Nicolas Kiesa

Minardi had drivers from various different nationalities, Nicolas Kiesa was the team's only Dane. Coming from a background in karting, Kiesa moved into British Formula Ford in 1998, the year that a certain Jenson Button took the title. Kiesa finished a respectable 3rd in his debut season. Kiesa stayed in Formula Ford, switched teams to Button's winning squad Mygale and clinched the title in 1999, coming out on top in 7 of the season's 14 races. A year later, he climbed the ranks to British Formula 3, taking one victory and coming in 6th overall. Via a brief stint in German Formula 3, Kiesa ended up in Formula3000 in 2002.

Kiesa's most memorable moment in that series came when he took victory at the Monaco GP. The final moments of that race became an internet sensation, as leader Bjorn Wirdheim slowed down before the checkered flag to greet his team waving from the pitwall. Kiesa, who was just a few turns behind Wirdheim, overtook him in the final metres to take victory at the season's most prestigious event. Kiesa came in third at the subsequent event at the Nurburgring, enough for Minardi to sign him up to finish the 2003 season when Justin Wilson left the team for Jaguar. The Dane showed impressive reliability when he finished all of his five Formula 1 races, although he did not manage to outqualify veteran Jos Verstappen. Failing to gather sufficient sponsorship for a seat in 2004, Kiesa ran some tests for Minardi in 2004 and became Jordan's Friday test driver in 2005.

After Formula 1, Kiesa enjoyed a brief stint in German DTM. He presently works as a Formula 1 pundit for Denmark's TV3.