The Brabham BT60 was the final series of
Formula One
Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...
racing cars built for the
Brabham Formula One motor racing team. Designed by
Sergio Rinland
Sergio Rinland (born 17 March 1952) is an Argentine engineer best known for his work in Formula One. He is currently owner and managing director of the automotive engineering and management consulting company Astauto Ltd.
Career
Born in Bueno ...
, they raced in the
1991
File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phi ...
and
1992 Formula One World Championships. The car brought to a close Brabham's 30 years of construction of purpose-built racing cars, which began with
Jack Brabham
Sir John Arthur Brabham (2 April 1926 – 19 May 2014) was an Australian racing driver who was Formula One World Champion in , , and . He was a founder of the Brabham racing team and race car constructor that bore his name.
Brabham was a R ...
and
Ron Tauranac
Ronald Sidney Tauranac (13 January 1925 – 17 July 2020) was a British-Australian engineer and racing car designer, who with Formula One driver Jack Brabham founded the Brabham constructor and racing team in 1962. Following Brabham's retireme ...
and the Brabham BT1
Formula Junior
Formula Junior is an open wheel formula racing class first adopted in October 1958 by the CSI (''International Sporting Commission'', the part of the FIA that then regulated motorsports). The class was intended to provide an entry level class ...
design in 1961.
BT60Y
The first car, the BT60Y, was powered by the
Yamaha OX99 V12 engine
A V12 engine is a twelve-cylinder piston engine where two banks of six cylinders are arranged in a V configuration around a common crankshaft. V12 engines are more common than V10 engines. However, they are less common than V8 engines.
The f ...
. It was driven by
Martin Brundle
Martin John Brundle (born 1 June 1959) is a British former racing driver, best known as a Formula One driver and as a commentator for ITV Sport from 1997 to 2008, the BBC from 2009 to 2011, and Sky Sports since 2012.
Brundle contested the 1 ...
, who was returning to Brabham and Formula One again after driving for
Jaguar in the
1990 World Sportscar Championship
The 1990 World Sportscar Championship season was the 38th season of FIA World Sportscar Championship racing. It featured the 1990 FIA World Sports-Prototype Championship for Drivers and the 1990 FIA World Sports-Prototype Championship for Teams, ...
. The team's second car was driven by Formula One rookie
Mark Blundell
Mark Blundell (born 8 April 1966) is a British racing driver who competed in Formula One for four seasons, sports cars, and CART. He won the 1992 24 Hours of Le Mans. He was a Formula One presenter for the British broadcaster ITV until the en ...
.
Brabham only scored three points in 1991, with one 5th-place for Brundle, and Blundell scoring one 6th-place finish. The team finished 10th in the Constructors' Championship.
BT60B
For the
1992 Formula One season the team used a modified version of the car, dubbed the BT60B, which was powered by the
Judd GV V10 engine
A V10 engine is a ten-cylinder piston engine where two banks of five cylinders are arranged in a V configuration around a common crankshaft. V10 engines are much less common than V8 and V12 engines. Several V10 diesel engines have been prod ...
. The cars were driven by
Eric van de Poele
Eric van de Poele (born 30 September 1961) is a Belgian racing driver and former Formula One driver. He participated in 29 Grands Prix, in 1991 and 1992. He is a three-times class winner at 24 Hours of Le Mans, and won three Formula 3000 races i ...
from
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
and
Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance language
*** Regional Ita ...
rookie
Giovanna Amati. Part way through the year Amati was replaced by another Formula One rookie, future
World Drivers' Champion Damon Hill
Damon Graham Devereux Hill, (born 17 September 1960) is a British former professional racing driver from England and the 1996 Formula One World Champion. He is the son of Graham Hill, and, along with Nico Rosberg, one of two sons of a Formula ...
. The BT60B was the last Formula One car produced by Brabham.
The season was a complete disaster for the once great Brabham team. After van de Poele qualified 26th and last and finished 13th (again last) at the opening race in
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...
, neither car qualified for a race until round nine, the
1992 British Grand Prix, where Hill qualified 26th.
Two races later the team had its last race meeting in Formula One, at the
Hungarian Grand Prix
The Hungarian Grand Prix ( hu, Magyar Nagydíj) is a motor racing event held annually in Mogyoród. Since 1986, the race has been a round of the FIA Formula One World Championship.
History Origins
The first Hungarian Grand Prix was held on 21 ...
, where Hill gave the team its highest finish of the season finishing 11th, some four laps down on race winner
Ayrton Senna
Ayrton Senna da Silva (; 21 March 1960 – 1 May 1994) was a Brazilian racing driver who won the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in , , and . Senna is one of three Formula One drivers from Brazil to win the World Championship and ...
.
BT61
Brabham fell into
administration
Administration may refer to:
Management of organizations
* Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal
** Administrative Assistant, traditionally known as a Secretary, or also known as an administrative officer, admini ...
and attempts were made by RM Motorsports to buy the team. During this time, the company engaged
Galmer Engineering to build a successor for the BT60B. The BT61 would have competed in the season, but development of the car was never completed after RM Motorsport failed to name what engine would be used or pay Galmer Engineering for their work. The company never completed the purchase of the team and the team was eventually
liquidated
Liquidation is the process in accounting by which a company is brought to an end in Canada, United Kingdom, United States, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Italy, and many other countries. The assets and property of the company are redistr ...
.
Complete Formula One results
(
key)
References
{{F1 cars 1992
Brabham Formula One cars
1991 Formula One season cars
1992 Formula One season cars