Racing Point F1 Team, which competed as BWT Racing Point F1 Team and commonly known as Racing Point, was a British motor racing team and constructor that
Racing Point UK entered into the
Formula One World Championship
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, ...
. The team was based in
Silverstone, England and competed under a
British licence.
The team was renamed in February 2019 from
Racing Point Force India F1 Team, which used the constructor name of Force India for the latter half of the
2018 season. Racing Point made their racing debut at the
2019 Australian Grand Prix
The 2019 Australian Grand Prix (formally known as the Formula 1 Rolex Australian Grand Prix 2019) was a Formula One motor race that was held on 17 March 2019 in Melbourne, Victoria. The race was contested at the Albert Park Circuit and was the f ...
. The team's drivers for the 2020 season were
Sergio Pérez and
Lance Stroll
Lance Strulovitch (born 29 October 1998), better known as Lance Stroll, is a Canadian–Belgian racing driver competing under the Canadian flag in Formula One. He has driven for Aston Martin since , having previously driven for Williams and R ...
. The team rebranded to
Aston Martin for the
2021 Formula One season.
Origins
Racing Point's origins lie in the
Jordan Grand Prix
Jordan Grand Prix was a Formula One constructor that competed from 1991 to 2005. The team was named after Irish businessman and founder Eddie Jordan. The team was based at Silverstone, UK but raced with an Irish licence.
In early 2005, the t ...
team, which first raced in . Jordan saw moderate success in the late 1990s and early 2000s, particularly in when the team achieved two race victories and finished 3rd in the World Constructors' Championship. A decline in performance followed, culminating in the team being sold to the
Midland Group
The Midland Group is an international trading and investment holding company. Registered in Guernsey under the name Midland Resources Holding Ltd, the group owns a number of subsidiaries across the agriculture, manufacturing, real estate, shippin ...
in 2005 and being renamed
Midland F1 Racing
Midland F1 Racing (also known as MF1 Racing, or simply "Midland") was a Formula One constructor and racing team which competed in the 2006 Formula One season with drivers Christijan Albers and Tiago Monteiro. The team was created by the renami ...
for the season. The team remained unsuccessful, failing to score any points. Midland F1 was sold to Dutch sports car marque
Spyker Cars
Spyker Cars (, ) is a Dutch sports car marque. The modern Spyker Cars held the legal rights to the brand name. The company's motto is "''Nulla tenaci invia est via''", Latin for "For the tenacious, no road is impassable". The marque's logo dis ...
late in the season, before becoming
Spyker F1
The Spyker F1 Team, known as the Etihad Aldar Spyker F1 Team for sponsorship reasons, was a Formula One team that competed in the 2007 Formula One season, 2007 Formula One World Championship with a List of Formula One constructors#Team's nationa ...
in . After another season with little improvement, albeit with the team scoring its first point in over two years at the
2007 Japanese Grand Prix, the team was sold to Indian businessman
Vijay Mallya
Vijay Vittal Mallya (born 18 December 1955) is an Indian businessman, former politician and fugitive. He is the subject of an extradition effort by the Indian Government to return him from the UK to face charges of financial crimes in India.
T ...
.
The
Silverstone-based team was renamed
Force India for the season, its fourth identity in as many years. Force India saw moderate success across its ten and a half years in Formula One, achieving a
pole position at the
2009 Belgian Grand Prix
The 2009 Belgian Grand Prix (officially the 2009 Formula 1 ING Belgian Grand Prix) was a Formula One motor race held on 30 August 2009 at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, near the village of Francorchamps, Wallonia, Belgium. It was the 12th race ...
, six podium places and finishing 4th in the World Constructors' Championship in both and . During the season, the team was put 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 ...
as a result of financial and legal troubles encountered by team owner Mallya. Force India's assets were purchased by
Racing Point UK, a consortium led by Canadian businessman
Lawrence Stroll
Lawrence Sheldon Strulović (name later anglicized to Strulovitch) (born 11 July 1959), best known as Lawrence Stroll, is a Canadian billionaire businessman, part-owner and executive chairman of Aston Martin, and the owner of the Aston Martin F1 ...
. However, the team's Formula One entry was not transferable, marking the official end of the entry originating in 1991. The team was renamed
Racing Point Force India
Racing Point Force India Formula One Team was the title under which Racing Point UK made a late entry into the 2018 Formula One World Championship. The team used the constructor name "Force India", competed under a British licence and was bas ...
for the remainder of the 2018 season before becoming Racing Point for the 2019 season.
Racing history
2019 season
Racing Point confirmed in November 2018 that
Lance Stroll
Lance Strulovitch (born 29 October 1998), better known as Lance Stroll, is a Canadian–Belgian racing driver competing under the Canadian flag in Formula One. He has driven for Aston Martin since , having previously driven for Williams and R ...
and
Sergio Pérez would be the two drivers for the 2019 season. The 2019 season also saw the team branded as "SportPesa Racing Point F1 Team", acknowledging lead sponsor
SportPesa
SportPesa is a sports news technology and sports betting brand with operations in Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa, Italy, Ireland, the Isle of Man, and the UK, where it operates in conjunction with TGP Europe.
Ownership
SportPesa in Kenya is ...
, a
sports betting
Sports betting is the activity of predicting sports results and placing a wager on the outcome. The frequency of sports bet upon varies by culture, with the vast majority of bets being placed on association football, American football, basket ...
company based in
Kenya
)
, national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"()
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Nairobi
, coordinates =
, largest_city = Nairobi
...
. The team's car for the 2019 season, the
Racing Point RP19, was announced in
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...
, Canada. The team scored points at each of the first four races of the season, including a double points finish in
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of t ...
as Pérez and Stroll finished 6th and 9th respectively. Despite this early success, Racing Point went on to struggle during the middle part of the season, with Stroll's 9th place in
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
being the team's only points finish in the following six races. Their best result of the season came at the
German Grand Prix
The German Grand Prix (german: Großer Preis von Deutschland) was a motor race that took place most years since 1926, with 75 races having been held. The race has been held at only three venues throughout its history; the Nürburgring in Rh ...
, where Stroll briefly led the race as a result of tyre strategy in the wet weather before eventually finishing 4th.
Racing Point's fortunes improved in the second half of the season after the team brought significant upgrades ahead of the
Belgian Grand Prix
The Belgian Grand Prix (French: ''Grand Prix de Belgique''; Dutch: ''Grote Prijs van België''; German: ''Großer Preis von Belgien'') is a motor racing event which forms part of the Formula One World Championship.
The first national race of ...
. Over the next nine races, Pérez scored points in all but one—retiring from the
Singapore Grand Prix
The Singapore Grand Prix; ta, சிங்கப்பூர் கிராண்ட் பிரிக்ஸ் is a motor racing event which forms part of the Formula One World Championship. The event takes place on the Marina Bay Street Cir ...
with an oil leak. This points streak brought Racing Point ahead of
Alfa Romeo
Alfa Romeo Automobiles S.p.A. () is an Italian luxury car manufacturer and a subsidiary of Stellantis. The company was founded on 24 June 1910, in Milan, Italy. "Alfa" is an acronym of its founding name, "Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili." "A ...
in the standings, finishing the season in 7th place with 73 points.
2020 season
At the
2019 Belgian Grand Prix, it was confirmed that Stroll had been re-signed for 2020 and Pérez had been signed until the end of . Pérez was set to spend at least nine consecutive seasons with the team in total since joining in , albeit across four different names.
SportPesa ended their title sponsorship arrangement with Racing Point, with Austrian water technology company
BWT becoming the team's new title sponsor. During pre-season testing Racing Point's car, the
RP20 caused controversy due to its resemblance to the
Mercedes AMG F1 W10 EQ Power+
The Mercedes AMG F1 W10 EQ Power+ is a Formula One racing car designed and developed by Mercedes-Benz under the direction of James Allison, John Owen, Mike Elliott, Loïc Serra, Ashley Way, Emiliano Giangiulio, Jarrod Murphy, Eric Blandin a ...
, which won the
2019 Formula One World Championship
The 2019 FIA Formula One World Championship was the motor racing championship for Formula One cars which marked the 70th running of the Formula One World Championship. It is recognised by the governing body of international motorsport, the Fé ...
. Following the a formal protest was launched against the RP20 specifically surrounding the brake ducts which the rules dictate must be designed by the team. Officials have impounded the brake ducts from both the RP20 and the W10 to investigate the protest. Three days before the , Pérez tested positive for
COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quickly ...
. Due to this Pérez was unable to participate in both the British Grand Prix and the .
Nico Hülkenberg
Nicolas Hülkenberg (, born 19 August 1987) is a German professional racing driver who is scheduled to make a full-time racing return to Formula 1 with Haas F1 Team in 2023, after serving as a reserve driver for Aston Martin F1 Team for the ye ...
served as a substitute driver for both events. Between the
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
and
70th Anniversary Grands Prix, Racing Point was fined €400,000 and had 15 constructors points deducted after the protest lodged by Renault F1 Team was upheld.
At the
Italian Grand Prix
The Italian Grand Prix ( it, Gran Premio d'Italia) is the fifth oldest national Grand Prix motor racing, Grand Prix (after the French Grand Prix, the United States Grand Prix, the Spanish Grand Prix and the Russian Grand Prix), having been he ...
, Stroll finished third and took the team's first ever podium. At the
Eifel Grand Prix
The Eifel (; lb, Äifel, ) is a low mountain range in western Germany and eastern Belgium. It occupies parts of southwestern North Rhine-Westphalia, northwestern Rhineland-Palatinate and the southern area of the German-speaking Community of ...
, Lance Stroll was unable to participate in qualifying and the race due to having tested positive for
coronavirus. Hülkenberg would serve as his substitute for the next two sessions, finishing 8th after starting 20th.
At the
Turkish Grand Prix, Stroll achieved the team's first ever pole position, with teammate Pérez qualifying third. In the race, Stroll led early into the race but eventually dropped to ninth, while Pérez achieved second place, taking the team's second podium finish. Pérez came close to taking the team's third podium finish in the
Bahrain Grand Prix, but a late engine failure in lap 54 forced him to retire. Earlier in the race, Stroll's car was flipped upside down due to a collision with
Daniil Kvyat, which meant Bahrain was the first race in which both cars did not score a point in the 2020 season. At the
Sakhir Grand Prix, Pérez gave Racing Point their first win as a constructor and as a legal entity while Stroll also finished on the podium with his 3rd-place finish.
This was the first time any incarnation of the team had won a race since Jordan won the
2003 Brazilian Grand Prix
The 2003 Brazilian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 6 April 2003 at Autódromo José Carlos Pace (Interlagos). It was attended by 120,000 spectators. It was the third round of the 2003 Formula One World Championship, the 32nd Braz ...
.
It was the fifth Grand Prix victory for any incarnation of the team.
After
Lawrence Stroll
Lawrence Sheldon Strulović (name later anglicized to Strulovitch) (born 11 July 1959), best known as Lawrence Stroll, is a Canadian billionaire businessman, part-owner and executive chairman of Aston Martin, and the owner of the Aston Martin F1 ...
bought a 16.7% stake in
Aston Martin, the team rebranded to
Aston Martin F1 Team
Aston Martin is a British car manufacturer that has participated in Formula One in various forms. The company first participated in Formula One during the 1959 season where they debuted the DBR4 chassis using their own engine but it failed t ...
.
Complete Formula One results
(
key)
;Notes
*
† – The driver did not finish the Grand Prix, but was classified as he completed over 90% of the race distance.
Notes
References
External links
*
{{Formula One constructors
Formula One entrants
British auto racing teams
British racecar constructors
2019 establishments in England
Auto racing teams established in 2019