Derek competed as a professional race car driver for 17 years before becoming a television motorsports personality and businessman. Derek raced in Formula One, Indy Car and World Sports Cars.

Derek went from being a laborer in the iron ore mines of Australia in 1973 to living in a school bus for a year in 1976, He won the British Formula Three Championship in 1977. That catapulted him into the Formula One World Championship. His Formula One career spanned 49 Grand Prix starts. He was ranked 10th in the World Championship in 1980. In 1983, Derek made his first of 6 starts at the Indianapolis 500.

In 1984, Derek survived one of the worst race crashes ever seen at the Michigan International Speedway (see Big Crash) . He spent three years in therapy. In 1990, Derek won the prestigious Sebring 12 hour endurance. Just for good measure, he won it again in 1991. He retired from competition in 1992.

Author
In 2008, MBI Publishing released Derek’s first book, Race to Win, How to become a Complete Champion. Derek was honored to have Mario Andretti pen the forward. Although the book was written in the context of a motor sports champion, Mario says; “Derek’s book teaches lessons it took guys like me years to learn. Quite honestly, I believe the advice in this book resonates far beyond the racing industry” – Mario Andretti.

Derek Daly Academy  
Partnering with BMW North America in 1996, Derek opened the most advanced driver training / racing school in the USA – Derek Daly Performance Driving Academy.  Derek’s performance driving academy, located at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, has been voted “the best driving school in America” by MOTOR TREND and AUTOMOBILE magazines. Famous names who attended include; Sylvester Stallone, Robin Yount, Pete Sampras, Aerosmith, John Oates and Vin Diesel.  Derek Daly Academy became a sports management company for race car drivers.

Television & Radio
In 1985 Derek started a ten year association as a motorsport color analyst on ESPN – America’s premier cable sports channel. In 1992 USA Today’s television critic Rudy Martzke, highlighted Derek as “the best new face on sports television”.. A poll sponsored by and featured in IndyCar Racing magazine, voted Derek “the most popular motorsports television announcer”. Derek has worked for NBC Sports, CBS Sports, Fox, ESPN and Speed Channel.

Derek Daly Design

In 2007 Founded Derek Daly Design - a race track design company created in a partnership with renowned Architect, Paxton Waters. DDD is currently working on the largest motosports complex ever built in Canada.

Electronic Arts
In February 1996, Derek moved into the world of high-tech video games when Electronic Arts signed him to be the voice of its new Andretti Racing video game. EA Sports is best known for top selling video and computer games such as Formula One Racing and John Madden’s NFL Football.