Derek Daly
- Legendary Race Car Driver
- Entrepreneur and Bestselling Author
- Television and Radio Personality
Travels From
Indiana
Derek Daly Speaker Biography
Irish driving legend Derek Daly is the epitome of the Complete Champion. From the Victory Circle to the Announcer’s Desk, Hall of Fame Race Car Driver and Network Television Color Analyst Daly has spent nearly three decades as the face of the motorsport world. He counts Sylvester Stallone, David Letterman and Jay Leno amongst his friends.
Born and raised in Dublin, Ireland to a middle class working family, Derek’s career path was set at the age of twelve when he attended his first auto race. From that moment, his commitment to the dream of being a professional driver was unshakeable. On the way to his dream he worked as a laborer in the iron ore mines of Australia and, while travelling the race tracks of England, even taking up residence in a school bus.
Derek’s professional racing career spanned 17 years and his experiences are nothing short of breathtaking. Daly’s story is one that precious few have lived to tell. In 1984, Derek suffered one of the hardest crash impacts that a driver had ever survived when he hit the wall at Michigan International Speedway at 212 MPH. After fourteen surgeries and three years in therapy, he returned to full-time racing. He competed in the 12 Hours of Sebring - one of the premier motorsport endurance races in the US – and won the race two years in a row.
His early dreams became reality when he won Irish, British and European championship events. In 1978, he competed in the Formula One World Championship, and two short years later Derek was ranked 10th in the world. In 1983, he made his first of six starts in the Indianapolis 500.
In 1985, Derek started a 10 year association with ESPN as a motor sport color analyst. He became the face of motor sports, seen on NBC, CBS, Fox and Speed Channel. USA Today highlighted Derek as “the best new face on sports television” and IndyCar Racing magazine voted Derek “the most popular motor sports television announcer.”
Moet & Chandon champagne awarded Derek the Joules Goux Award for his outstanding contributions to motor sports television. He was later nominated by ESPN for an Ace Award, and Derek received the 2000 Hall of Fame Award from “Motor Sport Ireland” for his leadership of Irish motor sport. In 2010, he was inducted into the Sebring Hall of Fame.
Derek literally wrote the book on how to become a ‘Complete Champion’. Race To Win: How to Become a Complete Champion was heralded a “future classic” by the Irish Times. Friend, former race competitor and international auto racing superstar Mario Andretti contributed the foreword: “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.” His second book, A Champions Path: Be Extraordinary was published in 2017.
Derek’s gift of communication has made him one of the most sought after motivational speakers in America. His Be Extraordinary Model and Speed of Business Principles have influenced Fortune 500 companies and the US Government.
Derek and his three sons reside outside of Indianapolis, Indiana. Derek became an American Citizen on September 28, 1993.
Culture of Extraordinary: How to shift from Good to Great to Extraordinary
Remember Good to Great? Today, it has shifted from Great to Extraordinary. Align this platform to the right culture, and you develop something truly unique; a Culture of Extraordinary. You will understand how to think and act differently as you push your people to the edges and boundaries of what might be possible. You will embrace what it means to go beyond your best. Derek uses powerful, real-life sports analogies in a unique, compelling and often hilarious manner that leaves audiences in awe. The US Government has used this topic multiple times.
The Speed of Wow: How Fast Can You Get Fast?
If the speed of doing business continues to increase in the next 10 years; ask yourself, How Fast can you get Fast? Derek takes you down the success road to understand the critical difference between going fast and being fast. You will grasp how to remove the Speed Bumps that slow you down. You will learn how to achieve trailblazing performance and why corporations sometimes struggle to emulate these valuable traits. This topic has energized both male and female audiences from California to the Czech Republic.
S.A.F.E.: The Crucial Balance between Safety and Speed
Having survived the hardest crash impact a driver had ever survived, Derek shares his near death experience that led to a safety initiative in racing that continues today. Here you learn how his sport continues to develop the safest high performance equipment and work environments; that has literally saved lives. Understanding this, will empower your front line employees to make quick decisions, with limited information, in compressed time frames. Learn how your team can make critical performance gains by embracing intelligent risks, as it activates its own S.A.F.E. model (Speed, Agility, Framework, Execution). No one remains emotionally neutral as they grasp his breathtaking global experiences.
January 17, 2023
Derek went above and beyond in his commitment to our group, picking up his books and delivering them and then signing them at the conclusion of his talk. It was great meeting him and working with him. Unfortunately I am not able to have my opinion published.
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