Alfonso de Orléans-Borbón, Duke of Galliera


Don Alfonso
Arms of the Duke of Galliera
Duke of Galliera
Tenure22 August 1997 – present
PredecessorInfante Álvaro
Born (1968-01-05) 5 January 1968
Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain
Spouse
Véronique Goeders
(m. 1994; div. 2001)
IssueDon Alonso de Orleans-Borbón y Goeders
Names
Alfonso de Orleans-Borbón y Ferrara-Pignatelli
HouseOrléans-Galliera
FatherDon Alonso de Orleans-Borbón y Parodi-Delfino
MotherDonna Emilia Ferrara-Pignatelli

Alfonso de Orléans-Borbón y Ferrara-Pignatelli, 7th Duke of Galliera (born 2 January 1968 in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain), is a Spanish aristocrat, the founder and president of the European motorsport team Racing Engineering and a professional racing driver.

Alfonso is the elder son of Don Alonso de Orléans-Borbón y Parodi-Delfino and Donna Emilia Ferrara-Pignatelli. He inherited the title Duke of Galliera in 1997 following the death of his grandfather, Infante Álvaro.

Professional racing career

A passionate car enthusiast and driver, he returned to racing in the early 1990s. In 1994, he made his debut at the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans, finishing 4th in the GT2 class. Over the subsequent years he competed internationally in endurance racing with manufacturers including Ferrari and Porsche.

Racing Engineering

In 1999, Alfonso de Orléans-Borbón founded Racing Engineering, a European motorsport team. The team enjoyed some success: six consecutive Spanish Formula 3 team titles (2001–2006), a championship in the 2002 World Series by Nissan, and, with Fabio Leimer, winning the GP2 Series driver's championship title in 2013.[1] Over the years, Racing Engineering has helped to develop drivers who progressed to Formula 1 and other top-tier international racing categories.

References

  1. ^ "Sacrifices pay off for Racing International". Gulf News. 6 November 2013. ProQuest 1448557927. Full access available to users of The Wikipedia Library.