Ryan Verra

Ryan Verra is a Canadian entrepreneur and professional race car driver from Calgary. In 2014 he became the first Canadian driver to race in the Fórmula 3 Brasil Series, earning 2 podium finishes for the season and becoming the first Canadian with a podium finish in Brazil since Jacques Villeneuve in 1997.

Early life

Verra was born in 1982 in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. He began with sports at an early age, starting with motocross at the age of eight as well as various forms of martial arts.

Career

Verra began his career in martial arts, marketing, and television. He opened his own fight club and numerous gyms, teaching and training in mixed martial arts. Verra performed a martial arts event at Stampede Corral in 2008. Verra had no Karting experience prior to joining Alliance, making his debut in the American 2013 U.S. F2000 National Championship, an open wheel racing series that is part of the Road to Indy. He drove the season in a Van Diemen DP06 Formula SCCA Mazda. He had a total of 12 podium finishes, with his first career win in the National Class coming at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. He also suffered a crash in the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg before returning to racing two races later. Prior to 2014, Verra had LASIK to correct his vision. Verra drove a Dallara F301 with Pirelli Tyres and a Berta engine. He had a podium appearance at Velopark that was later disputed. He returned to Brazil later that year and raced in the final round of the series at Autódromo Internacional Ayrton Senna where he had two more podium finishes.

Racing statistics

2014 Fórmula 3 Brasil (Class B) Year Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 Rank Points 2014 RR Racing TAR TAR SCS SCS BRA BRA INT INT CUR CUR VEL14 VELDSQ CUR CUR GOI9 GOI8 8th 21 2015 RR Racing CUR11 CUR12 VEL1 VEL2 SCS1 SCS2 CUR21 CUR22 CAS1 CAS2 CGR1 CGR2 CUR31 CUR32 INT1 INT2 10th 15

2013 U.S. F2000 National Championship (National Class) Source:

Year Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Rank Points 2013 Alliance Autosport SEB28 SEB23 STP19 STPDNS LOR TOR21 TOR26 MOH26 MOH24 MOH17 LS17 LS19 HOU17 HOU19 2nd 206Bold – Pole Italics – Fastest Lap

Philanthropy

Verra has been involved in philanthropy, partnering with the Cancer Research Society to launch a campaign called Driven 2 Research. The charity raises money and awareness for cancer research in Canada. He also supported and walked the runway in the Heart Truth Fundraiser with CTV Sports anchor Lisa Bowes in 2014. The event was for the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada, with Verra making a donation on behalf of his Grandmother's heart attack survival and donated a 2-seater IndyCar ride to the event.