Luis Miguel "Chapulín" Díaz Castell (born 1 December 1977, in Mexico City) is a Mexican racing driver who competes in the American Le Mans Series for Level 5 Motorsports. He won the 2009 American Le Mans Series LMP2 class drivers championship alongside team owner Adrián Fernández, and was runner-up in the 2005 and 2006 Rolex Sports Car Series DP drivers championship. Díaz also has an extensive open-wheel racing background.
| Luis Díaz | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Nationality |  Mexican |
| Born | 1 December 1977 Mexico City |
| American Le Mans Series career | |
| Current team | Level 5 Motorsports |
| Former teams | PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports Alex Job Racing Fernandez Racing Chip Ganassi Racing Walker Racing Dorricott Racing |
| Previous series | |
| Rolex Sports Car Series Champ Car World Series Atlantic Championship Indy Lights | |
| Championship titles | |
| 1998 2009 | Formula Mexico ALMS P2 Championship |
| 24 Hours of Le Mans career | |
| Years | 2012 |
| Teams |  Level 5 Motorsports |
Early racing career
editStarting off in karting in 1989, Diaz was National Kart Champion in the A category and a two-time champion in the Super 100cc category. He earned Rookie of the Year honors in 1996 in Formula Reynard before moving up to Formula 3 International in 1997, where he was the highest-placed Mexican driver in the series that year.[1]
Diaz earned the Formula Mexico title in 1998, followed by a season in the Panamerican Indy Lights, where he was also Rookie of the Year and the first Mexican driver to win a race in that series.
Indy Lights
editDíaz made his Indy Lights debut in 1999, finishing 10th in his first race at Laguna Seca. One year later, he joined the GO-Quaker-Herdez team before transitioning to Roquin Motorsports in 2001, where he finished seventh in the championship with one podium and four top-five finishes to his credit.
Atlantic championship
editDiaz was hired by Dorricot Racing in 2002 and competed in his first Formula Atlantic season, finishing fourth in the championship with wins at Portland and Road America.
The following year, he won the season-opening round at Monterrey en route to an eighth-place finish in the end-of-year championship. Diaz was awarded the Gilles Villeneuve trophy for his achievements that year.
Champ Car
editDíaz made two Champ Car starts, both as a substitute driver at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez circuit in Mexico City. He failed to finish both events.
Grand-Am
editMaking his sports car racing debut in 2004, Diaz teamed with Jimmy Morales in a Lexus-Riley Daytona Prototype for Chip Ganassi Racing in the Rolex Sports Car Series.
In 2005, Diaz moved to the team’s No. 01 entry with Scott Pruett, earning three wins, eight podium finishes and four poles en route to a runner-up finish in the Daytona Prototype drivers championship. He repeated the feat again in 2006 and helped lead Ganassi to the teams championship.
American Le Mans Series
editDíaz made his American Le Mans Series debut in 2007, driving for Lowe’s Fernandez Racing in the LMP2 category with a Lola B06/43 Acura and later the Acura ARX-01a/b. He enjoyed a successful three-year stint with the team, culminating with the 2009 LMP2 Drivers Championship for he and Adrian Fernandez. That year, they scored nine wins out of ten races, with Diaz earning three class poles.
Following the demise of Fernandez Racing Diaz made a handful of starts for both Alex Job Racing and PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports in 2010, reaching the podium four times and earning three class poles in the GTC and PC ranks.
The 2011 season saw Diaz join Level 5 Motorsports for its P2 program. He kicked off the season with a class win in the 2011 12 Hours of Sebring with Scott Tucker and Ryan Hunter-Reay before earning additional victories at Road America and Laguna Seca. Diaz remained at Level 5 Motorsports for 2012, earning the P2 victory at Laguna Seca in the team's HPD ARX-03b.[2]
In addition to his success on the track, Diaz is a two-time winner of the "Most Popular Driver" award.
24 Hours of Le Mans
editDiaz made his Le Mans debut in 2012, co-driving with Scott Tucker and Christophe Bouchut in Level 5 Motorsports’ LMP2-class HPD ARX-03b. The car failed to finish after running out of fuel on-track.[3]
Personal life
editDíaz enjoys karting, golf, tennis, fitness, and Mini-Z RC Car Racing.[4] His nickname is Chapulín (Grasshopper in English).[5]
Racing record
editComplete A1 Grand Prix results
edit(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Entrant | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | DC | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005–06 | A1 Team Mexico | GBR SPR |
GBR FEA |
GER SPR |
GER FEA |
POR SPR |
POR FEA |
AUS SPR |
AUS FEA |
MYS SPR 19 |
MYS FEA 15 |
UAE SPR |
UAE FEA |
RSA SPR |
RSA FEA |
IDN SPR |
IDN FEA |
MEX SPR |
MEX FEA |
USA SPR |
USA FEA |
CHN SPR |
CHN FEA |
10th | 59 |
Complete American open-wheel racing results
edit(key)
Indy Lights
edit| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Rank | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Team Mexico Quaker Herdez | MIA | LBH | NAZ | MIL | POR | CLE | TOR | MIS | DET | CHI | LS 10 |
FON | 23rd | 3 |
| 2000 | Team Mexico Quaker Herdez | LBH 12 |
MIL 10 |
DET 14 |
POR 8 |
MIS 12 |
CHI 6 |
MDO 16 |
VAN 12 |
LS 7 |
STL | HOU 7 |
FON 15 |
13th | 31 |
| 2001 | Roquin Motorsports | MTY 11 |
LBH 9 |
TXS 4 |
MIL 4 |
POR 9 |
KAN 7 |
TOR 5 |
MDO 11 |
STL 6 |
ATL 7 |
LS 3 |
FON 6 |
7th | 88 |
Atlantic Championship
edit| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Rank | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Dorricott Racing | MTY 5 |
LBH 10 |
MIL 9 |
LS 15 |
POR 1 |
CHI 6 |
TOR Ret |
CLE 3 |
TRR 6 |
ROA 1 |
MTL 6 |
DEN 6 |
4th | 124 |
| 2003 | Dorricott Racing | MTY 10 |
LBH 6 |
MIL Ret |
LS 6 |
POR 9 |
CLE Ret |
TOR 9 |
TRR 6 |
MDO 7 |
MTL 11 |
DEN 8 |
MIA 9 |
8th | 88 |
CART
edit| Year | Team | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | Rank | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Fernández Racing | Lola B02/00 | Honda HR-2 V8t | MTY | LBH | MOT | MIL | LS | POR | CHI | TOR | CLE | VAN | MDO | ROA | MTL | DEN | ROC | MIA | SRF | FON | MXC 19 |
23rd | 0 |
| 2003 | Walker Racing | Reynard 02i | Ford XFE V8t | STP | MTY | LBH | BRH | LAU | MIL | LS | POR | CLE | TOR | VAN | ROA | MDO | MTL | DEN | MIA | MXC 19 |
SRF | FON | 27th | 0 |
Complete American Le Mans Series results
edit| Year | Entrant | Class | Chassis | Engine | Tyres | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Rank | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Lowe's Fernández Racing | LMP2 | Lola B06/43 | Acura 3.4L 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's Fernandez Racing | LMP2 | Acura ARX-01b | Acura 3.4L 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's Fernández Racing | LMP2 | Acura ARX-01b | Acura 3.4L 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 | Alex Job Racing | GTC | Porsche 997 GT3 Cup | Porsche 3.6L Flat-6 | Y | SEB ovr:20 cls:3 |
LNB ovr:28 cls:7 |
MON ovr:20 cls:4 |
UTA ovr:Ret cls:Ret |
LIM | 16th | 42 | |||||||
| PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports | LMPC | Oreca FLM09 | Chevrolet 6.2L V8 | M | MID ovr:5 cls:3 |
AME ovr:6 cls:2 |
MOS ovr:10 cls:5 |
PET ovr:32 cls:3 |
9th | 63 | |||||||||
| 2011 | Level 5 Motorsports | LMP2 | Lola B11/40 | HPD HR28TT 2.8 L Turbo V6 | M | SEB ovr:20 cls:1 |
LNB ovr:DNS cls:DNS |
LIM | MOS | MID | AME ovr:5 cls:1 |
BAL | 2nd | 78 | |||||
| HPD ARX-01g | MON ovr:4 cls:1 |
PET ovr:38 cls:5 |
|||||||||||||||||
| 2012 | Level 5 Motorsports | P2 | HPD ARX-03b | Honda HR28TT 2.8 L Turbo V6 | D | SEB ovr:Ret cls:Ret |
LNB ovr:19 cls:3 |
MON ovr:2 cls:1 |
LIM ovr:WD cls:WD |
MOS ovr:WD cls:WD |
MID | AME ovr:12 cls:4 |
BAL ovr:2 cls:2 |
VIR ovr:Ret cls:Ret |
PET | 4th* | 51* |
- * Season still in progress.
24 Hours of Le Mans results
edit| Year | Team | Co-Drivers | Car | Class | Laps | Pos. | Class Pos. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | HPD ARX-03b | LMP2 | 240 | DNF | DNF |
References
edit- ^ "Luis "Chapulín" Díaz". Archived from the original on 6 October 2012. Retrieved 23 July 2012.
- ^ Dagys, John. "Muscle Milk Cruises To Victory In Monterey". Archived from the original on 19 July 2012. Retrieved 23 July 2012.
- ^ Dagys, John. "Audi Sweeps Le Mans". Archived from the original on 18 June 2012. Retrieved 23 July 2012.
- ^ https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=350638031706757&set=a.332770080160219.66522.308536972583530&type=1&theater [user-generated source]
- ^ "Luis "Chapulín" Díaz". Archived from the original on 2012-10-06. Retrieved 2012-07-23.