Rinat Salikhov
Russian racing driver (born 1985)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Rinat Salikhov (Russian: Ринат Салихов; born 15 December 1985) is a Russian racing driver competing for Winward Racing in GT World Challenge Europe.
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| Rinat Salikhov | |
|---|---|
Salikhov in 2015 | |
| Nationality |  Russian |
| Born | 15 December 1985 |
| Categorisation |  FIA Silver (2014–2015) FIA Bronze (2016–) |
| Championship titles | |
| 2023 | SMP GT4 Russia |
A prolific gentleman driver in the Blancpain Endurance Series, Salikhov raced for Ferrari-affiliated Rinaldi Racing between 2014 and 2019, scoring a shock overall podium at Monza and a Spa 24 Hours class win. He then won the Gulf 12 Hours overall in 2019 for Audi team Attempto Racing. Salikhov returned to top-level sports car racing in 2025, driving a Mercedes-AMG for Winward Racing in GT World Challenge Europe.
Career
Salikhov made his racing debut in 2013, competing part-time for Rinaldi Racing in the V de V Michelin Endurance Series.[1] The following year, Salikhov made his full-time racing debut, competing for Sportec Motorsport in Porsche Carrera Cup Italy,[2] taking four points finishes and ending the year 14th overall.[3] In parallel, Salikhov also competed in the first four rounds of the Blancpain Endurance Series for GT Corse by Rinaldi, sharing a Ferrari 458 Italia GT3 alongside Marco Seefried and Vadim Kogay.[4]
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Continuing with Rinaldi for 2015,[5] Salikhov and Norbert Siedler finished a historic second overall at Monza—also a Pro-Am win—in a season in which he went back and forth between the Pro and Pro-Am classes, ultimately finishing 12th in the latter's standings.[6] After being downgraded to FIA Bronze ahead of 2016,[7] Salikhov continued in the Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup,[8] dabbling between the Pro and Am classes, and scoring two podiums in the latter class at Spa and the Nürburgring.[9] During 2016, Salikhov also made his Blancpain GT Series Sprint Cup debut with the team at Barcelona, winning the main race in Pro-Am.[10] Remaining in the Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup the following year, Salikhov made his full-season debut in Pro-Am,[11] scoring a lone podium at Barcelona to finish 10th in points.[12] During 2017, Salikhov also made one-off appearances with the team in International GT Open and the Blancpain GT Series Sprint Cup,[13] as well as finishing second overall at the Gulf 12 Hours.[14]
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Joining Alexander Mattschull for their second full-time season in Pro-Am the following year,[15] Salikhov took class wins at Monza and the 24 Hours of Spa to secure a third-place points finish in class.[16][17] During 2018, Salikhov also raced with Rinaldi for the majority of the International GT Open season,[18] as well as making another one-off appearance in the Blancpain GT Series Sprint Cup at the Nürburgring, winning the main race in Pro-Am.[19] At the end of the year, Salikhov also represented Russia in the FIA GT Nations Cup alongside Denis Bulatov,[20] finishing fourth in the only edition of the race.[21] In 2019, Salikhov continued with Rinaldi for a dual programme in both the Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup and Blancpain GT World Challenge Europe.[22] Racing in the Silver Cup in the former, Salikhov scored a lone podium at Barcelona to take seventh in points, whereas in the latter, he and David Perel clinched three Pro-Am wins and two other podiums to secure runner-up honours in the class standings.[23][24][25] During 2019, Salikhov also represented Russia at the FIA Motorsport Games GT Cup discipline,[26] and won the Gulf 12 Hours overall for Attempto Racing together with Audi factory drivers Christopher Mies and Dries Vanthoor.[27]
In 2020, Salikhov was set to return to Rinaldi for another dual campaign in the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance and Sprint Cups,[28] but the campaign was called off when an unspecified driver picked up an injury before the season and Rinaldi withdrew its No. 888 Ferrari.[29] Returning to racing in 2022, Salikhov raced in SMP GT4 Russia for Yadro Motorsport, finishing sixth in the standings on his debut year[30] before clinching the series title the following year with three wins to his name.[31] At the beginning of 2024, Salikhov joined Porsche-fielding Proton Huber Competition to compete at the Dubai 24 Hour, a race in which he finished second overall alongside Sergei Borisov, Sven Müller and Viktor Shaytar.[32] Salikhov then returned to SMP GT4 Russia for most of the year,[33] before reuniting with Rinaldi Racing to race in the Gulf 12 Hours.[34] At the end of the year, Salikhov joined Mercedes outfit Winward Racing to compete in the 2024–25 Asian Le Mans Series alongside Gabriele Piana.[35] In his first season in the series, Salikhov won race two at Sepang and scored maximum points at Dubai to secure a third-place points finish.[36][37]
At the beginning of 2025, Salikhov also raced with Winward in the Middle East Trophy, securing two GT3 Pro-Am podiums en route to runner-up honours in points.[38] For the rest of the year, Salikhov stuck with the German-American team for a full return to the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance and Sprint Cups as a Bronze Cup entry.[39] In the Endurance Cup, Salikhov scored a pair of second-place finishes at Monza and at the 24 Hours of Spa en route to a fourth-place points finish on his return to the series.[40][41] In the Sprint Cup, Salikhov scored a Bronze Cup win at Magny-Cours and three other podiums to also end the season fourth in the standings.[42] At the end of the year, Salikhov continued with the team to race at the Gulf 12 Hours, in which he finished fifth overall with Marvin Dienst and Piana.[43]
The following year, Salikhov returned to Winward for the UAE leg of the 24H Series Middle East,[44] as well as making a one-off appearance for BMW-affiliated Team WRT at the Abu Dhabi finale of the 2025–26 Asian Le Mans Series,[45] finishing second in race one.[46] For the rest of 2026, Salikhov continued with Winward for another dual campaign in the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance and Sprint Cups.[47] At Monza, Salikhov was on course for a repeat of 2015, the No. 87 Mercedes running second overall when Dienst was taken out in a late crash.[48]
Racing record
Racing career summary
Complete GT World Challenge Europe results
GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup
| Year | Team | Car | Class | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | Pos. | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | GT Corse by Rinaldi | Ferrari 458 Italia GT3 | Pro-Am | MNZ 29† |
SIL 29 |
LEC 36† |
SPA 6H 44 |
SPA 12H 52 |
SPA 24H Ret |
NÜR |
NC | 0 |
| 2015 | Rinaldi Racing | Ferrari 458 Italia GT3 | Pro-Am | MNZ 2 |
SPA 6H 37 |
SPA 12H 27 |
SPA 24H 24 |
12th | 31 | |||
| Pro | SIL 7 |
LEC Ret |
NÜR 14 |
24th | 6 | |||||||
| 2016 | Rinaldi Racing | Ferrari 458 Italia GT3 | Pro | MNZ 17 |
SIL Ret |
LEC 42 |
NC | 0 | ||||
| Ferrari 488 GT3 | Am | SPA 6H 54 |
SPA 12H 45 |
SPA 24H 36 |
NÜR 36 |
11th | 39 | |||||
| 2017 | Rinaldi Racing | Ferrari 488 GT3 | Pro-Am | MNZ 16 |
SIL DSQ |
LEC 19 |
SPA 6H 54 |
SPA 12H 56 |
SPA 24H Ret |
CAT 20 |
10th | 42 |
| 2018 | Rinaldi Racing | Ferrari 488 GT3 | Pro-Am | MNZ 18 |
SIL 41 |
LEC Ret |
SPA 6H 18 |
SPA 12H 21 |
SPA 24H 15 |
CAT 27 |
3rd | 85 |
| 2019 | Rinaldi Racing | Ferrari 488 GT3 | Silver | MNZ 25 |
SIL 13 |
LEC 16 |
SPA 6H 57 |
SPA 12H 61 |
SPA 24H Ret |
CAT 8 |
7th | 46 |
| 2025 | Winward Racing | Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo | Bronze | LEC 33 |
MNZ 14 |
SPA 6H 38 |
SPA 12H 26 |
SPA 24H 17 |
NÜR 41 |
BAR Ret |
4th | 61 |
| 2026 | Winward Racing | Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo | Bronze | LEC 22 |
MNZ 35† |
SPA 6H 40 |
SPA 12H 31 |
SPA 24H 21 |
NÜR |
ALG |
5th* | 40* |
GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup
(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 | Pos. | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Rinaldi Racing | Ferrari 488 GT3 | Pro-Am | MIS QR |
MIS CR |
BRH QR |
BRH CR |
NÜR QR |
NÜR CR |
HUN QR |
HUN CR |
CAT QR 23 |
CAT CR 22 |
5th | 31 |
| 2017 | Rinaldi Racing | Ferrari 488 GT3 | Pro-Am | MIS QR |
MIS CR |
BRH QR |
BRH CR |
ZOL QR |
ZOL CR |
HUN QR |
HUN CR |
NÜR QR 24 |
NÜR CR 28 |
8th | 16 |
| 2018 | Rinaldi Racing | Ferrari 488 GT3 | Pro-Am | ZOL QR |
ZOL CR |
BRH QR |
BRH CR |
MIS QR |
MIS CR |
HUN QR |
HUN CR |
NÜR QR Ret |
NÜR CR 10 |
5th | 16.5 |
| 2019 | Rinaldi Racing | Ferrari 488 GT3 | Pro-Am | BRH 1 13 |
BRH 2 16 |
MIS 1 12 |
MIS 2 22 |
ZAN 1 25 |
ZAN 2 15 |
NÜR 1 20 |
NÜR 2 24 |
HUN 1 25 |
HUN 2 Ret |
2nd | 102.5 |
| 2025 | Winward Racing | Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo | Bronze | ZAN 1 Ret |
ZAN 2 30 |
MIS 1 27 |
MIS 2 31 |
MAG 1 27 |
MAG 2 23 |
VAL 1 16 |
VAL 2 34 |
4th | 63 | ||
| 2026 | Winward Racing | Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo | Bronze | MIS 1 23 |
MIS 2 24 |
MAG 1 17 |
MAG 2 36 |
ZAN 1 |
ZAN 2 |
CAT 1 |
CAT 2 |
1st* | 47* | ||
Complete Asian Le Mans Series results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)