Christian Klien Austrian racer Date of Birth: 07.02.1983 Country: Austria

Biography of Christian Klien

Christian Klien was born on February 7, 1983, in the town of Hohenems, Austria. His passion for racing began at a young age when his father took him to a karting competition. The experience captivated him, and he quickly developed a love for racing. At the age of 13, Klien persuaded his father to buy him his first kart, and within a few months, he won several races in Austria and Switzerland.

In 1996, Klien became the karting champion in his age group in the Swiss Championship. He then moved on to the Formula BMW class in 1999, where he won four races and finished fourth overall in the ADAC Junior Cup. The following year, he placed tenth in the overall standings and third among rookies in the BMW ADAC World Championship.

In 2001, Klien achieved great success, winning five races and finishing third overall in the season. This led him to participate in the German Formula Renault championship in 2002, where he secured fifth place in the Eurocup and first place in the German championship.

In 2003, Klien entered the Formula 3000 series, winning three races and standing on the podium nine times, ultimately finishing second in the season. The following season, he signed a one-year contract with the Formula 1 team "Jaguar," replacing driver Justin Wilson. Klien's debut season was marked by competition with the more experienced Jaguar driver, Mark Webber. Despite the strong performance, at the end of the season, Jaguar was taken over by the "Red Bull" team.

In 2005, Klien found himself in a new team, "Red Bull," alongside renowned driver David Coulthard. Initially, he was meant to share the second driver seat with young talent Vitantonio Liuzzi. However, Liuzzi proved to be unprepared for Formula 1, and Klien remained the team's second driver for the rest of the season.

In 2007, the team decided to part ways with Klien, and he joined "Honda Racing" as a test driver. The following season, he became a test driver for "BMW." Klien contemplated his future in racing, stating, "Leaving Formula 1 makes it very difficult to come back. I am at a crossroads and don't know what to do next." While he had options to participate in the DTM championship, Klien ultimately decided to remain in Formula 1. He continued to fulfill his duties as a test driver for BMW alongside Estonian driver Marko Asmer.