On Wednesday, it was announced that the struggling Sauber F1 Team will be purchased by Longbow Finance, a Swiss investment company. Sauber is one of the many teams to have undergone ownership changes in Formula One. I countdown five recent ownership changes that worked out well.
In 2000, Ford purchased Jackie Stewart’s Formula One team and rebranded it Jaguar Racing. During the team’s five season run, they failed to convert any of their 85 race entries into a race victory and only managed to pick up two podiums. The team was largely unsuccessful and they were only able to pick up 49 points in their Formula One existence. Many of races resulted in retirements, a large amount of which were double retirements.
When the team was put up for sale by Ford after 2004, it appeared as though no one was going to buy the struggling team. On the final day of the sale, Red Bull made a bid for ownership. The new Red Bull team was far more successful than their predecessors, having scored more points in two seasons than Ford had managed in five. The team went on to be one of the most successful teams in the 21st century, having scored four consecutive double championship titles.
The roots of the Mercedes F1 Team can be traced back to the Honda Racing F1 Team. Honda made the decision to return to the Formula One grid in 2006, having purchased the British American Racing team. This was the Japanese engine manufacturer’s first time as a constructor since they withdrew at the end of 1968. With Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello behind the wheel, the team saw a little success. They earned a race victory and two other podium finishes in their first season, but the following seasons were not nearly as strong. The team spent most of the races failing to collect points. Honda announced that they would leave the sport, after only three seasons.
Ross Brawn, a former technical director at many top teams, purchased the team from Honda and rebranded the team Brawn GP for a 2009 entry. The team was largely successful, winning six of the first seven races in the season. They went on to get a total of eight victories and won both the World Drivers’ Championship and World Constructors’ Championship titles in their first and only season in the sport. At the end of the season, the team was sold to Mercedes, so that the German car manufacturer could build a works team. The team currently holds the position as the greatest F1 team on the current grid, with two consecutive championship titles and enroute for a third this year.
This recent ownership change isn’t the first time that the Sauber F1 Team has changed hands. At the end of 2005, Credit Suisse sold their majority shareholding in the team to BMW. It was during this four year period that Sauber witnessed their most successful seasons. The team scored their only race victory and 1-2 finish in Canada during 2008. The team saw many podium finishes during this period and they were World Constructors’ Championship runner-ups in 2007 and third in the championship in 2008. BWM sold the team back to Peter Sauber after the 2009 season, but team has not been able to replicate the same success which they had under BMW ownership.
Force India can be traced back to Eddie Jordan’s team, Jordan Grand Prix. Despite many successful races, the team suffered financial issues which led to poor car performance. The team was sold to the Midland Group in 2005. The team spent all of 2006 near the back of the field and failed to score a point. Midland F1 Racing was sold to Spyker Cars mid-way through 2006.
Spyker F1 continued in 2007, but wasn’t able to improve the results. They were able to score a single point in the Japanese Grand Prix that year with Adrian Sutil. The team’s financial troubles were evident, as they released Christijan Albers from his contract due to a lack of sponsorship funds. His permanent seat was handed to Sakon Yamamoto, who presumably had a good financial backing. After hitting a financial rut at the end of 2007, the team was sold to Vijay Mallya. Although the rebranded Force India F1 Team still has no race victory to their name, the team has had far more success than it had under the previous two owners.
The team originally debuted as Virgin Racing, as a result of a title sponsorship agreement from the Virgin Group. The team was granted entry into the 2010 season, but they had little success in the season. They didn’t score a point and finished last in the World Constructors’ Championship. The following season was the same story and the team lost their title sponsor.
Rebranded as Marussia F1, the team continued in 2012. The team continued to have little success, failing to score any points in 2012 and 2013, becoming known as a back-marker team. 2014 saw a little more success, with two points scored by Jules Bianchi in Monaco. After Bianchi’s fatal accident in Japan, the team ran a single car in Russia. This would be the team’s final race, as they would fail to complete the final three races in the season, citing financial difficulties. The team assets were put up for auction during the off season. Prior to the start of the 2015 season, the team was sold to British businessman Stephen Fitzpatrick. The team got off to a rocky start; missing all of the pre-season tests in 2015 and the open round of the season in Australia. However, things are looking positive for Manor Racing. The team has scored one point this season, appointed a new CEO and have developed a decent performing car.
Do you agree with my list? Can you think of any other team ownership changes in Formula One which resulted in success? Let us know in the comments below.
