Giancarlo Fisichella began a strong karting career in Italy with great aspirations for Formula One. In 1991, he was runner-up in the Karting World Series. Formula Three wooed him the following season and after two seasons with lesser teams he dominated the series with RC Motorsport in 1992, winning half of the 20 races. In 1994 he was the Italian Formula Three champion. Minardi signed him as its test driver for 1995 and in 1996, after testing with Ferrari, he made his Formula One debut with Minardi.
Fisichella made an impression that first season and he moved to Jordan in 1997. His season began badly, with a serious accident in testing at Silverstone which left him to race in Melbourne with a broken knee, and another shunt in Brazil. Then teammate Ralf Schumacher turfed him off the road in Argentina. But he fought back that season with several strong performances.
In 1998, he moved to Benetton where he finished ninth in the drivers' championship for two years before posting his best finish of sixth with the team in the 2000 drivers' championship.
Fisichella stayed at Benetton until the end of 2001 when his contract came to an end. He moved back to Jordan in 2002 and at the start of 2003, he won his first Grand Prix in Brazil after a post-race timing mix-up inquiry awarded him the first-place finish. Sauber recruited him in 2004 and at the end of the year he was chased by both Renault and Williams. He signed with Renault in 2005.
He turned out 12 top-10 finishes with Renault in 2005, including a win at the first race of the season in Australia from the pole. He and teammate Fernando Alonso brought home the Constructor's Championship for Renault.
The 2006 season saw similar results for 'Fisico,' as he finished fourth in the standings with 72 points scored (which included a victory in the Grand Prix of Malaysia). Once again, he and teammate Alonso claimed the constructor's title for manufacturer Renault.
In 2007, he teamed with rookie Heikki Kovalainen at Renault following the departure of Alonso. But amid struggles with the car, Fisichella was out driven by the rookie and let go at the end of the season in favor for a returning Alonso.
He was hired by the new Force India F1 team for 2008. He suffered through 10 DNFs and posted a best finish of 10th in the Grand Prix of Spain.
