He began competitive karting at the age of ten and achieved early success, before progressing to open-wheel car racing in the Canadian Formula Ford Championship in 1991.

He began competing in CART with Forsythe Racing in 1996, finishing ninth in the drivers' championship and was second to Alex Zanardi in the Rookie of the Year standings.

[3] His father, Ric, owned a Chrysler dealership in Maple Ridge, a city close to Vancouver,[3] and raced Can-Am cars at the club level,[4] at tracks such as Westwood Motorsport Park.

[19] The series' sanctioning body, the Sports Car Club of America, refused to grant Moore a racing licence because he was under the age of 18 at the time.

Their financial situation forced him to drive conservatively to preserve tires three times longer than other drivers, and not strain mechanical parts, since his family lacked the capital to purchase additional equipment.

[32] In November 1994, Moore undertook a two-day test session with Penske Racing's CART team on a test-specific road course at Nazareth Speedway.

[15] Moore led a total of 375 out of 583 laps over all twelve races,[39] covering 847.799 miles (1,364.400 km) en route to winning the drivers' championship with a record 242 points scored.

[3][15] After testing for Forsythe Racing at Phoenix International Raceway in September 1995,[40] the team's primary sponsor, Player's, confirmed on October 19 Moore would replace the outgoing Jacques Villeneuve for the 1996 season.

Starting in sixth he finished in seventh, after incurring a stop-and-go penalty for an illegal overtake on Juan Manuel Fangio II under yellow flag conditions, and unlapped himself from the race winner, Jimmy Vasser.

[24] For the 1997 CART World Series, Moore drove a 1996 Reynard vehicle after trials of a Lola car in pre-season testing at Homestead–Miami Speedway reduced Forsythe Racing's performance.

[49] At the season's seventh race, the Miller Genuine Draft 200 at the Milwaukee Mile, Moore ran the final 92 laps without making a pit stop.

[51][c] A week later, he won the ITT Automotive Detroit Grand Prix at The Raceway on Belle Isle after PacWest Racing teammates Maurício Gugelmin and Mark Blundell ran out of fuel on the final lap.

[53] Thereafter Moore, who was considered a contender for the championship,[54] achieved two top-five finishes at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and Portland International Raceway as mechanical attrition and accidents hindered him.

[58] The rest of his season included five consecutive retirements,[57] and a fourth career pole position at the Grand Prix of Houston,[59] despite his engine lacking traction on road courses.

[62][63] He spent much of the pre-season testing on road and street courses, telling the New York Daily News his objective for the season was to win as many races as possible and claim the drivers' championship.

[68] He admitted to being interested in NASCAR, and established friendships with drivers such as Jeff Burton, and discussed competing in stock cars with Bobby Labonte.

[73] In August 1999, Moore signed a $10 million three-year contract to replace Al Unser Jr. at Penske's CART team from 2000 onward alongside Gil De Ferran.

[81] On the morning of the day before the race,[82] he was knocked off his motor scooter by a paddock vehicle in the hospitality area because its driver was blinded by the rising sun.

[83] Moore hit an access road lower than the damp grass he had gone across earlier,[92][93] went sideways into the air for about 30 feet (9.1 m),[13][2] barrel rolled and slammed into an immovable infield concrete barrier lacking a tire wall to absorb the impact at unabated speed at a 90-degree angle.

[34][94] The impact, registered at 154 g0 (1,510 m/s2) by the vehicle's black box,[f][13][92] split the car in two, scattered a plethora of debris as the open-cockpit compartment seating the driver disintegrated.

[82] At the pronouncement of Moore's death, chief steward Wally Dallenbach Sr. ordered all track flags to be lowered to half staff and no post-race celebrations occurred.

A private memorial service was held at St. Andrew's-Wesley United Church in downtown Vancouver, attended by 1,200 family members and close friends on the following day.

CART engineers obtained and analyzed a plethora of data from equipment installed in Moore's car, discovering he began losing vehicular control halfway in turn two but not why it went airborne on the asphalt access road.

[103] Regardless of the blue colour of his team's primary sponsor Player's, Moore wore a pair of red racing gloves to emphasise the pride in his Canadian nationality.

[104] Iain MacIntyre of the Vancouver Sun described Moore as "tall and fair-haired with wire-rimmed glasses" and someone who "possessed a wholesome, innocent bearing and boyish enthusiasm that was infectious.

[106] Moore was cordial with the media,[107] and CART fans and fellow drivers regarded him with affection because of his occasional "wacky and over-the-top sense of humour",[108] particularly with children.

[106] From August 1998 until his death, he led a four-man international group of drivers called "The Brat Pack" with Max Papis, Dario Franchitti, and Tony Kanaan.

Others to receive the award include Dario Franchitti in 2001, Sébastien Bourdais in 2003, Ryan Hunter-Reay in 2004, and J. R. Hildebrand when it was limited to Indy Lights drivers in 2009.

[115] Others to list Moore as a role model include Jaguar I-Pace eTrophy competitor Stefan Rzadzinski and sports car driver Scott Hargrove.

[116] It supports scholarships for young people to continue their education after graduating from secondary school, provides funding to five health charities and local hospitals, aids in the development of amateur athletes and works against drunk driving.