A formation finish in a motor race is when multiple vehicles of the same team cross the finish line in formation, usually side-by-side. Typically it happens when a team's car are running in the top positions at the end of the race with a clear advantage over their competitors. Team directors often orchestrate formation finishes to demonstrate their superiority. A formation finish should not be confused with a "1–2 finish"; not all formation finishes occur as a result of a team's cars finishing first and second in a race, and not all 1–2 finishes are completed in formation.

24 Hours of Le Mans

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 ...

had a 1-2-3 formation finish at the 1965 24 Hours of Le Mans. Rival car manufacturer Ford did the same in

1966 Events January * January 1 – In a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa takes over as military ruler of the Central African Republic, ousting President David Dacko. * January 3 – 1966 Upper Voltan coup d'état: President Maurice Yaméogo i ...

, and Ferrari again in

1967 Events January * January 1 – Canada begins a year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Canadian Confederation, Confederation, featuring the Expo 67 World's Fair. * January 6 – Vietnam War: United States Marine Corps and Army of ...

. Porsche had a three-car formation finish in 1982.

Audi Audi AG () is a German automotive manufacturer of luxury vehicles headquartered in Ingolstadt, Bavaria, Germany. A subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group, Audi produces vehicles in nine production facilities worldwide. The origins of the compa ...

and Bentley, part of the Volkswagen Group, dominated the 24 Hours of Le Mans in the 2000s, doing several formation finishes to celebrate. However,

Peugeot Peugeot (, , ) is a French automobile brand owned by Stellantis. The family business that preceded the current Peugeot companies was established in 1810, making it the oldest car company in the world. On 20 November 1858, Émile Peugeot applie ...

won in

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

with a three-car formation finish. In 2013, Audi was set for another three-car formation finish, but Toyota spoiled the show by crossing the line before the second and third placed Audis.

Formula One

To celebrate his

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 ...

title, Ayrton Senna slowed down at the last corner of the to let his teammate Gerhard Berger overtake him and finish in formation. At the 2002 United States Grand Prix,

Michael Schumacher Michael Schumacher (; born 3 January 1969) is a German former racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to and from to . Schumacher won a record-setting seven Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, tied by Lewis Hamilton in ...

– who had won ten races during the season – slowed down in the final lap to set a formation finish with Ferrari teammate Rubens Barrichello. The Brazilian also slowed down in the final metres, but ended up winning the race by 0.011 seconds.

Bathurst 1000

The

Bathurst 1000 The Bathurst 1000 (known for sponsorship reasons as the Repco Bathurst 1000) is a Touring car racing, touring car race held annually on the Mount Panorama Circuit in Bathurst, New South Wales, Australia. It is currently run as part of the Supe ...

has seen a number of formation finishes. The first occurred in

1977 Events January * January 8 – 1977 Moscow bombings, Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (no ...

when Allan Moffat and Colin Bond spent the majority of the final lap side-by-side in their Ford XC Falcons. The Holden Dealer Team repeated the feat in

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...

, with Peter Brock slowing on the final lap to allow teammate David Parsons to cross the finish line next to him. Triple Eight Race Engineering are the most recent team to perform a formation finish at Bathurst, when Craig Lowndes and Jamie Whincup finished the race side-by-side in

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

.{{cite news , url=http://www.speedcafe.com/2010/10/18/what-is-the-best-bathurst-one-two/ , title=What is the best Bathurst one-two? , work=SpeedCafe , date=18 October 2010 , accessdate=25 January 2014

References

Motorsport terminology