David Cheng
{{short description|American sports car racing driver|bot=PearBOT 5}}
{{for|the professor|David K. Cheng}}
{{Infobox racing driver
| name = David Cheng
| image =File:Jackie Chan DC Racing's Oreca 07 Gibson Driven by David Cheng, Alex Brundle and Tristan Gommendy (33883749200).jpg
| image_size = 250px
| caption =
| nationality = {{flagicon|CHN}} Chinese
{{flagicon|USA}} American{{efn|Cheng competed under an American racing license prior to 2013. He currently represents China.}}
| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1989|7|21}}
| birth_place = Haidian District, Beijing, China
| related to =
| racing licence = 12px FIA Silver
| current series = FIA World Endurance Championship
| first year = 2016
| current team = Jackie Chan DC Racing
| car number = 37
| engine =
| former teams =
| starts = 26
| championships = 0
| wins = 0
| podiums = 1
| poles = 0
| fastest laps = 0
| best finish = 9th
| year = 2016
| last finish = 9th
| prev series =
| prev series years =
| titles = Asian Le Mans Series - LMP3
Asian Le Mans Series - LMP2
| title years = 2015–16
2013, 2014
| awards =
| award years =
| module =
{{Infobox Le Mans driver|embed=yes
| Years = {{24hLM|2014}}–present
| Teams = OAK Racing, Pegasus Racing, Jackie Chan DC Racing
| Best Finish = 3rd ({{24hLM|2017}})
| Class Wins = 0
}}
}}
David Cheng ({{zh|s=程飞|p=Chéng Fēi}}, born 21 July 1989) is a Chinese-American sports car racing driver who last competed in the Jaguar I-Pace eTrophy. He previously competed in the FIA World Endurance Championship for Jackie Chan DC Racing, and finished on the overall and class podium at the 2017 24 Hours of Le Mans, becoming the first Chinese driver to do so. He is a three-time champion of the Asian Le Mans Series, having won the championship twice in the LMP2 class in 2013 and 2014, and in the LMP3 class in 2016.
Racing career
Born in Beijing, Cheng moved to Seattle in the United States at the age of six and was introduced to kart racing by a friend of his father; he had to do so in secret as his mother believed auto racing was too dangerous.{{cite web|url=http://www.asianlemansseries.com/teams-and-drivers/interviews/driver/david-cheng-asian-lms-interview/|title=DAVID CHENG IN 2013|work=Asian Le Mans Series|date=October 24, 2013|accessdate=June 19, 2017|archive-date=April 3, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190403081621/http://www.asianlemansseries.com/teams-and-drivers/interviews/driver/david-cheng-asian-lms-interview/|url-status=dead}} In 2011, he moved up to sports cars, racing in the American Le Mans Series (ALMS) and the 24 Hours of Daytona. In the race, Cheng's team competed in the GT class, but the car suffered major damage before Cheng could drive; the team was able to overcome the damage to finish 21st. During the year, he also raced in China's Scirocco R Cup China, finishing seventh in points with a best finish of second at Sepang International Circuit's Merdeka Millennium Endurance Race.{{cite web|url=http://www.motoiq.com/MagazineArticles/ID/2324/PageID/4141/All-Eyes-on-David-Cheng.aspx|title=All Eyes on David Cheng|work=MotoIQ|date=January 23, 2012|accessdate=June 19, 2017}} A year later, he split time between the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge and Scirocco R Cup.{{cite web|last=Mitani|first=Sam|url=http://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/a18000/china-the-next-big-stage-for-auto-racing/|title=China: The Next Big Stage for Auto Racing?|publisher=Road & Track|date=February 29, 2012|accessdate=June 19, 2017}} In 2013, Cheng joined OAK Racing in the Asian Le Mans Series, driving for an all-Chinese stable alongside Ho-Pin Tung. At Sepang, he won the Sepang 12 Hours and was named one of ten Outstanding Youth by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China. He also ran the ALMS' 12 Hours of Sebring and Petit Le Mans races, winning the former and claiming the Drivers' Championship for his co-driver in the latter by one point. Cheng and OAK ended the year by winning the LMP2 Asian Le Mans Team and Driver Championships.{{cite web|url=http://www.asianlemansseries.com/teams-and-drivers/interviews/driver/asian-lms-interview-david-cheng/|title=DAVID CHENG IN 2014|work=Asian Le Mans Series|date=December 19, 2013|accessdate=June 19, 2017|archive-date=December 17, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181217014934/http://www.asianlemansseries.com/teams-and-drivers/interviews/driver/asian-lms-interview-david-cheng/|url-status=dead}} Cheng repeated the feat a season later.
For the 2015–16 Asian Le Mans Series season, Cheng formed DC Racing, racing a Ligier JS P3 with former OAK teammate Tung{{cite news|url=http://sportscar365.com/lemans/asian-lms/dc-racing-launched-confirms-ligier-js-p3-effort-in-asian-lms/|title=DC Racing Launched; Confirms Ligier JS P3 Effort in Asian LMS|last=Dagys|first=John|publisher=SportsCar365|date=August 20, 2015|accessdate=June 20, 2017}} and Thomas Laurent. The team ended the season with the Team Championship and a guaranteed spot in the 2016 24 Hours of Le Mans.{{cite web|url=https://www.motorsport.com/aslms/news/ho-pin-tung-champion-asian-le-mans-series-in-penultimate-race-667166/|title=Ho-Pin Tung champion Asian Le Mans Series in penultimate race|publisher=Motorsport.com|date=January 11, 2016|accessdate=June 20, 2017}}
In March 2015, Cheng met actor and martial artist Jackie Chan, who discussed his enjoyment of Steve McQueen's movie Le Mans as well as his interest in racing. After Cheng finished ninth in the LMP2 class at Le Mans that year, Chan raised the possibility of owning a team together for 2016, to which Cheng agreed.{{cite web|last=Barre|first=Geoffroy|url=http://www.lemans.org/en/News/david-cheng-tells-us-how-he-joined-forces-with-jackie-chan/23718|title=David Cheng tells us how he joined forces with Jackie Chan|publisher=Automobile Club de l'Ouest|date=February 25, 2016|accessdate=June 18, 2017}} Together, the two entered DC Racing into the FIA World Endurance Championship under the Baxi DC Racing Alpine banner, partnering with Signatech Alpine and fielding Alpine A460s in the LMP2 class.{{cite news|url=http://sportscar365.com/lemans/wec/dc-racing-enters-wec-with-alpine-nissan-lmp2-effort/|title=DC Racing Enters WEC with Alpine-Nissan LMP2 Effort|last=Dagys|first=John|publisher=SportsCar365|date=February 5, 2016|accessdate=June 20, 2017}} In October, the team was rebranded as Jackie Chan DC Racing.{{cite web|url=https://www.motorsport.com/aslms/news/jackie-chan-dc-racing-announces-new-partners-and-new-additions-to-all-star-driver-line-up-843630/|title=Jackie Chan DC Racing announces new partners and new additions to all star driver line up|publisher=Motorsport.com|date=October 27, 2016|accessdate=June 20, 2017}}
In 2017, Jackie Chan DC Racing allied with Jota Sport. At Le Mans, the team's No. 38 LMP2 took advantage of problems striking the LMP1 field to lead overall laps, becoming the first lower-class team to do so at Le Mans. The car went on to finish second overall and win the LMP2 class, while DC's No. 37 car, driven by Cheng, finished fourth overall,{{cite web|url=http://www.crash.net/le-mans/news/255520/1/jackie-chan-cheered-us-on-to-a-historic-le-mans-result-cheng.html|title=Jackie Chan cheered us on to a historic Le Mans result – Cheng|work=Crash.net|date=June 19, 2017|accessdate=June 20, 2017}} but Rebellion Racing's No. 13 was disqualified after failing post-race inspection and Cheng's No. 37 was promoted onto the podium.{{cite web|url=http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/sports/othersports/615138/jackie-chan-goes-2-3-at-le-mans-after-dq/story/|title=Jackie Chan goes 2-3 at Le Mans after DQ|work=GMA Network|date=June 20, 2017|accessdate=June 20, 2017}} The No. 38's effort marked the first time a Chinese team won its class at Le Mans.{{cite news|last=Smith|first=Luke|url=http://sportscar365.com/lemans/wec/dc-racing-takes-lmp2-win-overall-podium/|title=DC Racing Takes Historic LMP2 Win, Overall Podium|publisher=SportsCar365|date=June 18, 2016|accessdate=June 20, 2017}}
Racing record
= Racing career summary =
| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 90%; text-align:center"
!Season !Series !Team !Races !Wins !Poles !FLaps !Podiums !Points !Position |
| 2009
| align="left" |Pacific F2000 Championship | align="left" |PR1 Motorsports |5 |0 |0 |0 |0 |72 |11th |
|---|
| rowspan="2" |2010
| align="left" |Pacific F2000 Championship | align="left" |PR1 Motorsports |12 |2 |3 |4 |7 |242 |style="background:#DFDFDF;"| 2nd |
| align="left" |U.S. F2000 National Championship
| align="left" |ZSports Midwest |2 |0 |0 |0 |0 |N/A |NC† |
| rowspan="4" |2011
| align="left" |Pacific F2000 Championship | align="left" |PR1 Motorsports |12 |4 |2 |1 |9 |279 |style="background:#DFDFDF;"| 2nd |
| align="left" |Volkswagen Scirocco R Cup China
| align="left" |Tianjin Konggang Zhonghui Automobile | | | | | |64 |7th |
| align="left" |American Le Mans Series - LMPC
| align="left" |PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports |1 |0 |0 |0 |1 |13 |18th |
| align="left" |Rolex Sports Car Series - GT
| align="left" |PR1 Motorsports |1 |0 |0 |0 |0 |16 |57th |
| rowspan="4" |2012
| align="left" |Volkswagen Scirocco R Cup China | align="left" |Tianjin Konggang Zhonghui Automobile |11 |4 | | |4 |95 |5th |
| align="left" |Continental Sports Car Challenge - ST
| align="left" |APR Motorsport |9 |1 |0 |0 |1 |80 |42nd |
| align="left" |Formula Pilota China
| align="left" |Team UKYO with Super License |3 |0 |0 |0 |0 |4 |19th |
| align="left" |Pacific F2000 Championship
| align="left" |PR1 Motorsports |4 |1 |0 |1 |3 |97 |7th |
| rowspan="4" |2013
| align="left" |Asian Le Mans Series - LMP2 | rowspan="2" align="left" |OAK Racing |4 |2 | | |4 |89 |style="background:#FFFFBF;"| 1st |
| align="left" |FIA World Endurance Championship - LMP2
|2 |0 |0 |0 |0 |18 |20th |
| align="left" |American Le Mans Series - PC
| align="left" |PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports |5 |1 |0 |0 |2 |6 |23rd |
| align="left" |Pacific F1600 Championship Series
| align="left" |PR1 Motorsports |2 |1 |1 |0 |2 |54 |8th |
| rowspan="7" |2014
| align="left" |Asian Le Mans Series - LMP2 | align="left" |OAK Racing Team Total |4 |4 |4 |3 |4 |103 |style="background:#FFFFBF;"| 1st |
| align="left" |FIA World Endurance Championship - LMP2
| rowspan="2" align="left" |OAK Racing-Team Asia |2 |0 |0 |0 |1 |N/A† |NC† |
| align="left" |24 Hours of Le Mans - LMP2
|1 |0 |0 |0 |0 |N/A |7th |
| rowspan="3" align="left" |United SportsCar Championship - PC
| align="left" |PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports |1 |0 |0 |0 |0 | rowspan="3" |66 | rowspan="3" |21st |
| align="left" |Starworks Motorsport
|1 |0 |0 |0 |1 |
| align="left" |BAR1 Motorsports
|2 |0 |0 |0 |0 |
| align="left" |Audi R8 LMS Cup China
| align="left" |CTVS Racing Team |2 |0 |0 |0 |0 |1 |20th |
| rowspan="6" |2015
| align="left" |European Le Mans Series - LMP2 | rowspan="3" align="left" |Pegasus Racing Team Total by DC Racing |5 |0 |0 |0 |0 |14 |16th |
| align="left" |FIA World Endurance Championship - LMP2
|2 |0 |0 |0 |0 |N/A† |NC† |
| align="left" |24 Hours of Le Mans - LMP2
|1 |0 |0 |0 |0 |N/A |9th |
| align="left" |Audi R8 LMS Cup China
| align="left" |Michelin Racing Team |4 |0 |0 |0 |0 |1 |23rd |
| align="left" |United SportsCar Championship - Prototype
| align="left" |RG Racing |1 |0 |0 |0 |0 |25 |28th |
| align="left" |United SportsCar Championship - PC
| align="left" |BAR1 Motorsports |1 |0 |0 |0 |0 |1 |41st |
| 2015–16
| align="left" |Asian Le Mans Series - LMP3 | align="left" |DC Racing |4 |4 |4 |4 |4 |103 |style="background:#FFFFBF;"| 1st |
| rowspan="2" |2016
| align="left" |FIA World Endurance Championship - LMP2 | rowspan="2" align="left" |Baxi DC Racing Alpine |9 |0 |0 |0 |0 |40 |13th |
| align="left" |24 Hours of Le Mans - LMP2
|1 |0 |0 |0 |0 |N/A |NC |
| 2016–17
| align="left" |Asian Le Mans Series - LMP3 | align="left" |Jackie Chan DC Racing |4 |1 |0 |1 |3 |63 |style="background:#FFDF9F;"| 3rd |
| rowspan="4" |2017
| align="left" |FIA World Endurance Championship - LMP2 | rowspan="2" align="left" |Jackie Chan DC Racing |9 |0 |0 |0 |1 |77 |11th |
| align="left" |24 Hours of Le Mans - LMP2
|1 |0 |0 |0 |1 |N/A |style="background:#DFDFDF;"| 2nd |
| align="left" |Audi R8 LMS Cup
| align="left" |TianShi Racing Team |8 |1 |0 |1 |2 |67 |7th |
| align="left" |IMSA SportsCar Championship - PC
| align="left" |BAR1 Motorsports |1 |0 |0 |0 |1 |32 |15th |
| 2017–18
| align="left" |Asian Le Mans Series - LMP2 | align="left" |Jackie Chan DC Racing × Jota |2 |0 |0 |0 |1 |15 |9th |
| 2018
| align="left" |24 Hours of Le Mans - LMP2 | align="left" |Jackie Chan DC Racing |1 |0 |0 |0 |0 |N/A |8th |
| 2018–19
| align="left" |Jaguar I-Pace eTrophy | align="left" |Jaguar VIP Car |1 |0 |0 |0 |0 |N/A† |NC† |
| 2019–20
| align="left" |Jaguar I-Pace eTrophy - Pro-Am | align="left" |Jaguar China Racing |1 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |NC |
=Complete 24 Hours of Le Mans results=
| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size:90%" |
| Year
! Team ! Co-Drivers ! Car ! Class ! Laps ! {{Tooltip|Pos.|Overall Position}} ! {{Tooltip|Class |
|---|
| 2014
|align="left"| {{flagicon|FRA}} OAK Racing |align="left"| {{flagicon|CHN}} Ho-Pin Tung |align="left"| Ligier JS P2-Honda | LMP2 | 347 | 12th | 7th |
| 2015
|align="left"| {{flagicon|DEU}} Pegasus Racing |align="left"| {{flagicon|CHN}} Ho-Pin Tung |align="left"| Morgan LMP2-Nissan | LMP2 | 334 | 19th | 9th |
| 2016
|align="left"| {{flagicon|CHN}} Baxi DC Racing Alpine |align="left"| {{flagicon|CHN}} Ho-Pin Tung |align="left"| Alpine A460-Nissan | LMP2 | 234 | DNF | DNF |
| 2017
|align="left"| {{flagicon|CHN}} Jackie Chan DC Racing |align="left"| {{flagicon|FRA}} Tristan Gommendy |align="left"| Oreca 07-Gibson | LMP2 | 363 | style="background:#FFDF9F;"| 3rd | style="background:#DFDFDF;"| 2nd |
| 2018
|align="left"| {{flagicon|CHN}} Jackie Chan DC Racing |align="left"| {{flagicon|USA}} Nick Boulle |align="left"| Ligier JS P217-Gibson | LMP2 | 355 | 12th | 8th |
=Complete FIA World Endurance Championship results=
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size:90%"
! Year ! Entrant ! Class ! Chassis ! Engine ! 1 ! 2 ! 3 ! 4 ! 5 ! 6 ! 7 ! 8 ! 9 ! Rank ! Points |
| 2013
! LMP2 ! Nissan VK45DE 4.5 L V8 | SIL | SPA | LMS | SÃO | COA | FUJ |style="background:#DFFFDF;"| SHA |style="background:#DFFFDF;"| BHR | ! 20th ! 18 |
| rowspan=2| 2014
!rowspan=2| OAK Racing !rowspan=2| LMP2 ! Honda HR28TT 2.8 L Turbo V6 | SIL | SPA |style="background:#cfcfff;"| LMS | COA | FUJ | | | | !rowspan=2| NC{{sup|†}} !rowspan=2| 0 |
| Morgan LMP2
! Judd HK 3.6 L V8 | | | | | |style="background:#cfcfff;"| SHA |style="background:#cfcfff;"| BHR | SÃO | |
|---|
| 2015
! Pegasus Racing ! LMP2 ! Nissan VK45DE 4.5 L V8 | SIL | SPA |style="background:#cfcfff;"| LMS | NÜR | COA | FUJ |style="background:#cfcfff;"| SHA | BHR | ! NC{{sup|†}} ! 0 |
| 2016
! LMP2 |style="background:#DFFFDF;"| SIL |style="background:#EFCFFF;"| SPA |style="background:#EFCFFF;"| LMS |style="background:#DFFFDF;"| NÜR |style="background:#DFFFDF;"| MEX |style="background:#DFFFDF;"| COA |style="background:#DFFFDF;"| FUJ |style="background:#DFFFDF;"| SHA |style="background:#DFFFDF;"| BHR ! 9th ! 42 |
| 2017
! LMP2 ! Oreca 07 ! Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8 |style="background:#DFFFDF;"| SIL |style="background:#DFFFDF;"| SPA |style="background:#DFDFDF;"| LMS |style="background:#DFFFDF;"| NÜR |style="background:#DFFFDF;"| MEX |style="background:#DFFFDF;"| COA |style="background:#EFCFFF;"| FUJ |style="background:#DFFFDF;"| SHA |style="background:#DFFFDF;"| BHR ! 11th ! 77 |
| 2018–19
! LMP2 ! Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8 | SPA |style="background:#cfcfff;"| LMS | SIL | FUJ | SHA | SEB | SPA | LMS | ! NC{{sup|†}} ! 0 |
† As Cheng was a guest driver, he was ineligible to score points.
* Season still in progress.
=Complete WeatherTech SportsCar Championship results=
(key)(Races in bold indicate pole position, Results are overall/class)
| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size:90%"
! Year ! Team ! Class ! Make ! Engine ! 1 ! 2 ! 3 ! 4 ! 5 ! 6 ! 7 ! 8 ! 9 ! 10 ! Rank ! Points |
| 2015
! RG Racing ! P |style="background:#dfffdf;"| DAY | SIR | LBH | LGA | DET | WGL | MSP | ELK | COA | PET ! 27th ! 26 |
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{Official|1=http://dchengracing.com/}}
- {{Racing-Reference driver|David_Cheng}}
{{s-start}}
{{s-sports}}
{{succession box|title= Asian Le Mans Series
LMP2 Champion|before= Christophe Tinseau
Shinji Nakano |after= David Cheng
Ho-Pin Tung |years= 2013|}}
{{succession box|title= Asian Le Mans Series
LMP2 Champion|before= David Cheng |after= Nicolas Leutwiler |years= 2014|with=Ho-Pin Tung}}
{{s-end}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cheng, David}}
Category:Sportspeople from Beijing
Category:American Le Mans Series drivers
Category:Asian Le Mans Series drivers
Category:24 Hours of Daytona drivers
Category:24 Hours of Le Mans drivers
Category:FIA World Endurance Championship drivers
Category:U.S. F2000 National Championship drivers
Category:Starworks Motorsport drivers
Category:Chinese racing drivers
Category:University of Washington alumni
Category:Rolex Sports Car Series drivers
Category:Formula Masters China drivers