Otmar Szafnauer (born 13 August 1964) is a Romanian-American engineer.

Biography

Szafnauer was born in Semlac, a small village in Western

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...

to an American father of German descent and a Romanian mother. His family moved to

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

when he was seven years old. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering from

Wayne State University Wayne State University (WSU) is a public research university in Detroit, Michigan. It is Michigan's third-largest university. Founded in 1868, Wayne State consists of 13 schools and colleges offering approximately 350 programs to nearly 25,000 ...

in Detroit before completing a master's degree in business and finance from the

University of Detroit The University of Detroit Mercy is a private Roman Catholic university in Detroit, Michigan. It is sponsored by both the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) and the Sisters of Mercy. The university was founded in 1877 and is the largest Catholic univers ...

. He joined the

Ford Motor Company Ford Motor Company (commonly known as Ford) is an American multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. The company sells automobi ...

in 1986 and was appointed Programmes Manager for Ford in the United States. While working for Ford, he attended the Jim Russell Racing Driver School and started racing in

Formula Ford Formula Ford, also known as F1600 and Formula F, is an entry-level class of single seater, open-wheel formula racing. The various championships held across the world form an important step for many prospective Formula One drivers. Formula For ...

in 1991. He left Ford in 1998 to become Operations Director at British American Racing in

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, ...

. After unsuccessful discussions with Jaguar Racing, he was hired by Honda on its return to Formula One in 2001, rising to Vice President of Honda Racing Developments and a member of the Management Board of the Honda F1 team. After leaving Honda in 2008, he founded Soft Pauer which released the official Formula One Timing and Track Positioning Application on the iPhone in June 2009. Szafnauer joined Force India in October 2009 and played an integral role in the team's improved performance with the team going on an upward path, finishing seventh in 2010 and sixth in 2011,

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fa ...

and

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

before breaking into the top five in 2015 and achieving the team-best finish of fourth in

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the Impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses duri ...

and

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a s ...

. Szafnauer's efforts also played an instrumental role in the team securing a long-term agreement to use the Mercedes powertrain from the 2014 season onwards. Szafnauer remained with Force India as they were sold in 2019 and became Aston Martin for the 2021 season, before leaving the team in January 2022. In February 2022, he joined the BWT Alpine F1 Team as team principal.

Awards and recognition

In 2013, Szafnauer was inducted into the

USF2000 The USF2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires is an American racing series using the American variation of the Formula Ford formula, "F2000", that resumed operation for the 2010 season. As of 2022, it is sanctioned by the United States Auto ...

Hall of Fame in recognition of his racing achievements in motorsport over the last twenty years.

USF2000 results

USAC FF2000 Eastern Division Championship

USAC FF2000 National Championship results

USF2000 National Championship

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Szafnauer, Otmar 1964 births Living people People from Arad County American people of German descent American people of Romanian descent Romanian emigrants to the United States Romanian motorsport people Businesspeople from Detroit University of Detroit Mercy alumni Formula One people American chief operating officers U.S. F2000 National Championship drivers Force India Aston Martin in Formula One Racing Point F1 Team