Nick Heidfeld

Little was heard of Nick Heidfeld outside of his German homeland until he started to turn heads in the national F3 series. Sharing a birthplace with fellow Monchengladbach boy Heinz-Harald Frentzen, the young Heidfeld began, like so many others, in karting. He made his debut, aged nine, in 1986, and used his formative years to build the experience necessary to win titles. Although these were slow to come in karting, Heidfeld held enough promise to be selected for both the World and European championships in 1991, and finished fifth in the German series a year later.

Another World Karting Championship entry in 1993 preceded the jump to cars, as Nick made his debut in the 1994 German FFord series. Eight wins in nine starts gained the attention of the German media as he won the 1600cc class, and set the youngster up for the move to higher things. The following year saw him finish as runner-up in the overall standings, with a maiden championship title in the concurrent German Zetec series.
1996 saw a move to the German F3 championship, and Heidfeld made an immediate impact by claiming third overall behind future F1 rival Jarno Trulli and sometime CART driver Arnd Meier. The following year, Nick made sure that the title was his, although a mid-season hiccup kept the public in suspense for longer than it anticipated.

F3000 was the logical progression for 1998, and Nick stunned again by remaining in the running for the title right to the end. His rival on this occasion was Juan Montoya, and the pair shared seven wins from the 12 races contested While Montoya went off to America in search of CART glory, Heidfeld followed the tried and tested path of a second year in each formula. This time, he had little opposition as he romped to the F3000 title, seizing the trophy well before the end of the year, and almost certainly securing himself a place in the top flight. Given his involvement with the McLaren-backed West Competition squad, and his F1 testing duties, many expected Heidfeld to be squeezed into the Woking operation's Grand Prix team. The move didn't materialise, but such was the impact he created on the F1 paddock, he was not short of offers, with Prost his eventual destination.

Nick lined up alongside veteran Jean Alesi at former world champion Alain Prost's team, but poor testing results were only the start of a long, hard season for the German. Unlike some of his rookie rivals, however, the pressure was not as heavy on him, Despite not scoring a point, and generally being overshadowed by Alesi, he was able to slip easily into alternative employment with Sauber for 2001.

Testing times with both the older C19 and new C20 promised much for Heidfeld, and the German was on the pace from the very first race. Surprisingly, the Swiss team did not suffer a fade away in mid-season, and both Heidfeld and rookie team-mate Kimi Räikkönen were able to ruffle the feathers of the established midfield teams. Between them, the youngest duo on the grid racked up 21 points, good enough for fourth in the constructors' series, while Heidfeld got marginally the better of Räikkönen in the drivers' standings, taking eighth overall with twelve points, including a podium finish in Brazil. It was disappointing, therefore, that the Finn was the man summoned by McLaren to replace the retiring Mika Hakkinen – despite Heidfeld's links with the team during his junior career.

The “oversight” – as Heidfeld referred to the decision – meant he had much to prove during 2002. However, the Sauber C21 didn't have the same impact as the C20 and, despite some good performances, Nick's third successive season with Sauber was, on the whole, another largely disappointing campaign. The main highlight was a fifth place at the United States GP, but that, along with an eighth place finish at the European GP, was as good as it got, and marked the German's only point scoring positions.

The following year brought a change of scene for Heidfeld, having been dropped by Sauber to make way for Giancarlo Fisichella, he joined grabbe a Formula 1 lifelineat Jordan - a deal only confirmed at the end of January. However, it was a team on the wane, and the gritty Heidfeld persevered during a difficult season, as the EJ14 wasn't particularly competitive. His efforts though were noted by most down the pit-lane and, despite his best results coming in the early part of the season, with seventh at Monaco and eighth in Canada, the Heidfeld reputation was largely restored. Denied the chance to move to Williams as replacement for the injured Ralf Schumacher mid-season, Heidfeld finally got his chance to move to Grove after a shoot-out with test driver Antonio Pizzonia.

Partnering Mark Webber in 2005, (his first season in a really top-flight operation) Heidfeld rose to the challenge magnificently. After taking second place in a gruelling Monaco Grand Prix, Nick took pole position at the Nürburgring and he backed up his speed with another second place finish in the race. After being largely un-valued by the Formula 1 fraternity, Heidfeld was suddenly BMWs favoured son and his future prospects brightened even more when the news came that Williams and its engine partner where to go their separate ways for 2006. Although his season was to prematurely after a heavy crash at Monza during testing, he had already signed long-term deal to join the new BMW-Sauber team as it number one driver.

Having certainly earned his big chance with a big manufacturer, Heidfeld faced a transitional year with the newly assembled team. Firstly, he gained the upper hand on the experienced Jacques Villeneuve, only to face a stiffer challenge from the sensational Robert Kubica. A podium place in Hungary and a further nine points scoring finishes underlined his unobtrusively efficient driving skills, but the spectacular mid-season arrival of Polish driver and the advancement of highly-favoured third driver Sebastian Vettel changed to landscape somewhat.

With the very competitive BMW Sauber F1.07, Nick was up to the challenge however and during 2007 he was consistently the leading pursuer of the dominant Ferrari-McLaren axis. Fourteen points scoring finishes (all but one of these in the top six) proved a testament to his was immaculate driving that maximized the car’s potential, and the highlight of his season was a second place finish in the Canadian Grand Prix.

Whether Nick will be able to break into the winner’s circle in 2008 will depend up his team’s ability to take anther step forward from the ‘best of the rest’ category. With the scramble for positions in the middle of the grid looking more closely fought than ever, Nick will be pressed to hold onto the fifth place in the championship table achieved with such aplomb in ’07.