Tõnis Kasemets
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| Tõnis Kasemets | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nationality |  Estonian | ||||||
| Born | March 17, 1974 Pärnu, Estonia | ||||||
| Achievements | 2022 IMSA Prototype Challenge champion driver 2025 USF Pro 2000 Championship Engineer of the Year | ||||||
| Champ Car career | |||||||
| 5 races run over 1 year | |||||||
| Team | Rocketsports Racing | ||||||
| Best finish | 19th (2006) | ||||||
| First race | 2006 Grand Prix of Portland (Portland) | ||||||
| Last race | 2006 Grand Prix of Road America (Road America) | ||||||
| |||||||
Tõnis Kasemets (born March 17, 1974) is an Estonian racing driver and a former competitor in the CART Champ Car World Series. He won the 2022 IMSA Prototype Challenge championship, and serves as an engineer for Pabst Racing in the USF Pro 2000 Championship. Kasemets won the 2025 USF Pro 2000 Championship as engineer for driver Max Garcia.[1]
Career
[edit]Kasemets started racing karts in 1982, winning the Baltic championships in 1992 and 1993.[1] In 1995, Kasemets moved to the United States to race in the American series. He advanced through the open wheel ranks and by 2004 was in the Toyota Atlantic series. In 2005, he placed second in the series championship to Charles Zwolsman Jr.. He participated in a partial 2006 schedule in the Champ Car World Series for Paul Gentilozzi's Rocketsports Racing.
To participate in Champ Car in 2006 he had to gather funds for a quarter of the participation costs. Kasemets wanted to do a full season of Champ Car in 2007 and in the future he wants to own a successful team à la Newman-Haas and Forsythe.[2] However, he has not appeared in a Champ Car or IndyCar Series race since 2006. He continued racing in the Atlantic Championship until its closure after the 2009 season and made his Firestone Indy Lights debut on the Streets of Long Beach in April 2010.
Kasemets has competed in some Grand Am Road Racing events, including the 2013 Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona.
Kasemets, whose North American career included driving stints at Pabst Racing, has parlayed that relationship into being a driver coach and engineer for the team.
Personal life
[edit]Kasemets currently lives in Mundelein, Illinois with his son and daughter.
Racing record
[edit]SCCA National Championship Runoffs
[edit]| Year | Track | Car | Engine | Class | Finish | Start | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Mid-Ohio | Carbir | Ford | Formula Continental | 23 | 6 | DNF |
| 2000 | Mid-Ohio | Mygale 99 | Ford | Formula Continental | 1 | 2 | Running |
| 2003 | Mid-Ohio | Swift 008.a | Toyota 4AGE | Formula Atlantic | 20 | 8 | Running |
| 2005 | Mid-Ohio | Alfa Romeo | GT Lite | DNS | 7 | DNS | |
| 2007 | Heartland Park | Swift 014.a | Toyota 4AGE | Formula Atlantic | 2 | 2 | Running |
| 2008 | Heartland Park | Vestal 09F | Ford Kent | Formula Ford | 2 | 2 | Running |
American open–wheel racing results
[edit](key)
Atlantic Championship
[edit]| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | Rank | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Brooks Associates Racing | LBH 18 | MTY | MIL | POR1 11 | POR2 12 | CLE 9 | TOR | VAN | ROA 5 | DEN | MTL | LS 5 | 13th | 81 | |||
| 2005 | Team Tonis | LBH 15 | MTY 2 | POR1 1 | POR2 1 | CLE1 2 | CLE2 4 | TOR 8 | EDM 5 | SJO 19 | DEN 8 | ROA 1 | MTL 2 | 2nd | 289 | |||
| 2007 | Newman Wachs Racing | LVG | LBH | HOU | POR1 | POR2 | CLE | MTT | TOR | EDM1 | EDM2 | SJO | ROA 17 | 29th | 4 | |||
| 2008 | Genoa Racing | LBH | LS | MTT | EDM1 | EDM2 | ROA1 3 | ROA2 3 | TRR | NJ | UTA | ATL | 21st | 51 | ||||
| 2009 | Polestar Motor Racing | SEB 7 | NJ1 6 | NJ2 7 | LIM 5 | ACC1 5 | ACC2 3 | MOH 12 | TRR 4 | MOS 6 | ATL 9 | LS 4 | 5th | 103 | ||||
| Genoa Racing | UTA 5 | |||||||||||||||||
| 2012 | K-Hill Motorsports | ATL1 | ATL2 | NJ1 | NJ2 | SUM1 1 | SUM2 6 | 9th | 87 | |||||||||
| 2015 | K-Hill Motorsports | PBI 1 | ATL | ATL | WGL | WGL | VIR | VIR | MOH | MOH | PIT | PIT | NJMP | NJMP | PIT 10 | PIT 1 | 18th | 53 |
| 2023 | K-Hill Motorsports | ATL | ATL | MOH | MOH | PIT | PIT | ROA DNS | ROA 2 | SUM | SUM | 10th | 44 | |||||
Source:[3] | ||||||||||||||||||
Indy Lights
[edit]| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | Rank | Points | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Team PBIR | STP | ALA | LBH 6 | INDY | IOW | WGL | 18th | 56 | [4] | ||||||||
| Andersen Racing | TOR 6 | EDM | MOH | SNM | CHI | KTY | HMS | |||||||||||
| 2011 | Team Moore Racing | STP | ALA | LBH | INDY | MIL | IOW | TOR | EDM1 | EDM2 | TRO | NHM | BAL 8 | KTY | LVS | 27th | 24 | [5] |
Champ Car
[edit]| Year | Team | No. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | Rank | Points | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Rocketsports Racing | 18 | LBH | HOU | MTY | MIL | POR 16 | CLE 12 | TOR 15 | EDM 11 | SJO | DEN | MTL | ROA 17 | SRF | MXC | 19th | 34 | [6] |
IMSA Prototype Challenge
[edit]| Season | Series | Team | Races | Wins | Poles | F/Laps | Podiums | Points | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | IMSA Prototype Challenge | Wulver Racing | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 139 | 4th |
| 2020 | IMSA Prototype Challenge | Wulver Racing | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 134 | 11th |
| 2021 | IMSA Prototype Challenge | Wulver Racing | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1070 | 10th |
| 2022 | IMSA Prototype Challenge | Wulver Racing | 5 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 1720 | 1st |
WeatherTech SportsCar Championship
[edit](key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; results in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | Class | Make | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | Pos. | Points | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Wulver Motorsports | LMP3 | Ligier JS P320 | Nissan VK56DE 5.6 L V8 | DAY | SEB | MOH | WGL | WGL | ELK 6 | PET | 29th | 276 | [7] |
| 2023 | Ave Motorsports | LMP3 | Ligier JS P320 | Nissan VK56DE 5.6L V8 | DAY | SEB 5 | WGL 6 | MOS | ELK 6 | IMS | PET | 19th | 808 | [8] |
| 2024 | Sean Creech Motorsport | LMP2 | Ligier JS P217 | Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8 | DAY | SEB | WGL | MOS | ELK 8 | IMS | ATL | 51st | 253 | [9] |
Source:[10] | ||||||||||||||
References
[edit]- ^ "Kasemets, Tõnis". www.esbl.ee. Spordikoolituse ja -Teabe Sihtasutus. Retrieved 17 September 2023.
- ^ "Tõnis Kasemets kavatseb Champ Cari sarjas jätkata". October 17, 2006. Retrieved October 17, 2006.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Tõnis Kasemets – Atlantic stats". Champ Car Stats. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
- ^ "Tonis Kasemets – 2010 Firestone Indy Lights Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
- ^ "Tonis Kasemets – 2011 Firestone Indy Lights Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
- ^ "Tõnis Kasemets – 2006 Champ Car World Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
- ^ "Tonis Kasemets – 2021 Weathertech SportsCar Championship Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
- ^ "Tonis Kasemets – 2023 Weathertech SportsCar Championship Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
- ^ "Tonis Kasemets – 2024 Weathertech SportsCar Championship Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
- ^ "Tonis Kasemets Results". Motorsport Stats. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
External links
[edit]- Official website
- Tõnis Kasemets driver statistics at Racing-Reference
- Living people
- 1974 births
- Sportspeople from Pärnu
- Sportspeople from Lake County, Illinois
- Estonian emigrants to the United States
- Estonian racing drivers
- 24 Hours of Daytona drivers
- Champ Car drivers
- Indy Lights drivers
- Atlantic Championship drivers
- Rolex Sports Car Series drivers
- EFDA Nations Cup drivers
- WeatherTech SportsCar Championship drivers
- SCCA National Championship Runoffs winners
- U.S. F2000 National Championship drivers
- Newman Wachs Racing drivers
- Team Moore Racing drivers
- Rocketsports Racing drivers
- Estonian expatriate sportspeople in the United States
- Trans-Am Series drivers
- People from Mundelein, Illinois
- Racing drivers from Illinois
| Tõnis Kasemets | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nationality |  Estonian | ||||||
| Born | March 17, 1974 Pärnu, Estonia | ||||||
| Achievements | 2022 IMSA Prototype Challenge champion driver 2025 USF Pro 2000 Championship Engineer of the Year | ||||||
| Champ Car career | |||||||
| 5 races run over 1 year | |||||||
| Team | Rocketsports Racing | ||||||
| Best finish | 19th (2006) | ||||||
| First race | 2006 Grand Prix of Portland (Portland) | ||||||
| Last race | 2006 Grand Prix of Road America (Road America) | ||||||
| |||||||
Tõnis Kasemets (born March 17, 1974) is an Estonian racing driver and a former competitor in the CART Champ Car World Series. He won the 2022 IMSA Prototype Challenge championship, and serves as an engineer for Pabst Racing in the USF Pro 2000 Championship. Kasemets won the 2025 USF Pro 2000 Championship as engineer for driver Max Garcia.[1]
Career
Kasemets started racing karts in 1982, winning the Baltic championships in 1992 and 1993.[1] In 1995, Kasemets moved to the United States to race in the American series. He advanced through the open wheel ranks and by 2004 was in the Toyota Atlantic series. In 2005, he placed second in the series championship to Charles Zwolsman Jr.. He participated in a partial 2006 schedule in the Champ Car World Series for Paul Gentilozzi's Rocketsports Racing.
To participate in Champ Car in 2006 he had to gather funds for a quarter of the participation costs. Kasemets wanted to do a full season of Champ Car in 2007 and in the future he wants to own a successful team à la Newman-Haas and Forsythe.[2] However, he has not appeared in a Champ Car or IndyCar Series race since 2006. He continued racing in the Atlantic Championship until its closure after the 2009 season and made his Firestone Indy Lights debut on the Streets of Long Beach in April 2010.
Kasemets has competed in some Grand Am Road Racing events, including the 2013 Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona.
Kasemets, whose North American career included driving stints at Pabst Racing, has parlayed that relationship into being a driver coach and engineer for the team.
Personal life
Kasemets currently lives in Mundelein, Illinois with his son and daughter.
Racing record
SCCA National Championship Runoffs
| Year | Track | Car | Engine | Class | Finish | Start | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Mid-Ohio | Carbir | Ford | Formula Continental | 23 | 6 | DNF |
| 2000 | Mid-Ohio | Mygale 99 | Ford | Formula Continental | 1 | 2 | Running |
| 2003 | Mid-Ohio | Swift 008.a | Toyota 4AGE | Formula Atlantic | 20 | 8 | Running |
| 2005 | Mid-Ohio | Alfa Romeo | GT Lite | DNS | 7 | DNS | |
| 2007 | Heartland Park | Swift 014.a | Toyota 4AGE | Formula Atlantic | 2 | 2 | Running |
| 2008 | Heartland Park | Vestal 09F | Ford Kent | Formula Ford | 2 | 2 | Running |
American open–wheel racing results
(key)
Atlantic Championship
| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | Rank | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Brooks Associates Racing | LBH 18 | MTY | MIL | POR1 11 | POR2 12 | CLE 9 | TOR | VAN | ROA 5 | DEN | MTL | LS 5 | 13th | 81 | |||
| 2005 | Team Tonis | LBH 15 | MTY 2 | POR1 1 | POR2 1 | CLE1 2 | CLE2 4 | TOR 8 | EDM 5 | SJO 19 | DEN 8 | ROA 1 | MTL 2 | 2nd | 289 | |||
| 2007 | Newman Wachs Racing | LVG | LBH | HOU | POR1 | POR2 | CLE | MTT | TOR | EDM1 | EDM2 | SJO | ROA 17 | 29th | 4 | |||
| 2008 | Genoa Racing | LBH | LS | MTT | EDM1 | EDM2 | ROA1 3 | ROA2 3 | TRR | NJ | UTA | ATL | 21st | 51 | ||||
| 2009 | Polestar Motor Racing | SEB 7 | NJ1 6 | NJ2 7 | LIM 5 | ACC1 5 | ACC2 3 | MOH 12 | TRR 4 | MOS 6 | ATL 9 | LS 4 | 5th | 103 | ||||
| Genoa Racing | UTA 5 | |||||||||||||||||
| 2012 | K-Hill Motorsports | ATL1 | ATL2 | NJ1 | NJ2 | SUM1 1 | SUM2 6 | 9th | 87 | |||||||||
| 2015 | K-Hill Motorsports | PBI 1 | ATL | ATL | WGL | WGL | VIR | VIR | MOH | MOH | PIT | PIT | NJMP | NJMP | PIT 10 | PIT 1 | 18th | 53 |
| 2023 | K-Hill Motorsports | ATL | ATL | MOH | MOH | PIT | PIT | ROA DNS | ROA 2 | SUM | SUM | 10th | 44 | |||||
Source:[3] | ||||||||||||||||||
Indy Lights
| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | Rank | Points | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Team PBIR | STP | ALA | LBH 6 | INDY | IOW | WGL | 18th | 56 | [4] | ||||||||
| Andersen Racing | TOR 6 | EDM | MOH | SNM | CHI | KTY | HMS | |||||||||||
| 2011 | Team Moore Racing | STP | ALA | LBH | INDY | MIL | IOW | TOR | EDM1 | EDM2 | TRO | NHM | BAL 8 | KTY | LVS | 27th | 24 | [5] |
Champ Car
| Year | Team | No. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | Rank | Points | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Rocketsports Racing | 18 | LBH | HOU | MTY | MIL | POR 16 | CLE 12 | TOR 15 | EDM 11 | SJO | DEN | MTL | ROA 17 | SRF | MXC | 19th | 34 | [6] |
IMSA Prototype Challenge
| Season | Series | Team | Races | Wins | Poles | F/Laps | Podiums | Points | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | IMSA Prototype Challenge | Wulver Racing | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 139 | 4th |
| 2020 | IMSA Prototype Challenge | Wulver Racing | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 134 | 11th |
| 2021 | IMSA Prototype Challenge | Wulver Racing | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1070 | 10th |
| 2022 | IMSA Prototype Challenge | Wulver Racing | 5 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 1720 | 1st |
WeatherTech SportsCar Championship
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; results in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | Class | Make | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | Pos. | Points | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Wulver Motorsports | LMP3 | Ligier JS P320 | Nissan VK56DE 5.6 L V8 | DAY | SEB | MOH | WGL | WGL | ELK 6 | PET | 29th | 276 | [7] |
| 2023 | Ave Motorsports | LMP3 | Ligier JS P320 | Nissan VK56DE 5.6L V8 | DAY | SEB 5 | WGL 6 | MOS | ELK 6 | IMS | PET | 19th | 808 | [8] |
| 2024 | Sean Creech Motorsport | LMP2 | Ligier JS P217 | Gibson GK428 4.2 L V8 | DAY | SEB | WGL | MOS | ELK 8 | IMS | ATL | 51st | 253 | [9] |
Source:[10] | ||||||||||||||
References
- ^ "Kasemets, Tõnis". www.esbl.ee. Spordikoolituse ja -Teabe Sihtasutus. Retrieved 17 September 2023.
- ^ "Tõnis Kasemets kavatseb Champ Cari sarjas jätkata". October 17, 2006. Retrieved October 17, 2006.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Tõnis Kasemets – Atlantic stats". Champ Car Stats. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
- ^ "Tonis Kasemets – 2010 Firestone Indy Lights Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
- ^ "Tonis Kasemets – 2011 Firestone Indy Lights Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
- ^ "Tõnis Kasemets – 2006 Champ Car World Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
- ^ "Tonis Kasemets – 2021 Weathertech SportsCar Championship Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
- ^ "Tonis Kasemets – 2023 Weathertech SportsCar Championship Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
- ^ "Tonis Kasemets – 2024 Weathertech SportsCar Championship Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
- ^ "Tonis Kasemets Results". Motorsport Stats. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
External links
- Official website
- Tõnis Kasemets driver statistics at Racing-Reference