Alex Zanardi – The Incredible Man Who Invented The Donut

“Am I allowed to do donuts?” asks Alex Zanardi. GRR assures him he is. He of all all people is allowed to do them. He virtually invented them. “I didn’t do them first but I did popularise them when I was racing in the US. Other drivers used to say, ‘Look, he’s doing a Zanardi!’ I was very proud of my donuts.”

The former F1 and CART driver, BMW touring car ace and more recently Paralympic gold medalist, was very nearly fined for “reckless driving” the first few times he “did a Zanardi” to celebrate his victories in the US. And he had plenty to celebrate in CART racing including two championships after he moved from F1 to CART racing in 1997.

You can watch Alex “doing a Zanardi” in CART racing here:

Alex wasn’t fined, and now the donuts are a victory tradition not just in NASCAR and IndyCar racing but in F1 too – and a tradition that for many years now has enthralled the crowds at the Festival of Speed.

Donuts are of course the least of Alex’s achievements… GRR’s interview with very possibly the nicest – and one of the most inspiring – drivers at FoS soon…

Photography by Tom Shaxson