Born in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, Davidson began competitive kart racing aged eight, winning several national championships. He won three British karting championships (93, 94, 95), one Italian championship and was runner-up in the Formula A European championship in 1996. In 1999, he moved to single seater cars, racing Formula Fords and winning the 1600 cc Kent engine class of the British Formula Ford festival that year.
Davidson competed in the British Formula Three championship with the Carlin team in 2001, finishing second overall to teammate Takuma Sato. His performance improved throughout the season, and he outscored Sato from June until the season's end. He also won the Formula Three Pau Grand Prix, the Spa Masters, and the FIA European Cup.
In late 2000, Davidson became the test driver for the British American Racing (BAR) Formula One team for the 2001 season. In 2002, he made his Formula One debut with Minardi, temporarily replacing regular driver Alex Yoong, who the team had decided to suspend after failing to qualify for three races. Minardi had originally planned to put Justin Wilson in the car, but he proved too tall. Davidson’s qualifying times were within 0.6s of teammate Mark Webber at his two starts in Hungary and Belgium, but he spun out of both events.
Davidson remained a test driver for BAR in 2003, with Jacques Villeneuve and Jenson Button as the race drivers. When Takuma Sato was promoted to the race team following Villeneuve’s departure, it presented Davidson with the opportunity to become third driver. He frequently impressed with his pace in Friday morning testing, with other teams taking note of his consistent lap times for tyre degradation data; at Indianapolis, he set the second fastest lap time in Friday practice after 19 laps.
In 2006, Davidson resumed his role as test driver for BAR, now owned by Honda and renamed Honda Racing F1. He made his debut as a television commentator for ITV Sport at the Hungarian Grand Prix, which was won by Jenson Button.
On 15 November 2006, Super Aguri confirmed Davidson would partner Takuma Sato for the 2007 Formula One season, becoming a regular Formula One driver for the first time. At the 2007 Canadian Grand Prix, Davidson was running third when his car struck a groundhog on the straight before the pits, ultimately dropping him to 11th place. He finished the season in 23rd place having scored no points.
Amid financial problems, Super Aguri retained Davidson alongside Sato for 2008. However, on 6 May 2008, Super Aguri withdrew from the Championship, ending Davidson’s Formula One career.
Davidson was announced as a Honda test driver for the remainder of 2008. Following Honda’s withdrawal from Formula One in December 2008, Ross Brawn bought the team, forming Brawn GP, and Davidson signed on as a test driver. When Mercedes-Benz bought Brawn GP in November 2009, renaming it Mercedes GP, Davidson continued in his role as reserve and development driver. He continued in a simulator role from 2012.
Davidson moved into sportscar racing, competing for Aston Martin Racing in the 2009 24 Hours of Le Mans, finishing 13th overall. He returned in 2010 with Team Peugeot Total, alongside Alexander Wurz and Marc Gené, leading the 2010 12 Hours of Sebring). However, the Peugeot car had an engine failure while leading at Le Mans. He secured victory for Peugeot Sport at the 2010 6 Hours of Silverstone) with Nicolas Minassian. In October 2010, Davidson secured pole position at Petit Le Mans, finishing second with teammates Wurz and Gené.
In 2011, racing for Peugeot Sport, Davidson, Wurz, and Gené won the 6 Hours of Spa and finished fourth at the Le Mans 24 Hours. He also won the 6 Hours of Imola and the 6 Hours of Zhuhai, contributing to Peugeot Sport securing the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup (ILMC) Championship.
With Peugeot withdrawing from factory sports car competition, Davidson signed with Toyota to drive the Toyota TS030 Hybrid in the 2012 24 Hours of Le Mans. During the race, his car collided with a Ferrari, becoming airborne before making heavy contact with the barriers; he was later diagnosed with fractures to the eleventh and twelfth thoracic vertebrae.
In 2013, Davidson continued with Toyota, finishing third in the drivers' championship and second at Le Mans. In 2014, he won four races and finished third at Le Mans, becoming the 2014 World Endurance Drivers’ Champion alongside co-driver Sébastien Buemi. The following two years were less successful.
The 2017 FIA World Endurance Championship season showed improved form, with five victories, but a sixth-place finish at Le Mans and missing the 6 Hours of Circuit of the Americas contributed to a third-place finish in the drivers’ championship. In 2018, Toyota moved Davidson to a test and reserve role, and he competed in the LMP2 class with DragonSpeed at Silverstone), finishing fourth in class.
Davidson became a commentator and pundit with the BBC in 2009, and has worked with Sky Sports F1 since 2012. He is also a lead commentator on the global feed of the FIA World Endurance Championship.
Davidson has worked as an advisor for Codemasters since 2009, and his helmet design is available for selection in the F1 video game series.
On 11 August 2006, Davidson married Carrie in Banbury, Oxfordshire. The couple live in Brackley. His brother Andrew Davidson appeared in the first series of Big Brother in the UK. He was friends growing up with the late Dan Wheldon, who competed in IndyCar.
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