Roussel began his motorsport career at the age of 7, competing in local karting competitions in his native France.[2] At the age of 14, in 2009, he scored second-place honors in the Bridgestone Cup and Trophée de France, alongside registering a fourth-place finish in the French Karting F3 Championship.[3] Roussel attended the 24 Hours of Le Mans often as a child, and uncle Patrice had previously competed at Le Mans and in Grand-Am, leading Roussel to mention that his heart was set on endurance racing rather than the junior formula ladder.[2] In 2011, he began competing in the V de V Challenge Endurance, driving a Norma M20 F for his uncle's team, Extrême Limite.[2] Roussel would continue in the series until 2015, taking a win and two podiums throughout his five years of competition in the series.
Junior formulae
In 2012, Roussel embarked upon a dual campaign in the Formula Renault Eurocup and Formula Renault 2.0 Alps series.[4] He would return to Formula Renault Eurocup in 2013, but it would mark his final season in single-seater competition. Across 41 races in Formula Renault 2.0, Roussel would score just 13 points, all of which were tallied in his lone season in the Formula Renault 2.0 Alps series.
Sports car racing
Prototypes
After several years of racing Group CN-level prototypes, Roussel made his debut at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2014, driving for Pegasus Racing in the LMP2 class.[2] Despite suffering a heavy crash in qualifying,[5] the team finished 10th in class, 20 laps behind the class-winning Jota Sport entry. In 2015, Roussel began competing full-time in the European Le Mans Series with Pegasus Racing.[6] Roussel returned to the team for the 2016 season, before joining G-Drive Racing for 2017. He and co-driver Memo Rojas would go on to take the LMP2-class championship that season, finishing no lower than fourth and scoring podiums at Silverstone, the Red Bull Ring, Paul Ricard, and Spa, adding a victory at Monza.[7] Following the European Le Mans Series season, Roussel took part in the final two races of the 2017 FIA World Endurance Championship, replacing Pierre Thiriet.[8]
For 2018, Roussel joined CEFC TRSM Racing's Ginetta LMP1 entry into the WEC for the 2018–19 season.[9][10] With the program's closure before the 2019 season, he returned to the European Le Mans Series, signing with Inter Europol Competition.[11] However, Roussel broke his back during a practice crash at Monza,[12] forcing him to miss the remainder of the 2019 and 2020 seasons.
^Dagys, John (5 February 2015). "Cheng, Fong Complete Pegasus Lineup". sportscar365.com. John Dagys Media. Retrieved 10 April 2022. Cheng and Fong will share the wheel of the French squad's Morgan LMP2 EVO Nissan with Leo Roussel in the five-round championship, which kicks off at Silverstone in April.
^Lloyd, Daniel (28 February 2022). "Emil Frey Enters GT Masters Alongside Endurance Cup". sportscar365.com. John Dagys Media. Retrieved 11 April 2022. The No. 19 Emil Frey Lamborghini will be shared by Leo Roussel, Arthur Rougier and factory driver Giacomo Altoe in the Pro class of Endurance Cup...
