David Koczo
David Koczo (born December 12, 1986 in Hungary) is a Hungarian racing driver known for his successful F1RWRS career, a series in which he is one of ten drivers to have entered all 51 race weekends in the first four seasons. His run of consecutive entries came to an end with the demise of Team Calinetic at the end of the 2013 season, leaving him without a drive for 2014. However, following the buyout of Trueba by Scuderia Alitalia Koczo's career was resurrected as he was signed to drive for the team alongside Dave Simpson, replacing Giovanni Roda.
Koczo is the only Hungarian driver to have competed in the series.
Early Career
Karting and F3000
David Koczo entered Hungarian karting at the age of thirteen. Koczo followed the career path of HWNSNBM and went to Formula Renault in 2000. He stayed there for three years, gaining mild success and he was picked up by Coloni in the International F3000 Series. Koczo drove in F3000 for one year, winning one race in his F3000 career. Hungarian liquor manufacturer Zwack decided to sponsor David in his attempt to get into Formula One. However, there was only room for one Hungarian driver in the sport so no one offered David a drive. Koczo raced DTM for 2005 and 2006 (where he achieved almost nothing) before moving to the GP2 Series for 2007.
GP2
Koczo was successful in GP2, taking four wins throughout his tenure there. However, he remained in the series for three years as he was always passed over by F1 teams. Frustrated at his lack of success, David chose to leave GP2 in 2009 for Formula 2. David spent one year there before leaving for the F1RWRS. He was hired by Prospec and was present for the first race of the 2010 F1RWRS season.
F1RWRS
2010
David Koczo quickly became one of the best drivers in the F1RWRS. He scored a podium in the first race of the season at 2010 F1RWRS German Grand Prix Hockenheim and was in competition for the championship until the last race of the season at the Australian Grand Prix. He lost out to the more consistent Gary Cameron but did become the first driver to win back-to-back F1RWRS races at the Tasman and Bahrain Grand Prix. Koczo would finish fifth in the Drivers' Championship and was instrumental in giving Prospec their first Constructors' title.
2011
Koczo was retained for the 2011 F1RWRS season, again partnering Nathanael Spencer. Koczo was competitive again, taking three podiums and a win at the 2011 F1RWRS Chinese Grand Prix en route to a third place finish the Drivers' Championship. However, he was not in the race for the championship as his teammate Spencer and Daniel Melrose battled it out, with Spencer emerging victorious. Prospec took the Constructors' Championship for the second year in a row. Despite all this success, Koczo was inconsistent near the end of the season and gave no help to Spencer's championship challenge, culminating in a back-to-back double-DNPQ. Koczo decided to leave for Team Calinetic for the 2012 F1RWRS season, a move that would destroy his F1RWRS career.
2012
Koczo debuted for Team Calinetic at the 2012 F1RWRS Bavarian Grand Prix. Unfortunately, he and teammate Gary Cameron recorded Calinetic's first double-DNPQ in their history. This setback set the tone for the rest of the season as it became clear that the Calinetic was just not up to scratch with the rest of the field. Cameron jumped ship after only six races and he was replaced by Nicolas Steele. Koczo handily outperformed Steele and recorded the team's best finish (a fourth place in Germany). Still, Koczo finished a lowly twenty-third in the Drivers' Championship and Calinetic finished seventeenth in the Constructors'.
2013
Koczo decided to remain at Calinetic for 2013 but results were poor. Koczo only qualified for two out of the sixteen races and scored no points. Koczo had four different teammates as the team neared financial collapse. Finally, Calinetic closed up shop at the end of 2013 and David was left out of a drive for 2013. Despite his credentials, no offers came calling and Koczo prepared for a career in touring cars.
2014
Koczo had stopped actively looking for a job at the start of the 2014 F1RWRS season. However, he was suddenly thrust back in to the series as Alessandro Linari, team boss of the newly formed Scuderia Trueba Alitalia team decided to hire both him and Dave Simpson to drive in 2014. Koczo's midseason return began brilliantly with a seventh place finish in France. Unfortunately, Koczo failed to pre-qualify for the remainder of the season as Alitalia focused their efforts on 2015. Koczo was resigned for 2015
2015
Koczo returned in 2015 at age 28, ready to compete for his sixth season in the F1RWRS. Scuderia Alitalia's hard work from the previous season enabled Alitalia to move up the grid. After only pre-qualifying twice last season, Koczo and his teammate Ben Fleet led Alitalia to five trips to regular qualifying. Still, a huge imbroglio broke after the 2015 F1RWRS Canadian Grand Prix when Koczo announced his shocking retirement. A furious Alessandro Linari sacked Koczo immediately and opened the seat to anyone with a Reject Superlicense. Linari's harsh decision drew instant criticism from his many detractors. Koczo was also criticized for not notifying the team of his decision. The controversy ended when Linari re-hired Koczo for the rest of the season.
Motorsport Results
Complete F1RWRS Results
Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | DC | Pts |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2010 | Prospec | GER 2 |
LUX 18 |
SAX 6 |
CHN 10 |
TAS 1 |
BHR 1 |
BEL 11 |
GBR 3 |
AUS 7 |
5th | 47 | |||||||
2011 | Prospec | BAV 17 |
GER 3 |
SAX 13 |
LUX Ret |
BEL 8 |
GBR 3 |
ENG 3 |
KEN 6 |
NED 11 |
TAS 19 |
AUS DNPQ |
NSW DNPQ |
SUR Ret |
CHN 1 |
USA 14 |
=3rd | 46 | |
2012 | Team Calinetic | BAV DNPQ |
SAX DNPQ |
GER 4 |
LUX DNPQ |
BEL 13 |
NED DNPQ |
GBR DNPQ |
KEN 18 |
ENG DNPQ |
TAS Ret |
SUR 8 |
NSW 16 |
AUS Ret |
CHN 17 |
USA 19 |
500 20 |
23rd | 7 |
2013 | Team Calinetic | TAS DNPQ |
AUS DNPQ |
MEX Ret |
USA DNPQ |
MON DNPQ |
FRA DNPQ |
GBR DNPQ |
GER DNPQ |
NED DNPQ |
BEL 9 |
POR DNPQ |
MED DNPQ |
MAC DNPQ |
CHN DNPQ |
JPN DNPQ |
BRA DNPQ |
=30th | 0 |
2014 | Scuderia Trueba Alitalia | TAS | AUS | BRA | MEX | USA | MON | FRA 7 |
GBR DNPQ |
GER DNPQ |
BEL DNPQ |
ITA DNPQ |
MED DNPQ |
NED DNPQ |
MAC DNPQ |
CHN DNPQ |
JPN DNPQ |
=26th | 0 |