Intercontinental Formula was an open wheel, single seater motor-racing formula introduced in 1961 as an alternative to

Formula One Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...

. As its name implies it was hoped to encourage participation from the United States and Europe, but ultimately the handful of races which ran under the formula all took place in Great Britain, and only for one year.

Background

In late 1958, the CSI, the regulatory body for motor-sport, announced new regulations for

, to be introduced in 1961. British F1 constructors, unhappy with the new regulations which they felt favoured manufacturers such as

Ferrari Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello. Founded in 1939 by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988), the company built Auto Avio Costruzioni 815, its first car in 1940, adopted its current name in 1945, and be ...

and

Honda commonly known as just Honda, is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate automotive manufacturer headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Founded in October 1946 by Soichiro Honda, Honda has bee ...

, developed plans for an alternative series which was effectively a continuation of the existing F1 regulations, with the limit on engine size increased from 2.5 litres to 3 litres. Hoping to attract interest from the United States, the new formula was named ''Intercontinental Formula''. Although Ferrari had expressed an interest in the Intercontinental formula, in 1960 they announced that they would be committing to the new F1 regulations. In addition, engine manufacturer Coventry Climax also withdrew from participation, preferring to concentrate on developing 1.5 litre Formula One engines. Meanwhile, of the British manufacturers, only Lotus and BRM entered official works entries. In all, only five races were run under the formula, including a joint race with Formula One. All races were won by the Cooper T53- Climax model; two by Jack Brabham and three by

Stirling Moss Sir Stirling Craufurd Moss (17 September 1929 – 12 April 2020) was a British racing driver and sports broadcasting, broadcaster, who competed in Formula One from to . Widely regarded as one of the greatest drivers to never win the Formula On ...

. With waning interest from manufacturers, coupled with the success of the

series, Intercontinental Formula was abandoned. Despite their initial opposition to the new Formula One, British manufacturers, particularly Lotus, would eventually dominate the five years of the 1.5 litre era, winning 36 out of the 47 races and taking three of the five Constructors' Championships.

Race results

¹ run in conjunction with

entries

References

Formula racing series 1961 establishments 1961 disestablishments 1961 in British motorsport {{Autoracing-stub