Sebastien Belo

Sebastien Belo (born October 10, 1969) is a French racing driver who competed in the F1RGP2C for Ligier in 1994.

Early Career
Sebastien Belo was born on October 10, 1969 in the French city of Toulon. He spent most of his childhood just outside of the major port city in the town of Ollioules. For his tenth birthday, Belo's mother took him north to Dijon for the 1979 French Grand Prix. There, Belo watched the legendary duel between Rene Arnoux and Gillex Villeneuve. Belo became a fan of the Renault team through his teens and began to work in local auto shops. Sebastien's dream was to be part of the pit crew; he enjoyed working with cars and had a knack for fixing cars. However, his second dream was to become a driver. Surprisingly, Belo turned out to be more successful at that, winning several local French karting competitions. By the age of 17, Belo was invited to participate in the Formula Renault Championship. Belo came second to Erik Comas in 1986 and fourth in 1987. Belo supported his career by working as a mechanic, often servicing his own car as well. Belo moved up to Formula 3 in 1988 where he spent two seasons honing his skills. By 1990, Belo was ready to join F3000.

Belo's first season in F3000 was spent with the CoBRa team. Belo competed in ten of the eleven races, missing the round at Jerez due to food poisoning. Belo did well enough to earn himself another year at CoBRa. Belo picked up a few top ten finishes, gaining recognition for his consistency. Belo also worked as a mechanic at the CoBRa team, a unique situation for a racing driver. 1992 saw his fortunes improve after he switched to the French Apomatox team. Soon after, Belo took his first F3000 podium at Pau. Belo took five more podiums throughout the season but was unable to break onto the top step. In 1993, Belo knew that his fourth season in F3000 would have to be his last if his career was going to advance. Belo took two wins, both on home soil before finishing in third place on the final table. His performances were good enough for Ligier and the French team hired him to compete in the 1994 F1RGP2C season. Belo had sort of achieved his childhood goal of driving for Renault; Ligier was powered by Renault engines for 1994.

F1RGP2C
Belo signed for Ligier in 1994 F1RGP2C season. He was mostly ineffectual during his tenure at Ligier with no points and a season-best eighth place finish to show for his troubles. Belo's lack of talent earned him Reject of the Race for the 1994 F1RGP2C Italian Grand Prix (shared with Masta Valsattis) and Reject of the Year for the 1994 season. However, Belo did have one bright spot during the season. He was running in fourth place at the 1994 F1RGP2C Japanese Grand Prix before he ran out of fuel and crashed on the last lap of the race which dropped him to tenth place. This heartbreaking failure was his only hope at securing his drive for 1995. At the end of the year, Ligier did not retain his services and replaced him with Reiko Megumi and her supply of Mugen-Honda engines.

Belo was popular among the F1RGP2C paddock and most were sad to see him go. He was known for helping the pit mechanics during tough "all-nighters" and was also instrumental in the development of the Ligier JS39B. Belo developed a friendship with teammate Dennis Mignolet. He and Mignolet organized the first "F1 Rejects Bowling Night" where the drivers competed in an intense bowling match for charity. Reportedly, James Davies won the first contest but was banned from ever competing again due to his incessant bragging. On the track, Belo was much slower than his teammate. He never could find the right setup for the car and in the end, he couldn't adapt his driving style. Due to his experience, Max von Hegel offered Belo a job as reserve driver at Footwork. Belo spent two years there before leaving for touring cars, eventually landing in V8 Supercars in 2000. There, he competed against the new generation of drivers including Dave Simpson, Frank Zimmer and Simon Redman. His eight-year career in V8s brought some memorable moments, including a third-place finish at the 2003 Bathurst 1000 and a win at the 2004 Adelaide 500. He closed his career with some anonymous seasons in BTCC before retiring in 2013.