Motorsport figures in a different discipline to family relative

Carlos Sainz Sr made history at the 2024 Dakar Rally by becoming the oldest driver ever to win the prestigious event at a remarkable age of 61. 

It was Sainz Sr’s fourth victory in the Dakar, 14 years after his first, adding to an already illustrious career for the double world rally champion. 

So, it is no surprise that his motorsport genes passed through the family with Sainz’s son, Carlos Jr, being a Formula 1 grand prix winner for Ferrari. 

Drivers following their father into motorsport is nothing new though, as Keke and Nico Rosberg are both F1 world champions for example – but how many have become famous via a different motor racing discipline to their parent or sibling? Here are some on the list.  

Father and son  

Carlos Sainz Sr and Carlos Sainz Jr – Rally and Single-seaters 

Sainz Sr’s rally career dates back 44 years to 1980, and one of his best results early on was second in the 1986 Spanish Rally Championship. This catapulted him into the WRC, where he made his debut for Ford in 1987 until making a huge move to Toyota two years later, as Sainz Sr won both his world championships (1990 and 1992) with the Japanese manufacturer.  

Sainz Sr achieved eight more top-three finishes in WRC before ending his 18-year stint in rally’s top category in 2005.  

That coincided with the start of Sainz Jr’s career, as the Spaniard began karting in 2006. He progressed to single-seaters in 2010 where he became a member of the Red Bull junior squad. 

Sainz’s debut in F1 machinery was a young drivers’ test at Silverstone for Toro Rosso in 2013. He made his full F1 debut with the team in 2015 and nine seasons later, after stints for Toro Rosso, Renault and McLaren, he is now a grand prix winner for Ferrari having won at Silverstone and Singapore. 

Although Sainz Jr made his name in a different motorsport discipline to his father, Sainz Sr still raced single-seaters at one point having competed in Formula Ford but it did not go beyond that. 

Nigel Albon and Alex Albon – Touring cars and Single-seaters 

Nigel Albon’s first foray into motorsport came in 1993 when he raced in the Renault Clio Cup a year before completing a season in the British Touring Car Championship. 

Albon drove a Renault 19 for Harlow Motorsport in BTCC but finished 30th in the overall standings failing to…