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Niki Cadei

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Niki Cadei
Cadei in 2012
NationalityItaly Italian
Born (1977-10-30) 30 October 1977 (age 48)
Sarnico, Italy
Categorisation FIA Gold (until 2013)
FIA Silver (2014–)[1]
Championship titles
2011
2008
2004		International GTSprint Series – GT3
Ferrari Challenge Italy – Trofeo Pirelli
Ferrari Challenge World Finals – Trofeo Pirelli

Nicola "Niki" Cadei (born 30 October 1977) is an Italian racing driver who last competed in the 24H Series for Kessel Racing. He is a Ferrari sports car veteran, and an FIA GT and ELMS race winner.

Career

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Cadei began competing in single-seaters in 1996, doing so in the Italian Formula Three Championship. In his three seasons in the series, Cadei picked up two wins, as well as a best points finish of fifth in 1997, before progressing to Euro Open by Nissan in 1999.[2] After racing a handful of times in 2000 and spending 2001 on the sidelines, Cadei made the full-time transition to sports cars, by racing in Ferrari Challenge Italy across the next two seasons.[3][4] Towards the end of 2003, Cadei was set to make his Spa 24 Hours debut in a BMS Scuderia Italia–entered Care Racing Ferrari 550-GTS Maranello, but ultimately did not start the race following a crash in qualifying with Thomas Biagi at the wheel.[5][6] The following year, Cadei won the Ferrari Challenge World Finals in the Trofeo Pirelli class,[7] before making his FIA GT Championship debut at Zhuhai for BMS Scuderia Italia.[8]

Continuing in Ferrari Challenge competition for 2005, Cadei mainly raced in the Italian series, in which he finished runner-up in the Trofeo Pirelli standings.[9][10] In 2006, Cadei joined Scuderia Playteam Sarafree to compete in the GT2 class of the Italian GT Championship, taking six wins and finishing on the podium in all but one race to secure a third-place points finish.[11] Returning to Ferrari Challenge Italy for the next two seasons with Rossocorsa, Cadei finished runner-up in Trofeo Pirelli in 2007,[12] before winning the title the following year.[13] During 2008, Cadei also raced part-time for Ferrari-fielding Kessel Racing in the FIA GT3 European Championship, FIA GT Championship and ADAC GT Masters, most notably taking a podium on his debut in the latter at the Nürburgring.[14]

Switching to AF Corse for 2009, Cadei raced a Ferrari F430 GTC in the GT2 class of the FIA GT Championship alongside Álvaro Barba.[15] Starting the season off with a podium at Adria,[16] Cadei then took his only win of the season at Algarve and his third podium of the season at Le Castellet to end the year fourth in points.[17][18] Remaining with AF Corse for 2010, Cadei switched to the Superstars GTSprint Series alongside Cédric Sbirrazzuoli.[19] After kicking off the season with wins at Monza and Algarve,[20][21] Cadei then took further victories at the Hockenheimring and Le Castellet to secure runner-up honours in both the overall and GT2 standings.[22][23] During 2010, Cadei also finished third in the GT2 class of the 24 Hours of Spa in an AF Corse/Vitaphone Racing alliance.[24]

Cadei's Ferrari 458 Challenge at Imola in 2012.

Staying in the newly-rebranded International GTSprint Series for 2011, albeit in the GT3 class, Cadei took overall wins at Valencia and Spa to finish third in the overall points and secure the GT3 title with Fabio Mancini.[25][26] During 2011, Cadei also finished third in the GT3 Pro-Am class of the 24 Hours of Spa for the same team.[27] The following year, Cadei primarily competed for Motor Piacenza in Ferrari Challenge Europe, taking a lone win at Imola and finishing eighth in the Trofeo Pirelli standings.[28] During 2012, Cadei also joined AF Corse for his 24 Hours of Le Mans debut in LMGTE Am,[29] where he retired after a spectacular crash for Piergiuseppe Perazzini,[30] and took a lone GTS class win in a one-off appearance in International GT Open at Algarve.[31] In 2013, Cadei scaled back his racing programmes, as he raced part-time in the Trofeo Maserati World Series, taking a lone podium at Le Castellet to end the year 12th in points.[32]

After scoring a Gentlemen class podium at the 2015 Gulf 12 Hours for Kessel Racing,[33] Cadei won the 24 Hours of Spa in the Am class with the team in both 2016 and 2017.[34][35] A GT3 Gent class win then ensued in the 2018 Gulf 12 Hours with Kessel,[36] before making a cameo in the 2019 European Le Mans Series at Silverstone, where he finished third in LMGTE.[37] Continuing with the team through 2020, Cadei raced a Ferrari 488 GTE Evo in select rounds of the European Le Mans Series season, taking a win at Monza en route to a fourth-place points finish.[38] In 2021, Cadei raced for Kessel Racing at the Gulf 12 Hours, as well as the 24H GT Series at Le Castellet.[39][40]

Karting record

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Karting career summary

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Season Series Team Position
1992 Torneo Delle Industrie — 100 Junior 16th
1993 Karting World Cup — Junior A 24th
Sources:[2]

Racing record

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Racing career summary

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Season Series Team Races Wins Poles F/Laps Podiums Points Position
1996 Italian Formula Three Championship Team Ghinzani 10 0 0 0 0 6 17th
1997 Italian Formula Three Championship Team Ghinzani 10 1 0 0 4 80 5th
Monaco Grand Prix Formula Three 1 0 0 0 0 N/a 9th
Masters of Formula 3 1 0 0 0 0 N/a 25th
1998 Italian Formula Three Championship RC Motorsport 10 1 3 0 2 58 6th
1999 Euro Open by Nissan Auto in Motorsport 16 0 0 0 1 38 11th
2000 Renault Clio Trophy Europe 4 30th
Formula Renault 2000 Italia Door's Engineering 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC
2002 Ferrari Challenge Italy – Trofeo Pirelli
2003 Ferrari Challenge Italy – Trofeo Pirelli
FIA GT Championship – GT Care Racing 0 0 0 0 0 0 NC
2004 Ferrari Challenge World Finals – Trofeo Pirelli 1st
FIA GT Championship – GT BMS Scuderia Italia 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC
2005 Ferrari Challenge Italy – Trofeo Pirelli 162 2nd
Spanish GT Championship – GTA 14 13th
2006 Italian GT Championship – GT2 Scuderia Playteam Sarafree 16 6 6 7 15 253 3rd
2007 Ferrari Challenge Italy – Trofeo Pirelli Rossocorsa 286 2nd
2008 Ferrari Challenge Italy – Trofeo Pirelli Rossocorsa 328 1st
FIA GT3 European Championship Kessel Racing 6 0 0 0 0 11 18th
ADAC GT Masters 2 0 0 0 1 10 22nd
FIA GT Championship – GT2 1 0 0 0 0 1 33rd
2009 FIA GT Championship – GT2 AF Corse 8 1 0 0 3 34 4th
Le Mans Series – GT2 FBR 1 0 0 0 0 3 21st
International GT Open – GTS Kessel Racing 2 0 1 1 0 0 NC
2010 Dubai 24 Hour – SP2 AF Corse 1 0 0 0 0 N/a DNF
Superstars GTSprint Series – GT2 12 5 2 5 12 202 2nd
Italian GT Championship – GT2 4 0 0 1 1 22 13th
24 Hours of Spa – GT2 AF Corse - ALD Team Vitaphone 1 0 0 0 1 N/a 3rd
International GT Open – GTS Kessel Racing 4 3 0 0 3 30 9th
2011 International GTSprint Series AF Corse 12 2 1 3 7 143 3rd
Blancpain Endurance Series – GT3 Pro-Am 1 0 0 0 1 19 14th
International GT Open – GTS Kessel Racing 2 0 1 0 0 4 30th
2012 Dubai 24 Hour – SP2 AF Corse 1 0 0 0 0 N/a DNF
International GT Open – GTS 2 1 0 1 2 18 16th
FIA World Endurance Championship – LMGTE Am 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC
24 Hours of Le Mans – LMGTE Am 1 0 0 0 0 N/a DNF
Ferrari Challenge Europe – Trofeo Pirelli Motor Piacenza 7 1 2 3 3 91 8th
Blancpain Endurance Series – Pro-Am MTECH 1 0 0 0 0 3 36th
Gulf 12 Hours – GT3 Kessel Chicco d'oro 1 0 0 0 0 N/a 7th
2013 Trofeo Maserati World Series 5 0 0 0 1 53 12th
2015 Gulf 12 Hours – Gent Kessel Racing 1 0 0 0 1 N/a 2nd
2016 Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup – Am Kessel Racing 1 1 1 1 1 47 7th
International GT Open – Pro-Am 2 0 0 0 0 0 NC†
2017 Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup – Am Kessel Racing 1 1 1 0 1 50 7th
Intercontinental GT Challenge 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC
2018 Gulf 12 Hours – GT3 Gent Kessel Racing 1 1 0 0 1 N/a 1st
2019 European Le Mans Series – LMGTE Kessel Racing 1 0 0 0 1 15 16th
2020 European Le Mans Series – LMGTE Kessel Racing 3 1 1 0 3 62 4th
Le Mans Cup – GT3 2 0 0 0 0 13 13th
2021 Gulf 12 Hours – GT Pro-Am Kessel Racing 1 0 0 0 0 N/a 5th
24H GT Series – GT3 Am 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC
Sources:[41][2]

† As Cadei was a guest driver, he was ineligible to score points.

Complete FIA GT Championship results

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(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Team Car Class 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Pos. Pts
2003 Care Racing Ferrari 550-GTS Maranello GT CAT
 MAG
 PER
 BRN
 DON
 SPA
6H
DNS		 SPA
12H
DNS		 SPA
24H
DNS		 AND
 OSC
 EST
 MNZ
 NC 0
2004 BMS Scuderia Italia Ferrari 550-GTS Maranello GT MNZ
 VAL
 MAG
 HOC
 BRN
 DON
 SPA
6H
 SPA
12H
 SPA
24H
 IMO
 OSC
 DUB
 ZHU
10		 NC 0
2008 Kessel Racing Ferrari F430 GTC GT2 SIL
 MNZ
 ADR
 OSC
 SPA
6H
 SPA
12H
 SPA
24H
 BUC
1
 BUC
2
 BRN
 NOG
 ZOL
 SAN
8		 33rd 1
2009 AF Corse Ferrari F430 GTC GT2 SIL
5		 ADR
3		 OSC
7		 SPA
6H
?		 SPA
12H
?		 SPA
24H
Ret		 BUD
5		 ALG
1		 LEC
3		 ZOL
7		 4th 34

Complete FIA GT3 European Championship results

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(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Entrant Chassis Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Pos. Points
2008 Kessel Racing Ferrari F430 GT3 Ferrari F136 4.3 L V8 SIL
1
4		 SIL
2
6		 MNZ
1
 MNZ
2
 OSC
1
20		 OSC
2
6		 BRN
1
Ret		 BRN
2
DNS		 NOG
1
 NOG
2
 DUB
1
Ret		 DUB
2
DNS		 18th 11

Complete European Le Mans Series results

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(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; results in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Entrant Class Chassis Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 Rank Points
2009 FBR GT2 Ferrari F430 GT2 Ferrari 4.0 L V8 CAT
 SPA
 ALG
 NUR
 SIL
6		 21st 3
2019 Kessel Racing LMGTE Ferrari 488 GTE Evo Ferrari F154CB 3.9 L Turbo V8 LEC
 MNZ
 CAT
 SIL
3		 SPA
 ALG
 16th 15
2020 Kessel Racing LMGTE Ferrari 488 GTE Evo Ferrari F154CB 3.9 L Turbo V8 LEC
2		 SPA
 LEC
 MNZ
1		 ALG
2		 4th 62

Complete GT World Challenge Europe results

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GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup

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(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Team Car Class 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Pos. Points
2011 AF Corse Ferrari 458 Italia GT3 Pro-Am MNZ
 NAV
 SPA
6H
?		 SPA
12H
?		 SPA
24H
9		 MAG
 SIL
 14th 19
2012 MTECH Ferrari 458 Italia GT3 Pro-Am MNZ
 SIL
 LEC
 SPA
6H
?		 SPA
12H
?		 SPA
24H
Ret		 NÜR
 NAV
 36th 3
2016 Kessel Racing Ferrari 458 Italia GT3 Am MNZ
 SIL
 LEC
 SPA
6H
43		 SPA
12H
36		 SPA
24H
32		 NÜR
 7th 47
2017 Kessel Racing Ferrari 488 GT3 Am MNZ
 SIL
 LEC
 SPA
6H
29		 SPA
12H
26		 SPA
24H
22		 CAT
 7th 50

Complete 24 Hours of Le Mans results

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Year Team Co-Drivers Car Class Laps Pos. Class
Pos.
2012 Italy AF Corse Republic of Ireland Matt Griffin
Italy Piergiuseppe Perazzini		 Ferrari 458 Italia GT2 LMGTE Am 70 DNF DNF

References

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  1. ↑ "2014 GT3 Driver Categorisation" (PDF). fia.com. Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile. 16 October 2014. Retrieved 8 January 2026.
  2. 1 2 3 "Nicola Cadei | Racing career profile | Driver Database". www.driverdb.com. Retrieved 9 March 2026.
  3. ↑ Dean, Paul (1 April 2002). "The Last Gentlemen Racers". robbreport.com. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  4. ↑ "Season 2003:". ferrari-model-club.de. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  5. ↑ "POLE POSITION FOR BMS SCUDERIA ITALIA … BUT MUCH WORK TO BE DONE". italiaspeed.com. 25 July 2003. Retrieved 1 May 2026.
  6. ↑ "Proximus 24 Hours of Spa - Race Morning Notes". dailysportscar.com. Retrieved 1 May 2026.
  7. ↑ Rocchi, Simone (30 April 2019). "La «staffetta« di Niki Cadei: il grande pilota ora educa i futuri campioni della corsa". valledelloglio.com (in Italian). Retrieved 28 April 2026.
  8. ↑ "FIA GT Championship - Zhuhai - Provisional Result". dailysportscar.com. Retrieved 10 June 2026.
  9. ↑ "Ferrari Challenge ed Italiano GT sabato 17 e domenica 18 al Mugello". nove.firenze.it (in Italian). 14 September 2005. Retrieved 10 June 2026.
  10. ↑ "Il programma: tutte le novità e le gare!". automoto.it (in Italian). 1 December 2005. Retrieved 10 June 2026.
  11. ↑ "Second race for Italian GT Championship: Double win for the Maserati MC12s". stellantis.com. 14 May 2006. Retrieved 10 June 2026.
  12. ↑ Pastore, Sergio (12 June 2007). "A Vallelunga il Ferrari Challenge - Trofeo Pirelli". megamodo.com (in Italian). Retrieved 10 June 2026.
  13. ↑ "Auto: Ferrari Racing Days; vincono Gianninberti, Cadei e Baron". altarimini.it (in Italian). 13 July 2008. Retrieved 28 April 2026.
  14. ↑ "Schwager/ Ludwig Sweep But Ferrari And Lamborghini Take The Points". dailysportscar.com. Retrieved 10 June 2026.
  15. ↑ "AF Corse And BMS Announce FIA GT Plans". dailysportscar.com. 29 March 2009. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  16. ↑ Dumitrache, Alina (20 May 2009). "F430 Won Valuable Points this Weekend". autoevolution.com. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  17. ↑ Glendenning, Mark (20 September 2009). "Ruffier and Longin win in Portugal". autosport.com. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  18. ↑ Watkins, Gary (4 October 2009). "Bernoldi/Streit take first GT victory". autosport.com. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  19. ↑ "Superstars: GT-Sprint-Pole geht an Cadei/Sbirrazzuoli". motorsport-total.com (in German). 12 June 2010. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  20. ↑ "Superstars a Monza, Ferrara okSernagiotto e Gai nel Challenge". ilcittadinomb.it (in Italian). 29 March 2010. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  21. ↑ "Bonetti d'argento a Portimao con la Ferrari 430 GT2". motori.sportrentino.it (in Italian). 24 May 2010. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  22. ↑ "Superstars: Ferrari siegt souverän im GT-Sprint". motorsport-total.com (in German). 12 June 2010. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  23. ↑ "Superstars-GT-Sprint: Doppelsieg für Ferrari". motorsport-total.com (in German). 19 September 2010. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  24. ↑ "Spa 24 Hours - Provisional Race Result". dailysportscar.com. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  25. ↑ "Cadei porta al successo la Ferrari 458 in gara 1". motorsport.com. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  26. ↑ "Niki Cadei e la Ferrari 458 siglano Gara 1". motorsport.com. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  27. ↑ "24hrs Spa: Dominant first win for Audi at Total 24 Hours of Spa". circuitprodigital.com. 31 July 2011. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  28. ↑ "Camp. Ferrari Challenge Europa Trof. Pirelli/ Alex Balzan, del team Ferrari Moscow, domina al Mugello". polesinesport.it (in Italian). 8 June 2012. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  29. ↑ "Villongo, il pilota Niki Cadei vola alla 24 ore di Le Mans". ecodibergamo.it (in Italian). Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  30. ↑ Strang, Simon (16 June 2012). "H5: Davidson suffers huge crash at le Mans, shortly after Dumas hits barriers". Autosport. Haymarket Media Group. Retrieved 26 March 2026.
  31. ↑ "GT Open, Porsche imbattibile nella prima in Portogallo". primocanale.it (in Italian). 29 April 2012. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  32. ↑ "Trofeo Maserati - Kuppens doppietta e primato al Paul Ricard". formulaitalia.info (in Italian). 9 May 2013. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  33. ↑ Lassaux, Jean-Baptiste (12 December 2015). "Kessel Racing win in the Gulf 12 hours of Abu Dhabi". sport-auto.ch. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  34. ↑ Dale, Will (1 August 2016). "Spa 24: BMW wins in dramatic finish to the 2016 Total 24 Hours of Spa". foxsports.com.au. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  35. ↑ Hensby, Paul (30 July 2017). "#25 Sainteloc Audi Comes Through for 24 Hours of Spa Victory". thecheckeredflag.co.uk. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  36. ↑ Graf, Maximilian (15 December 2018). "Abu Dhabi 12: Kessel Racing erringt vierten Sieg in Folge". sportscar-info.de (in German). Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  37. ↑ Weller, Adam; Little, Martin; Kilbey, Stephen (31 August 2019). "IDEC Sport Takes Maiden ELMS Win At Silverstone (Updated)". dailysportscar.com. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  38. ↑ Lloyd, Daniel (11 October 2020). "United Takes Monza 1-2 as Albuquerque, Hanson Clinch Title". sportscar365.com. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  39. ↑ Premoli, Barbara (9 January 2021). "Ferrari in prima fila alla 12 Ore del Golfo". motorinolimits.com (in Italian). Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  40. ↑ Plümer, Jonas (25 April 2021). "Herberth Motorsport feiert dritten Sieg in Le Castellet". gt-place.com (in German). Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  41. ↑ "Niki Cadei Results". motorsportstats.com. Retrieved 9 March 2026.
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