europe. It was a junior-level feeder formula that used small single sea ...

round at Spa–Francorchamps as an entry in the Invitation class. During the weekend he finished all three races, taking a best result of 13th place in the sprint event.

GP2 Series

Berthon made his debut in the

GP2 Asia Series The GP2 Asia Series was a form of open wheel motor racing as a result of a spin-off from the GP2 Series. History The series was officially announced during the weekend of the 2007 Monaco GP2 Series round. GP2 series organiser Bruno Michel com ...

, partnering Spaniard

Dani Clos Daniel Clos Álvarez (born 23 October 1988) is a Spanish former professional racecar driver and YouTuber. In 2012, he was the test driver for the now defunct HRT Formula One team. Career Karting Born in Barcelona, Clos was a fairly successfu ...

at the

Racing Engineering Racing Engineering is a Spanish racing team founded in 1999 by Alfonso de Orléans-Borbón that currently competes in the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series. The team's headquarters are located in Sanlúcar de Barrameda, near Jerez, where all car prep ...

team. He failed to score a point in the four races he contested and was classified in 23rd place in the championship. He returned to the main GP2 Series, again with Racing Engineering, for the non-championship race that concluded the 2011 season, and raced full-time for the team in

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

, alongside

Fabio Leimer Fabio Leimer (born 17 April 1989) is a former professional Auto racing, racing driver from Switzerland. He is best known for winning the 2013 GP2 Series. Career Karting Like many of today's racing drivers, Rothrist-born Leimer started his career ...

, eventually finishing 12th overall with a best race finish of second on two occasions.

Toyota Racing Series

In the winter of 2012 prior to the start of the GP2 season, Berthon travelled to New Zealand to compete in the five-round

Toyota Racing Series The Formula Regional Oceania Championship is New Zealand's premier formula racing category. The series includes races for every major trophy in New Zealand circuit racing including the New Zealand Motor Cup and the Denny Hulme Memorial Trophy. ...

in a grid which featured a mix of local and foreign drivers. As one of five drivers for the M2 Competition team, he finished seventh in the championship.

Formula One

On 16 November 2011, Berthon had his first experience of driving a

Formula One Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...

car. At the Abu Dhabi young drivers' test at the

Yas Marina Circuit The Yas Marina Circuit (Arabic: حلبة مرسى ياس) is a 5.281 km (3.281 mi) motorsport circuit situated on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The circuit was designed by Hermann Tilke. It has hosted the season-ending Formula One ...

, he drove the HRT F1 Team's F111 for nine laps. He set a best time of 1:48.646, which left him 13th fastest. The following day, Berthon had the whole day to himself with the car, completing 51 laps () and finished the day in 12th position with a best time of 1:45.839. Berthon described the day by saying: "Today was a great experience but it felt like it was too short. I would like to spend some more time in the car but, as a first step, it was very good".

Formula E

On 17 October 2015, it was announced that Berthon would partner

António Félix da Costa António Maria de Mello Breyner Félix da Costa (born 31 August 1991) is a Portugal, Portuguese professional racing driver for the Porsche Formula E Team, TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team and the 2019–20 Formula E Championship, 2019–20 Formul ...

Team Aguri Team Aguri, formerly Amlin Aguri and officially the Team Aguri Formula E Team, was an international motor racing team founded by former Formula One and 24 Hours of Le Mans driver Aguri Suzuki (Executive Chairman) and Mark Preston (businessman), Ma ...

for the 2015–16 season.

Racing record

Career summary

^† As Berthon was a guest driver, he was ineligible for championship points.

Complete Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

Complete Formula Renault 3.5 Series results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

Complete GP2 Series results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap) Driver did not finish the race, but was classified as he completed over 90% of the race distance.

Complete GP2 Asia Series results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

Complete GP2 Final results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

Complete 24 Hours of Le Mans results

Complete FIA World Endurance Championship results

Complete Formula Acceleration 1 results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

Complete European Le Mans Series results

Complete Formula E results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

Complete World Touring Car Cup results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap) ^* Season still in progress.

Complete TCR Europe Touring Car Series results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Berthon, Nathanael 1989 births Living people Sportspeople from Clermont-Ferrand French racing drivers Formula Renault Eurocup drivers Formula Renault 2.0 WEC drivers French Formula Renault 2.0 drivers British Formula Three Championship drivers World Series Formula V8 3.5 drivers GP2 Asia Series drivers Toyota Racing Series drivers GP2 Series drivers European Le Mans Series drivers 24 Hours of Le Mans drivers FIA World Endurance Championship drivers Formula E drivers World Touring Car Cup drivers 24H Series drivers GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup drivers Audi Sport drivers Epsilon Euskadi drivers Draco Racing drivers ART Grand Prix drivers ISR Racing drivers Racing Engineering drivers M2 Competition drivers Trident Racing drivers Murphy Prototypes drivers Kolles Racing drivers Team Aguri drivers G-Drive Racing drivers Greaves Motorsport drivers W Racing Team drivers DragonSpeed drivers Rebellion Racing drivers Team Lazarus drivers Karting World Championship drivers Jota Sport drivers Comtoyou Racing drivers Boutsen Ginion Racing drivers TCR Europe Touring Car Series drivers 24 Hours of Spa drivers 21st-century French sportsmen