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Jaguar in Formula One

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Jaguar
Full nameJaguar Racing F1 Team
BaseMilton Keynes, United Kingdom
Noted staffDavid Pitchforth
Tony Purnell
Niki Lauda
Bobby Rahal
Guenther Steiner
Noted driversUnited Kingdom Eddie Irvine
Spain Pedro de la Rosa
Australia Mark Webber
United Kingdom Justin Wilson
Austria Christian Klien
Previous nameStewart Grand Prix
Next nameRed Bull Racing
Formula One World Championship career
First entry2000 Australian Grand Prix
Races entered85
EnginesCosworth
Constructors'
Championships		0 (best finish: 7th place 3 times, in 2002, 2003, and 2004)
Drivers'
Championships		0 (best finish: 9th, Irvine, in 2002)
Race victories0 (best finish: 3rd, 2001 Monaco Grand Prix and 2002 Italian Grand Prix)
Podiums2
Points49
Pole positions0
Fastest laps0
Final entry2004 Brazilian Grand Prix
Jaguar as a Formula One engine manufacturer
Formula One World Championship career
First entry1950 Italian Grand Prix
Last entry1957 Indianapolis 500
Races entered2 (1 start)
ChassisFerrari, Mercedes
Constructors' Championships0
Drivers'
Championships		0
Race victories0
Podiums0
Points0
Pole positions0
Fastest laps0
Jaguar Racing logo from 2000-2002

In June 1999, Jaguar's then-parent company, American automaker Ford, purchased Jackie Stewart's Stewart Grand Prix Formula One team for a price variously reported at £65 or £100 million.[1][2] Ford was already a minority investor in the Stewart outfit and supplied the team with free of charge engines through its then-subsidiary Cosworth. It renamed the team to Jaguar in September 1999.[3] Ford announced a $400 million project to build a unified facility in Silverstone for its engine and constructor operations,[4][5] but these plans never came to fruition, and Jaguar remained in Milton Keynes.

The team operated for five seasons, from 2000 to 2004. During this period, The Times estimated that Ford spent £500 million on the team and incurred significant operating losses.[6] Due to Jaguar's combination of works-team backing and limited success, it was deemed a major flop. Looking back in 2023, Motor Sport wrote that Jaguar was "one of the most high-profile failures in F1," with "a revolving door of management that made Jaguar Racing look like an employment bureau rather than a slick F1 team."[7]

At the end of the 2004 season, Ford sold the team to Red Bull for £1.[8] The Austrian company concurrently pledged to invest at least £200 million in the team over three years.[9] Ford also sold Cosworth to the owners of Champ Car, thus effecting its complete operational withdrawal from F1 after 35 years as a competitor and/or engine supplier.[10] Elements within the Ford organisation made a last-ditch attempt to save the team by rebranding it from Jaguar to Ford, but company leadership in Detroit went ahead with the sale; it was estimated that Ford was losing $50 million/year on F1.[11] Formula One Group CEO Bernie Ecclestone regretted the loss but emphasized that Jaguar as a whole was in poor shape, explaining that with the parent company "closing a factory ... it would have been a bit cheeky to keep the Formula One factory going in those circumstances."[12]

Early involvements (1950, 1957)

[edit]

At the 1950 Italian Grand Prix, privateer Clemente Biondetti entered the event with a self-built Jaguar-engined Ferrari chassis. [13] This has been the first and only time that a Ferrari chassis entered a Grand Prix with a non-Ferrari engine.

In 1957, Danny Kladis entered the Indianapolis 500 with a Jaguar-engined Mercedes-Benz W154 chassis but failed to qualify.

Constructor

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2000 season

[edit]

For 2000, Jaguar retained Stewart driver Johnny Herbert and partnered him with 1999 world championship runner-up Eddie Irvine,[4] who reportedly received a $15m contract.[7] However, the team fell short of Stewart's 1999 results, finishing ninth in the Constructors' Championship, with Irvine scoring all four of the team's points. The only teams Jaguar beat were Minardi and Prost, which both failed to score any points. The highlight of the year was Irvine's fourth-place finish at Monaco.

Jaguar's rookie year introduced a common theme: the struggle for control between Ford headquarters in Detroit and Jaguar Racing's headquarters in Milton Keynes. The team was overseen by Wolfgang Reitzle, the head of Ford's Premier Automotive Group, whose remit included both Jaguar Racing and Ford's various luxury marques.[7] Although Jackie Stewart initially stayed on as chairman and CEO,[1] he stepped down in January 2000. Neil Ressler, Ford's chief technical officer, was appointed chairman and interim CEO in January,[14] and became full-time CEO in May.[15][7] Paul Stewart remained as COO but stepped down in the middle of the season due to colon cancer.[16]

Ressler planned to fill the CEO role until Ford procured the services of Ferrari's Ross Brawn,[16] a veteran of Jaguar's title-winning sports car operation,[17] but this did not happen and Brawn stayed with Ferrari. In the meantime, he clashed with some of Jaguar's UK-based personnel. It was reported that during the Malaysian Grand Prix, Ressler nearly came to blows with technical director Gary Anderson, a holdover from Stewart GP who resented the Ford bureaucracy's intrusion on his turf.[8][18] Anderson also complained that the England-based team was forced to use a wind tunnel in California[8][7] (albeit the same wind tunnel that Stewart had previously used[19]) and that Cosworth got more attention than Jaguar from Ford leadership in Detroit.[18]

2001 season

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Pedro de la Rosa driving the Jaguar R2 at the 2001 Canadian Grand Prix.

For 2001, Jaguar retained Irvine and replaced Herbert with Luciano Burti, who was himself replaced by Pedro de la Rosa after four races.[7] Irvine scored the team's first podium in Monaco, finishing third. This allowed Jaguar to finish eighth in the Constructors' Championship, with nine points, including four points-scoring performances.

The year was marked by continued management turmoil. In September 2000, Ressler appointed three-time CART champion Bobby Rahal as team principal for 2001.[20] Ressler then stepped down as CEO before the season began. As part of a broader management shakeup, Ford created a "Ford Premier Performance Division" to oversee Jaguar and its other racing operations. Reitzle was named chairman and three-time Drivers' Champion Niki Lauda was named CEO,[21] with a reported salary of $3 million/year.[4] However, following financial turmoil at Jaguar, Ford redirected its efforts towards auto production and capped the racing team's budget at $150 million, of which $50 million went to the engine department.[5]

Rahal recruited McLaren's former technical director Adrian Newey, but although Newey reportedly signed a contract with Jaguar, he refused to join the team, citing its fractured internal politics.[22] Rahal also signed decorated chassis designer Steve Nichols.[8] However, following Ressler's exit, Reitzle assumed overall control of the team and gave Lauda more authority.[22] Following the Hungarian Grand Prix, Lauda ousted Rahal and appointed himself team principal.[23]

2002 season

[edit]
Eddie Irvine driving the R3 at the 2002 United States Grand Prix.

At the end of the 2001 season, Ford moved Guenther Steiner from its rally team to serve as Jaguar's managing director.[7][24] John Allison took responsibility for the commercial and administrative aspects of the business.[24] More broadly, the team's budget and performance came under closer scrutiny after Ford CEO Jacques Nasser retired and was replaced by William Clay Ford Jr. Although Nasser was enthusiastic about Formula One, Ford Jr. questioned why the company was spending so much money on a team that did not bear the Ford name.[7]

Jaguar retained the Irvine-de la Rosa pairing for 2002 and were rewarded with another improvement in the Constructors' Championship, finishing seventh, scoring eight points, all from Irvine. Irvine recorded another podium at Monza, which would ultimately be Jaguar's last podium in Formula One. However, the team was held back by a disappointing car; at one point it was reported that Lauda was considering reusing the 2001 season's car.[25] Lauda blamed the R3's poor aerodynamics on the lack of an on-site wind tunnel.[26] Nichols left the team after the R3 performed badly in pre-season testing.[27] Mark Gillan was appointed as technical director.[7]

In mid-2002, Wolfgang Reitzle left Ford as part of a broader corporate reorganisation, declining an offer to take a reshaped role that did not include motorsports.[28][29] At the end of the season, Ford stripped Lauda of the team principal role and laid off over 60 personnel.[2] Although Lauda was asked to stay in an advisory role, he opted to leave the company, and Ford paid him to sit out the 2003 season.[30][7]

2003 season

[edit]

To replace Lauda and Steiner, the team hired a new triumvirate of Ford overseer Tony Purnell (replacing Lauda at the Premier Performance Division),[31] managing director David Pitchforth, and sporting and commercial director John Hogan.[26] No team principal was appointed.[32] Hogan complained that he was being "pulled all over the place because Ford in America wanted control,"[33] and left the team at the end of the season.[34] He added that Ford continued to underinvest in the team, and questioned the wisdom of "run[ning] an F1 team on £150m a season."[35] However, the team benefited from earlier investments in facility upgrades, including the long-awaited wind tunnel.[26]

For 2003, Irvine and de la Rosa were replaced by Mark Webber and Antônio Pizzonia,[31] a decision made by Lauda shortly before his ouster.[25] In addition, Pizzonia was replaced in mid-season by Justin Wilson.[7] The team jumped from eight to 18 points in the Constructors' Championship, but remained in seventh place. Webber scored seven times in seventeen races, and Wilson scored an additional point at Indianapolis.

2004 season

[edit]
Mark Webber driving the R5 at the 2004 United States Grand Prix.

2004 marked Jaguar's final season in Formula One. The team retained Webber and replaced Wilson with Austrian driver Christian Klien, who reportedly brought in over £10m in sponsorship money from Thai-Austrian energy drink manufacturer Red Bull.[36] Although the team took a step back on track, scoring only ten points in eighteen races, it nonetheless finished seventh in the Constructors' Championship for a third straight year. At the end of the year, Red Bull bought the team and renamed it Red Bull Racing.

The team earned an odd form of publicity when two of its engineers adopted an inflatable donkey (acquired following a give-away on a soda can) from the movie Shrek as an impromptu team mascot. After the 2004 Brazilian Grand Prix, Bernie Ecclestone, Max Mosley, much of the sport's management, and every driver except Michael Schumacher signed the donkey, which the engineers promised to auction off for charity.[37][38]

In addition, the team set a $300,000 diamond into the nose cone of each car to promote the film Ocean's Twelve during the 2004 Monaco Grand Prix. However, Klien crashed on the first lap, and his car's diamond was never found.[39][40]

Complete Formula One results

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As an engine supplier

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(key) (results in bold indicate pole position; results in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Entrant Chassis Engine Tyres Drivers 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
1950 Clemente Biondetti Ferrari 166S XK 3.4 L6 P GBR MON 500 SUI BEL FRA ITA
Italy Clemente Biondetti Ret
1957 Safety Auto Glass Mercedes W154 3.4 L6 F ARG MON 500 FRA GBR GER PES ITA
United States Danny Kladis DNQ

As a constructor

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(key) (results in bold indicate pole position; results in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Entrant Chassis Engine Tyres Drivers 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Points WCC
2000 HSBC Jaguar Racing R1 Cosworth CR-2 3.0 V10 B AUS BRA SMR GBR ESP EUR MON CAN FRA AUT GER HUN BEL ITA USA JPN MAL 4 9th
United Kingdom Eddie Irvine Ret Ret 7 13 11 Ret 4 13 13 PO 10 8 10 Ret 7 8 6
Brazil Luciano Burti 11
United Kingdom Johnny Herbert Ret Ret 10 12 13 11† 9 Ret Ret 7 Ret Ret 8 Ret 11 7 Ret
2001 HSBC Jaguar Racing R2 Cosworth CR-3 3.0 V10 M AUS MAL BRA SMR ESP AUT MON CAN EUR FRA GBR GER HUN BEL ITA USA JPN 9 8th
United Kingdom Eddie Irvine 11 Ret Ret Ret Ret 7 3 Ret 7 Ret 9 Ret Ret DNS Ret 5 Ret
Brazil Luciano Burti 8 10 Ret 11
Spain Pedro de la Rosa Ret Ret Ret 6 8 14 12 Ret 11 Ret 5 12 Ret
2002 HSBC Jaguar Racing R3
R3B		 Cosworth CR-3 3.0 V10
Cosworth CR-4 3.0 V10		 M AUS MAL BRA SMR ESP AUT MON CAN EUR GBR FRA GER HUN BEL ITA USA JPN 8 7th
United Kingdom Eddie Irvine 4 Ret 7 Ret Ret Ret 9 Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret 6 3 10 9
Spain Pedro de la Rosa 8 10 8 Ret Ret Ret 10 Ret 11 11 9 Ret 13 Ret Ret Ret Ret
2003 HSBC Jaguar Racing R4 Cosworth CR-5 3.0 V10 M AUS MAL BRA SMR ESP AUT MON CAN EUR FRA GBR GER HUN ITA USA JPN 18 7th
Australia Mark Webber Ret Ret 9† Ret 7 7 Ret 7 6 6 14 11† 6 7 Ret 11
Brazil Antônio Pizzonia 13† Ret Ret 14 Ret 9 Ret 10† 10 10 Ret
United Kingdom Justin Wilson Ret Ret Ret 8 13
2004 HSBC Jaguar Racing R5
R5B		 Cosworth CR-6 3.0 V10 M AUS MAL BHR SMR ESP MON EUR CAN USA FRA GBR GER HUN BEL ITA CHN JPN BRA 10 7th
Australia Mark Webber Ret Ret 8 13 12 Ret 7 Ret Ret 9 8 6 10 Ret 9 10 Ret Ret
Austria Christian Klien 11 10 14 14 Ret Ret 12 9 Ret 11 14 10 13 6 13 Ret 12 14
Sources:[41][42]
Notes
  • † – Driver did not finish the Grand Prix, but was classified as he completed over 90% of the race distance.

Jaguar Junior Team

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Jaguar competed in the 2001 British Formula Three Championship and the 2001 Masters of Formula 3 with test drivers James Courtney and André Lotterer.

Complete British Formula Three Championship results

[edit]

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Entrant Chassis Engine Drivers 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 DC Points
2001 Jaguar Junior Team Dallara F301 Mugen-Honda SIL SNE DON OUL CRO ROC CAS BRH DON KNO THR BRH SIL
Australia James Courtney 1 8 6 6 7 2 7 Ret 3 9 6 4 3 3 2 2 Ret 8 3 C 4 5 2 10 2 4 4 4th 227
Germany André Lotterer Ret 9 7 9 2 1 Ret 16 6 7 5 3 6 6 3 7 2 4 Ret C 8 13 7 DNS 6 20 8 7th 143

See also

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References

[edit]
  1. 1 2 "Stewart sells up for £100m". BBC News. 1999-06-10. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  2. 1 2 Henry, Alan (2002-11-26). "Lauda is sacked in Jaguar shake-up". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  3. ↑ "Jaguar announces move to Formula One". Autosport. 1999-09-14. Archived from the original on 26 November 2022. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  4. 1 2 3 "Neil Ressler's legacy at Jaguar". www.grandprix.com. 2001-02-07. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  5. 1 2 Arron, Simon (2018-11-20). "Lunch with... Steve Nichols". Motor Sport Magazine. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  6. ↑ Eason, Kevin (2004-11-16). "Jaguar given new lease of life by Red Bull". The Times. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Hamilton, Maurice (2023-04-03). "The Jaguar F1 horror that still haunts Ford". Motor Sport Magazine. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  8. 1 2 3 4 Elson, James (2023-02-10). "Ford's corporate approach at Jaguar 'like a virus that spread' says Herbert". Motor Sport Magazine. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  9. ↑ Bradley, Charles (2015-12-28). "How to buy a $100 million F1 team for just one pound". Motorsport.com. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  10. ↑ Tran, Mark (2004-11-15). "Red Bull buys Jaguar F1 team". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  11. ↑ "Ford pulls out of F1". Motor Sport Magazine. 2014-07-07. Retrieved 2025-01-23.
  12. ↑ Tremayne, David (2004-09-17). "Ford announce end of Jaguar F1 team". The Independent. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  13. ↑ Miller, Aaron (23 October 2014). "The Ferrari-Jaguar Formula One Car You Never Knew Existed". Thrillist. Retrieved 24 August 2026.
  14. ↑ "Ressler becomes Jaguar Racing CEO". Autoweek. 2000-05-08. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  15. ↑ "Neil Ressler Takes Over at Jaguar". Motorsport.com. 2000-05-05. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  16. 1 2 "Paul Stewart stands down". www.grandprix.com. 2000-04-17. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  17. ↑ "Ross Brawn on Michael Schumacher: Beyond The Grid podcast | Formula 1®". Formula 1® - The Official F1® Website. Retrieved 2025-01-23.
  18. 1 2 Anderson, Gary (2023-01-08). "F1's last entry by US car giant was a masterclass in failure". The Race. Retrieved 2025-01-23.
  19. ↑ Anderson, Gary (2016-08-09). "Why Jaguar was doomed to fail in F1". Archived from the original on 22 April 2024. Retrieved 2025-01-23.
  20. ↑ "Rahal leaving CART to run Jaguar in 2001". ESPN. 1999-09-20. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  21. ↑ "Lauda replaces Ressler as overseer of Jaguar Racing". Autoweek. 2001-02-05. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  22. 1 2 Taylor, Simon (2015-08-28). "Lunch with... Bobby Rahal". Motor Sport Magazine. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  23. ↑ Henry, Alan (2001-12-21). "Lauda in 'mad' return to track". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  24. 1 2 "Jaguar Racing names managing director". Motorsport.com. 2001-12-01. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  25. 1 2 "Lauda axed from Jaguar". Motorsport.com. 2002-11-27. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  26. 1 2 3 Gray, Will (2003-04-09). "Moving On Up: Interview with John Hogan". Atlas F1 Magazine. Retrieved 2025-01-16.
  27. ↑ "Nichols dumped by Jaguar Racing". www.grandprix.com. 2002-02-04. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  28. ↑ Davis, Jr., David E. (2002-07-05). "Ford Loses Wolfgang Reitzle". American Driver. Archived from the original on 12 March 2024. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  29. ↑ "Ford Executive Reitzle Quits Car World". Autosport. 2002-04-19. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  30. ↑ "Lauda says No to Jag Advisory Role". Autoweek. 2002-12-29. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  31. 1 2 "Ford Explains Lauda's Exit from Jaguar". Atlas F1 Magazine. 2002-11-26. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  32. ↑ Henry, Alan (2003-02-25). "Jaguar land Crocodile's brother". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2025-01-18.
  33. ↑ "A tribute to John Hogan". McLaren. 2021-01-04. Retrieved 2025-01-13.
  34. ↑ Hughes, Mark (2021-01-03). "Obituary: John Hogan, the Marlboro man who helped change F1". The Race. Retrieved 2025-01-13.
  35. ↑ Smith, Damien (2015-05-26). "John Hogan: The Marlboro moneyman with soul". Motor Sport Magazine. Retrieved 2025-01-23.
  36. ↑ "Jaguar defend Klien signing". BBC Sport. 2003-12-02. Retrieved 2025-01-23.
  37. ↑ "Welcome To Donkey Does F1". Donkey Does F1. Archived from the original on 11 December 2004. Retrieved 20 October 2018.
  38. ↑ "Donkey does: Ein Esel auf Weltreisen - Formel 1 Bilderserie". Motorsport-Magazin.com (in German). Motorsport-Magazin.com GmbH. Archived from the original on 21 October 2018. Retrieved 20 October 2018.
  39. ↑ "Monaco mystery hits Jaguar". BBC. 23 May 2004. Archived from the original on 19 June 2004. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  40. ↑ Nash, Brad (2021-05-18). "The story of how a $430k diamond disappeared forever at the Monaco GP". GQ Australia. Retrieved 2025-01-23.
  41. ↑ "Jaguar TCS Racing Results". Motorsport Stats. Retrieved 12 February 2025.
  42. ↑ "Jaguar Racing". Motor Sport. Retrieved 12 February 2025.
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