Nelson’s real name is ‘Nelson Ângelo Tamsma Piquet Souto Maior’ and he is also referred to as Nelson or Nelson Piquet Junior. He was born in Germany on the 25th of July 1985. Nelson is the son of one of the most famous Brazilian F1 drivers, Nelson Piquet who was a 3 time world champion in his time. His road to a Formula 1 driver’s place began when he raced in the GP2 series in seasons of 2005 and 2006. In the 2007 season, the Renault Formula One team signed Piquet as a test driver. His promotion to the first choice driver lineup came in the 2008 season.

Personal Life

As soon as Nelson was born, his parents divorced and he spent his first 8 years in the company of his mother, Sylvia Tamsma in Monaco. After that, he went on to live in Brazil with his father. Piquet Jr then studied in the American School of Brasilia till he reached the age of 16 and from then on, he started pursuing his career in racing full time.

Early Racing Career

Nelson’s early racing career began in the Brazilian karting champions and he raced here from 1993 to 2001 before he shifted to the Formula Three Sudamericana. Since his father, Nelson Piquet, was very wealthy, he kept racing in different championships with his own team. It was only until he left the GP2 series that this practice was stopped. Nelson Piquet then won the Formula Three Sudamericana championship in the year 2002. The Williams Formula One team recognized his talent and called him up for a test after he joined the British Formula Three Championship in the year 2003 using his own team again, the Piquet Sports team.

F3, A1, and GP2

In the year 2004, Nelson Piquet Junior became the British Formula Three Championships’ youngest ever champion at nineteen years and two months. During this period, his test runs with the Williams F1 team continued. The year 2005 took Piquet Junior to the A1 Grand Prix when he drove for his national team, Team Brazil. He won both the sprint and main racing events in the first A1 Grand Prix event at Brands Hatch. He also tested for the BAR-Honda Formula One team during this time.

His second year in GP2 was characterized by him finishing second behind current Vodafone McLaren Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton.

Summary

Born in Germany, Nelson Piquet was the son of the famous Nelson Piquet from Brazil. He began carting in Brazil and went up the ranks through Formula 3 in South America and Britain, A1 Grand Prix, GP2 and finally Formula 1.