Paul Stewart (racing driver)

Early life

Paul Stewart was born in Scotland but moved to Switzerland before he was three and lived near many other racing drivers, including Jochen Rindt and Jo Bonnier. He learned to drive sitting on his father's knee, steering cars up and down the drive. Stewart was educated at Aiglon College and Duke University in North Carolina, where he read political science. His father had agreed to consider helping his motorsport career if he graduated. He worked in financial institutions in New York and Switzerland during the holidays until the summer when he would graduate. He signed up for a racing course at Brands Hatch under the name of Robin Congdon, paying for it himself, to ensure an honest assessment.

Career

After completing his coursework, Stewart revealed his interest to go racing to his father Jackie, and despite Jackie initially being opposed to the idea, he did not want other people involved in his son's career and decided to support him. The two began working together and formed Paul Stewart Racing. [[File:Ralph Firman British F3 1995 Silverstone.jpg|thumb|right|[[Ralph Firman]] driving for Paul Stewart Racing at [[Silverstone Circuit|Silverstone]] during the 1995 [[British Formula 3 Championship]] season.]] Stewart entered Junior Formula Ford 1600 racing in the summer of 1987, where he led some races and scored a few podiums. The 'Paul Stewart Racing' brand became a fully-fledged team in 1988, fielding a Formula Ford 2000 sporting Camel sponsorship, with the assistance of Jackie's former mechanic Roy Topp and James Skilling. Stewart won the next race at Cadwell Park and got the budget for Formula 3 racing. In Formula 3, Stewart came up against future F1 and Indycar drivers: Mika Häkkinen, David Coulthard, Gil de Ferran and Kenny Bräck. Paul won at Snetterton in strange circumstances. "I was leading, came up against a backmarker who looked like he was going to move one way as we were going into Russell, back when it was a proper, flat-out corner. In fact he went the other way. I spun and crossed the line backwards but the race was then red-flagged because Mika Hakkinen had just had a huge accident at the Bombhole and I won it on countback". That win earned him a place on the grid at the year end Macau Grand Prix where he qualified third and earned the title of best newcomer. Stewart did three seasons of F3000 with Marco Apicella, Coulthard and de Ferran as his team-mates. His best finish was third at the Pau Grand Prix in 1993. Despite testing for Footwork, he stopped racing and focused on his team.

Personal life

Stewart is the oldest of two sons born to three-time Formula One World Drivers' Champion Jackie Stewart. His younger brother Mark is a film producer. Stewart married his wife Victoria in 1993 and has four sons.

In September 1999, Stewart was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis. A second colonoscopy in January 2000, did not detect cancerous cells. Further problems arose after Stewart was diagnosed with bowel cancer in April 2000. Upon hearing the news, he stepped down as Chief Operating Officer for Jaguar Racing and subsequently travelled to the Mayo Clinic in the U.S. for treatment.

Career summary

References

References

1. (2002). "Debrett's People of Today 2003". Debrett's Ltd.
2. Andrew Frankel. (June 2017). "Lunch with Paul Stewart". [[Motor Sport (magazine).
3. Burns, Janice. "I'll Beat Cancer for My Baby". The Free Library.
4. Heseltine, Annabel. "You kid yourself it's only a little cancer". The Telegraph.