Felix Rosenqvist Bio
Karl Felix Helmer Rosenqvist (born 7 November 1991) is a Swedish professional racing driver who currently drives the No. 60 Honda for Meyer Shank Racing in the NTT IndyCar Series. He was named Rookie of the Year for the IndyCar Series in 2019 and is widely regarded as one of the most versatile open-wheel and sports car competitors of his generation. Across stints in single-seaters, sportscars, touring cars, and electric racing, Rosenqvist has built a reputation for strong qualifying pace and a particular fondness for street circuits.
Early Life and Background
Felix Rosenqvist was born on 7 November 1991 in Värnamo, Sweden. He began his single-seater career in Asia at a young age, signalling an early willingness to travel far from home to chase opportunities in motorsport. That formative period shaped a driver known for adapting quickly to new cars and circuits.
In the late 2000s, Rosenqvist announced himself by winning the 2008 Formula Renault 2.0 Asia title and the 2009 Formula Renault 2.0 Sweden/NEZ crown. Those early championships laid the foundation for a long apprenticeship through the European junior ladder.
Path to NASCAR
Rosenqvist’s documented career path runs through international open-wheel and sports car racing rather than the traditional NASCAR ladder system in the United States. After success in Formula Renault, he progressed through the German Formula Three Championship, the Formula 3 Euro Series, the European Formula 3 Championship, and feeder programmes like the Indy Lights series in 2016.
He also added touring car, sportscar, and Formula E experience along the way, racing in DTM, the Blancpain GT Series Sprint Cup, the Super Formula championship in Japan, and the Super GT series. A planned programme in GP2 with Prema Powerteam was cut short by budget constraints, which redirected him toward Indy Lights with Belardi Auto Racing and a sports car programme with Mercedes-Benz in Europe.
Felix Rosenqvist Career
Early Career (2008-2015)
Rosenqvist’s earliest results came in Formula Renault 2.0, where he secured titles in Asia in 2008 and in Sweden/NEZ in 2009. In 2010, he moved to the German Formula Three Championship with Performance Racing, finishing fifth overall with two victories, eight podiums, and one pole position, and placing ninth in his debut at the Macau Grand Prix Formula Three race.
He graduated to the Formula 3 Euro Series with Mücke Motorsport in 2011, finishing fifth with one win and ten podiums while winning the prestigious Masters of Formula 3 in his rookie year. After finishing third in the 2012 European Formula 3 Championship and second at Macau, he narrowly missed the 2013 European F3 title to Raffaele Marciello but won the Masters of Formula 3 for a second time. In 2015, he switched to Prema Powerteam and dominated the European Formula 3 Championship with thirteen victories, 24 podiums, and seventeen pole positions to claim the crown, cementing his status as the most successful Formula 3 racer of all time.
Formula E Breakthrough (2016-2018)
On 22 August 2016, Rosenqvist was announced as a driver for the Mahindra Formula E team for the 2016–17 season, partnering former Formula One driver Nick Heidfeld. His role as an official reserve driver in DTM at the start of 2016 led to a race seat with ART Grand Prix after Esteban Ocon’s departure to Formula One, and he scored points on his DTM debut in Moscow.
On 10 June 2017, Rosenqvist won the first race of the Berlin ePrix, securing his maiden Formula E victory and Mahindra’s first win in the series. He continued racing in Formula E through 2018 before making his final start in the championship at the end of that year.
IndyCar Series Breakthrough (2019-Present)
Rosenqvist signed with Chip Ganassi Racing for the 2019 IndyCar Series and immediately impressed, winning Rookie of the Year honors while finishing sixth in the championship standings. In the 2020 season, he captured his first IndyCar victory at the REV Group Grand Prix at Road America.
On 13 October 2020, it was announced that Rosenqvist would leave Chip Ganassi Racing and join Arrow McLaren SP in 2021, replacing Oliver Askew in the team’s No. 7 entry. The 2021 Detroit Grand Prix weekend brought a heavy crash on 12 June when a stuck throttle sent his car into the wall, forcing him to miss the second Detroit race and the following Road America round while he recovered. He remained with McLaren for 2022 and 2023, earning his first podium with the team at Toronto and three pole positions at Texas, the IMS Road Course, and Laguna Seca, with a best finish of second at Portland.
Meyer Shank Racing Era (2023-Present)
On 5 September 2023, Meyer Shank Racing announced that Rosenqvist would drive the No. 60 Honda under a multi-year deal. The early portion of the 2024 season showed a significant uptick in performance for the team, with Rosenqvist starting near the front of the field at St. Petersburg and taking pole at Long Beach, giving Meyer Shank Racing their first-ever IndyCar pole position.
Driving Style and Strengths
Rosenqvist is widely known as a street circuit specialist, with victories at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, Honda Indy Toronto, the Grand Prix de Pau, the Norisring, and the Macau Grand Prix, where he has started seven times from the front row. His race craft blends aggressive qualifying pace with smart tyre management, and he has built strong technical partnerships with his engineers through multiple manufacturer and team changes.
Notable Races and Milestones
Signature moments include his Macau Grand Prix victories and front-row starts, his 2017 Berlin ePrix win in Formula E, his first IndyCar victory at Road America in 2020, and his Long Beach pole that delivered Meyer Shank Racing’s first IndyCar pole position. His comeback from the 2021 Detroit crash also stands out as a defining chapter in his career.
Felix Rosenqvist Career Wins
Rosenqvist has built a varied victory ledger across single-seaters, sportscars, touring cars, and electric racing, with championships in Formula Renault, a dominant European Formula 3 title, an IndyCar race win, and a Formula E victory among his career highlights.
IndyCar Series Highlights
Rosenqvist’s first IndyCar victory came at the REV Group Grand Prix at Road America in 2020 during his time with Chip Ganassi Racing. He earned three pole positions during his Arrow McLaren tenure at Texas, the IMS Road Course, and Laguna Seca, along with a podium finish at Toronto, before taking Meyer Shank Racing’s first IndyCar pole at Long Beach.
Other Wins & Performances
Beyond IndyCar, Rosenqvist claimed the 2015 European Formula 3 Championship with thirteen victories, won two Masters of Formula 3 titles, and scored two Macau Grand Prix victories from pole. He also secured a Blancpain GT Series Sprint Cup win with AKKA-ASP Team and Tristan Vautier in 2016, finished second at the 24 Hours of Spa that same year, and added a Formula E victory at the 2017 Berlin ePrix.
Felix Rosenqvist Family
Family Background and Racing Lineage
Public biographical sources for Rosenqvist’s immediate family are limited, with no widely documented racing lineage beyond his own achievements. The most frequently cited personal detail is his Swedish nationality and his upbringing in Värnamo.
Personal Life
Rosenqvist splits his racing life between Europe and the United States while competing full-time in the NTT IndyCar Series. He maintains an active presence on social media under his official accounts.
2025 Season Performance
Heading into the 2025 NTT IndyCar Series season, Rosenqvist continues his multi-year deal with Meyer Shank Racing in the No. 60 Honda. The team enters the year with momentum from the gains it showed on street and road courses during the early 2024 campaign, including the program’s first-ever IndyCar pole at Long Beach.
The primary storyline for 2025 is whether Meyer Shank Racing can convert that qualifying speed into consistent race results and podium finishes across both the permanent road circuits and the demanding street venues where Rosenqvist has historically excelled. With his established comfort on street circuits like St. Petersburg and Toronto, the team is expected to lean on his experience through the early rounds and the busy summer schedule.
Stability in the engineering group and continued manufacturer support from Honda give Rosenqvist a familiar technical environment as he targets his first victory with Meyer Shank Racing and a return to the sharper end of the championship standings. The outlook for 2025 points to a campaign built on qualifying execution, strategic tyre use, and capitalizing on the street course dates that have defined much of his career.
