Junior Open Wheel Talent

Peter’s first chance to showcase his speed came at a mere 7 years of age. Keith was testing a go kart in County Cork when Cliff decided to give young Peter a taste of speed. Without hesitation, Peter jumped into the go kart and proceeded to do 3-laps. Everything was going perfectly until a faster kart passed him. Determined to stick with the faster kart, Peter followed the driver deep into turn-1 and proceeded to slam into the back of the front runner on entry which caused Peter’s kart to flip. This was his first karting experience.

Despite a disappointing preliminary experience as a racer, Peter spent the next few years developing his craft full-time in a 60cc go kart, running in the cadet class. Away from karting, he and his brother would spend countless hours driving a Subaru Justy 4x4 around a D-shaped oval in the middle of a field. They could be found in that field every Sunday, pounding laps and learning to drive. One day, they found the seatbelts had been chewed out of the car by Keith’s friend’s dog. After a few minutes of analyzing the situation, they decided to throw their helmets on anyway and keep running laps.

In addition to keeping busy with his driving duties, Peter always helped his dad maintain the race cars. He has been helping his dad’s race team since he was six years old. It didn’t matter what the task was, Peter was just happy to be working on a race car. The experience helped him understand the commitment and hard work involved with being a race car driver. He learned to study data and observed the drivers, even offering his own insight once in awhile. But that wasn’t the only thing he learned by working for Cliff Dempsey Racing. He also learned to drive a manual transmission van at the age of ten. One of Cliff’s drivers decided that it would be a good time to teach Peter to drive, so the duo placed a briefcase on the seat to help Peter see over the dash. From that point on, Peter became the chauffeur of the paddock, moving cars for anyone who needed a car moved. He was happy to do it and he usually got it done very quickly---if you catch my drift.

In 1998, Peter began to put more focus on his own driving (pictured on the right, #27). That season, he attempted to run in the Cadet class, the Junior Restricted class and JICA (Junior ICA). Unfortunately, the race stewards didn’t like the idea of him running more than one junior class, so he decided to focus strictly on the Junior Restricted class. In 1999, he made the jump to the ultra competitive JICA class full time. The season was highlighted by a race win at Mondello Park. Peter started the event in 11^th, on a drying track, but managed to close enough ground on the leader to make a pass for the lead with two laps remaining. It was the biggest win of his career (at that point). That race was televised, which added to the prestige of winning. In 2000, at age 14, Peter decided to continue his efforts in the JICA class. This was his final year running karts full-time. The season was highlighted by a last corner, last lap pass at Mondello Park to win the “Race of Champions”. The margin of victory was 0.01 seconds. During this time, Keith was making the transition to car racing and Peter balanced his time between karting and working with the team on Keith’s car.

In 2001, Peter had his first opportunity to sample a single-seater race car. Keith was testing his Formula Renault car in Kirkistown, Northern Ireland. Despite the track being wet, Cliff decided it might be a good opportunity to let Peter go out and run a few laps in the car as the day came to a conclusion. Recalling Peter’s first experience in a go-kart, Cliff told Peter to have fun, but warned him not to crash the car. Peter was so excited to sample the car, he jumped in and ran 3-laps only to crash in Fisherman’s corner. It’s important to note that he did make two successful laps in the car, which is sort of ironic considering he made two successful laps during his inaugural go-kart experience as well prior to crashing. Sometimes history does repeat itself.

At the end of the 2001 season, Cliff offered Peter his first official race car test, in the team’s Formula Renault car. The test took place at Gaudix in Southern Spain. It was a bit intimidating at first for Peter… as all the top teams were in attendance. That being said, his competitive nature welcomed the opportunity. In fact, he and Carl Breeze (who won the 2001 UK Formula Renault 2.0 championship) decided to make a bet on whether or not Peter could run a lap in the eighteen second range. Those in attendance decided to get involved and egg Peter on, by writing rude comments on the pit-board and making gestures. Unfazed, the 15-year-old Irishman continued to put his head down and run laps. On his last lap he managed to turn an 18.7 second lap. The lap time was only one second off the quickest time reported all week. Everyone in attendance began to realize that Peter was the real deal.

During the 2002 and 2003 racing seasons, Peter continued to work for the family-run team. Balancing his time between the shop and school, Peter continued to learn more about race car componentry by helping his dad build cars. When time permitted he did a few Formula Renault tests and even ran a few Formula Renault Libre races in 2003. Peter’s mom, Michelle, was always very supportive of Peter and Keith’s racing, but emphasized that education is important too. She oversees Cliff Dempsey Racing and offers administrative support for the team to this day.

In 2004, after Peter finished school, his parents decided to sell the Formula Renault car and look for a car that offered similar racing opportunities at a lesser budget. They ended up purchasing a 1992 Swift chassis. Peter was quick to note that his mom paid for the car. His first test and race occurred at Kirkistown, Northern Ireland. He qualified 5^th and was running 2^nd until contact with another competitor prematurely ended the race under red flag conditions. Regardless of the outcome, Peter had proven his speed. The next race weekend offered a double header opportunity at Brands Hatch. Peter swept both races and once again impressed everyone in attendance. In fact, after dominating the weekend he was offered the chance to make a one-off appearance in a Formula BMW car at the Croft Circuit in England. The one-off opportunity turned into a nine-race deal with Team SWR Pioneer. He had limited success but used his time in the series as a learning experience. Away from his Formula BMW efforts, he continued his Formula Ford career.

In 2005, Peter’s talent began to really stand out. His success that year was monumental; he won 76.7% of his races. He won 33 races that year, set 33 fast laps, and qualified on pole 18 times. He won the MSV UK Formula Ford 1600 Championship as well as the Brands Formula Ford Championship and the Northern Ireland Formula Ford series. This was truly a breakthrough year for Peter. In addition to the above mentioned success, he won the BRDC Golden Helmet, the Castle Combe Carnival, and the prestigious Motorsport Ireland Young Driver of the Year award with Cliff Dempsey Racing---which helped fund his racing in 2006.

In 2006, Peter ran in the ultra competitive British Formula Ford Duratec Championship. He finished 3^rd in the final standings with 4 wins and 10 podiums in 18 events. The year was highlighted by winning the prestigious Walter Hayes Trophy.

Despite struggling for funding, Peter managed to gather enough support to have another outstanding season in 2007. He repeated as the Walter Hayes Trophy winner, the second driver in history to win the race in consecutive years. He also won the Formula Ford 1600- Leinster Trophy (pictured left), he won the BRDC Golden Helmet for a second time, and added the Martin Donnelly Trophy to his showcase. His success in a Formula Ford car earned him worldwide attention. He was named runner-up for the Dunlop Motorsport Ireland Young Driver of the Year.

With the funding low, Peter and his family decided to look at some different options for 2008. Late in 2007, Peter contacted Dan Andersen of Andersen Racing and the duo scheduled a two-day test at the Andersen Race Park in Palmetto, Florida. The test went so well that they decided to schedule another test in January of 2008 at Sebring. With the exchange rate being so good at the time, Peter decided to commit to the Star Mazda championship for 2008. Despite a continual struggle to find the necessary funding, Peter completed the 2008 season in 3^rd place. He won 4 races and found his way to the podium 7 times in 12 races. He finished inside the top-five in 75% of his race starts. The year was concluded with Peter winning the prized Dunlop Motorsport Ireland Young Driver of the Year award--- which put him back in a car for 2009.

This brings us to the current season. Using the prize money from the Motorsport Ireland award, Peter decided to pursue the championship that slipped away in the final two races of 2008. He is currently back in the United States and running in the 2009 Star Mazda championship. You can see a bit of a different driver in the car this year as Peter knows that consistency wins championships. He has finished every race (to date) inside the top-ten.

This has been a tough year for Peter as he has reached the ‘now-or-never’ point of his career--- a point that every aspiring driver dreads. Due to dwindling finances, Peter has been taking this year on a race-by-race basis. In fact, he has sat out numerous test days and pre-event practice sessions to save money. It’s tough to watch a kid with this much talent and promise sitting on the sidelines during official test days. This kind of driver doesn’t come along often and it would be a shame to see him sitting home in 2010.

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Peter Dempsey Q & A

Junior Open Wheel Talent