Memo Gidley
Mazda RX-8 driven by Memo Gidley in 2011
Nationality Mexican
 American
Born (1970-09-29) September 29, 1970
La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico
GT America Series career
Debut season2023
Current teamTKO Motorsports with Flying Lizard
Car number101
Starts18
Championships1
Wins8
Podiums15
Best finish1st in 2023
Previous series
1999–2004
2000–2002
1999–2012
2014
2022		Champ Car
Indy Racing League
American Le Mans Series
IMSA SportsCar Championship
IMSA Prototype Challenge
Championship titles
2023GT America Series (SRO3)
Awards
1995Team USA Scholarship

José Guillermo "Memo" Gidley is a Mexican-born racing driver, of German and Canadian ancestry, born in La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico on September 29, 1970. He holds dual citizenship - American and Mexican.

In his early years, he sold his apartment to fund his career and spent 4 months homeless living in his car. He worked at the Jim Russell racing school as a mechanic to fund his career for some time, eventually getting a chance in Champ Car with Derrick Walker in 1999, although this was as a short-term replacement. He did the same task for Gerry Forsythe a year later, and Chip Ganassi in 2001, twice coming close to race victories. He nearly retained his drive for 2002 - Chip later suggested that they keep Bruno Junqueira over him as the Brazilian was under contract.

He has raced assorted sports cars since, although he made two Champ Car starts for Rocketsports in 2004, and briefly ran in the rival IRL series. After 2005 he competed full-time in the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series, co-driving with Michael McDowell to a victory in the Mexico City season finale. In 2006 he raced in the Team Playboy cars and in 2007 he partnered Max Angelelli in the SunTrust Racing team.[1] In 2010 Gidley co-drove Team CytoSport's Porsche RS Spyder with Germany's Klaus Graf and Sascha Maassen to second in class (and overall) at Laguna Seca, but he reportedly hadn't given up yet on a return to major open wheel racing.

In the 2014 24 Hours of Daytona, Gidley suffered serious injuries when his Corvette DP slammed into the back of a Ferrari being driven by Matteo Malucelli. Malucelli's car had lost power and had rolled to a near stop on the track, when Gidley hit him at approximately 120 miles per hour (190 km/h).[2] Gidley was taken by ambulance to Halifax Health Medical Center, where doctors diagnosed him with a broken back and leg and arm injuries.[3] Gidley had eight surgeries that took him three years to recover.

Gidley made his come-back to racing full-time in 2022, in the IMSA Prototype Challenge, driving a Duqueine D-08 LMP3.[4] He won the second race of the season at Mid-Ohio,[5] and finished second in the championship overall. Gidley raced in GT America Series in 2023, and won the SRO3(GT3) championship,[6] with 8 wins.

Motorsports career results

American Open-Wheel racing results

(key)

Complete USF2000 National Championship results

Year Entrant 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Pos Points
1995 Cape Motorsports PIR1
46		 PIR2
1		 IRP
1		 RIR
4		 WGI
43		 MDO1
1		 NHS
2		 ATL1
6		 ATL2
2		 MDO1
7		 2nd 196

Atlantic Championship

Year Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Rank Points
1997 Lynx Racing HMS
2		 LBH
7		 NAZ
26		 MIL
3		 MTL
3		 CLE
9		 TOR
1		 TRR
5		 MDO
4		 ROA
5		 VAN
1		 LS
25		 2nd 136
1998 Lynx Racing LBH
1		 NAZ
4		 GAT
1		 MIL
1		 MTL
32		 CLE
26		 TOR
6		 TRR
4		 MDO
27		 ROA
2		 VAN
7		 LS
22		 HOU
5		 3rd 134

CART/Champ Car World Series

Year Team Chassis Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 Rank Points Ref
1999 Walker Racing Reynard 99i Honda HRS V8t MIA MOT LBH NZR RIO STL MIL POR
19		 CLE
11		 ROA
26		 TOR
12		 MIC 27th 4 [7]
Payton/Coyne Racing Lola B99/00 Ford XD V8t DET
20		 MDO
22		 CHI VAN
12		 LS
13		 HOU
14		 SRF
14		 FON
2000 Player's Forsythe Racing Reynard 2Ki Ford XF V8t MIA LBH
21		 RIO
8		 MOT
18		 NZR MIL DET POR CLE TOR 20th 20 [8]
Della Penna Motorsports Toyota RV8E V8t MIC
10		 CHI
10		 MDO
12		 ROA
6		 VAN
16		 LS
19		 STL
22		 HOU
21		 SRF FON
21
2001 Chip Ganassi Racing Lola B01/00 Toyota RV8F V8t MTY LBH TXS NZR MOT MIL DET POR
25		 CLE
2*		 TOR
17		 MIC
14		 CHI
5		 MDO
11		 ROA
20		 VAN
10		 LAU
14		 ROC
18		 HOU
3		 LS
2		 SRF
10		 FON
14		 17th 65 [9]
2004 Rocketsports Lola B02/00 Ford XFE V8t LBH MTY MIL POR CLE TOR
16		 VAN
11		 ROA DEN MTL LS LVS SRF MXC 21st 15^ [10]
  • ^ New points system implemented in 2004

Indy Racing League

Year Team Chassis No. Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Rank Points Ref
2000 Team Pelfrey Dallara IR-00 82 Oldsmobile Aurora V8 WDW PHX LVS INDY
DNQ		 TXS PPIR ATL KTY TX2 NC - [11]
2001 Brayton Racing Dallara IR-01 61 PHX HMS ATL INDY
DNQ		 TXS PPIR RIR KAN NSH KTY STL CHI TX2 NC - [12]
2002 Dreyer & Reinbold Racing G-Force GF05C 24 Infiniti VRH35ADE V8 HMS PHX FON
21		 NZR 46th 9 [13]
Duesenberg Brothers Racing Dallara IR-02 32 Chevrolet Indy V8 INDY
DNQ		 TXS PPIR RIR KAN NSH MIS KTY STL CHI TX2

Indy 500 results

Year Chassis Engine Start Finish Team
2000 Dallara Oldsmobile DNQ Team Pelfrey
2001 Dallara Oldsmobile DNQ Brayton Racing
2002 Dallara Chevrolet DNQ Duesenberg Brothers Racing

Complete American Le Mans Series results

Year Entrant Class Chassis Engine Tyres 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Rank Points
1999 Panoz Motor Sports LMP Panoz LMP-1 Roadster-S Ford (Élan-Yates) 6.0 L V8 M SEB ATL MOS SON POR PET
ovr:5
cls:5		 MON LSV 63rd 15
2006 Highcroft Racing LMP1 MG-Lola EX257 AER P07 2.0L Turbo I4 D SEB TEX MID LIM UTA POR AME MOS PET
ovr:3
cls:3		 MON 20th 19
2007 Team Cytosport LMP1 Lola B06/10 AER P32T 4.0L Turbo V8 D SEB STP LNB TEX UTA LIM MID AME MOS DET PET
ovr:14
cls:3		 MON 20th 19
2010 Muscle Milk Team CytoSport LMP Porsche RS Spyder Evo Porsche MR6 3.4 L V8 M SEB LNB MON
ovr:2
cls:2		 UTA LIM MID AME MOS PET NC -
2012 Muscle Milk Pickett Racing PC Oreca FLM09 Chevrolet LS3 6.2 L V8 M SEB
ovr:42
cls:5		 LNB
ovr:4
cls:2		 MON
ovr:6
cls:4		 LIM MOS MID AME BAL VIR PET 12th 40
* Season still in progress.

WeatherTech SportsCar Championship results

(key)(Races in bold indicate pole position, Results are overall/class)

Year Team Class Make Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Rank Points
2014 GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing P Riley Corvette DP Chevrolet 5.5L V8 DAY
18		 SEB
 LBH LAG DET WGL
 MOS IMS ROA COA PET
 56th 14

References

  1. ↑ IRL at Sonoma: No place like home for Marin drivers
  2. ↑ SCARY ROLEX 24 WRECK SENDS TWO DRIVERS TO DAYTONA HOSPITAL by John Dagys, Fox Sports, January 25, 2014.
  3. ↑ Memo Gidley breaks back in crash at Rolex 24 at Daytona by Jeff Olsen, USA Today, January 26, 2014.
  4. ↑ "Gidley making Daytona return in Prototype Challenge". RACER. 2022-01-10. Retrieved 2023-09-28.
  5. ↑ "Memo-rable Journey Reaches Memo-rable Moment: Gidley's Return to Victory Lane".
  6. ↑ "Memo Gidley Clinches GT America SRO3 Championship In Race 1". www.dailysportscar.com. Retrieved 2023-10-12.
  7. ↑ "Memo Gidley – 1999 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
  8. ↑ "Memo Gidley – 2000 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
  9. ↑ "Memo Gidley – 2001 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
  10. ↑ "Memo Gidley – 2004 Champ Car World Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
  11. ↑ "Memo Gidley – 2000 Indy Racing Northern Lights Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 6, 2023.
  12. ↑ "Memo Gidley – 2001 Indy Racing Northern Lights Series Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 6, 2023.
  13. ↑ "Memo Gidley – 2002 Indy Racing League Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved August 6, 2023.
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