Given our recent blows in the sporting world (we’ve just lost at the European Cup, and by the time I publish this I’m sure Andy Murray will be out of Wimbledon too), it’s easy to think that we’re just rubbish at sport (as a nation).
But there is at least one sport were Britain dominates the world – Formula One. Although a lot of the key names thrown around are people like Vettel and Schumacher, when you look at the figures, Formula One simply revolves around this country. Here are some key figures.
- 8 of the 12 manufacturers are based in Britain
- 9 of the 14 technical directors are British
- 2 of the 4 engine manufacturers are based in Britain
- Britain has 3 drivers – only Germany has more (with 5), everyone else has less (Finland, Australia, Spain, France and Brazil have 2)
Here is a full breakdown of each team and where they are from. I’ve highlighed the British connections in yellow, though with hindsight, I probably should have highlighed the non-British connections!
| Team | Nationality | Key people | History | Engine |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Caterham | Malaysian, but based in British | Mike Gascoyne (technical director) and Mark Smith (technical director) are both British | Originally British, until Tony Fernandes bought Caterham Cars | Renault |
| Ferrari | Italian | Pat Fry (technical director) is British | Ferrari | |
| Force India | Indian, but based in Britain | Andrew Green (technical director) are Paul di Resta (driver) are British. | Buy out of Eddie Jordan’s team. | Mercedes AMG |
| HRT | Spanish | Cosworth | ||
| Lotus | British | James Allison (technical director) is British | Originally Toleman Motorsport (British) | Renault |
| Marrusia | Russian, but based in Britain | John Booth (team principal) is British | Founded by Manor Motorsport and Wirth Research (both British). Taken on by Virgin Racing (British). | Cosworth |
| McLaren | British | Martin Whitmarsh (team principal), Neil Oatley (technical director), Jenson Button (driver), Lewis Hamilton (driver) are all British. | Founded by New Zealander Bruce McLaren. | Mercedes AMG |
| Mercedes | German, but based in Britain | Ross Brawn (team principal), Nick Fry (CEO) and Bob Bell (technical director) are all British. | Mercedes AGM is a separate company – a buy out of British engine manufacturers Ilmor. | Mercedes AMG |
| Red Bull | Austrian, but based in Britain | Christian Horner (team principal) and Adrian Newey (technical director) are both British. | Originally Stewart Racing, founded by British driver Sir Jackie Stewart | Renault |
| Sauber | Swiss | Ferrari | ||
| Toro Rosso | Austrian, but based in Italy | Ferrari | ||
| Williams | British | Sir Frank Williams (team principal) and Mike Coughlan (technical director) are both British. | Founded by Sir Frank Williams and Patrick Head. | Renault |
…and this is before I’ve even founded Worfolk Racing.
Don't have time to check my blog? Get a weekly email with all the new posts. This is my personal blog, so obviously it is 100% spam free.
Tags: formula one, motor racing, motor sport, sport
This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 25th, 2012 at 3:33 pm and is filed under Distractions, Thoughts. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.