Manor Motorsport

United Kingdom Manor Motorsport Ltd
Founded 1990
Team principal(s) John Booth
(Founder & Team Principal)
Graeme Lowdon
(President & Sporting Director)
Current series Formula One
Auto GP
Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0
Formula Renault 2.0 Northern European Cup
Former series GP3 Series
F3 Euroseries
Formula Renault 2.0 UK
Formula Renault 2.0 UK Winter Series
British F3
Drivers'
Championships		 Formula Renault UK:
1999: Antônio Pizzonia
2000: Kimi Räikkönen
2003: Lewis Hamilton
2005: Oliver Jarvis
Formula Renault UK Winter Series:
1999: Kimi Räikkönen
2006: Franck Mailleux
British F3:
1999: Marc Hynes
2000: Antônio Pizzonia
United Kingdom Marussia-Ferrari
Full name Manor Marussia F1 Team
Base Dinnington,
South Yorkshire,
United Kingdom[1]
Team principal(s) John Booth
President Graeme Lowdon
Founder(s) John Booth
Website www.manorf1team.com
Previous name Marussia F1 Team
2015 Formula One season
Race drivers 28. United Kingdom Will Stevens[2]
98. Spain Roberto Merhi[3]
Test drivers United Kingdom Jordan King[3]
Chassis MR03B
Engine Ferrari 059/3
Tyres Pirelli
Formula One World Championship career
Debut 2015 Australian Grand Prix
Latest race 2015 Bahrain Grand Prix
Races competed 4 (3 starts)
Constructors'
Championships		 0
Drivers'
Championships		 0
Race victories 0
Pole positions 0
Fastest laps 0

Manor Motorsport Ltd is a British motor racing team that was formed in 1990 by former single-seater champion John Booth.[4]

Throughout its history, the team primarily competed in Formula Renault, with past drivers including 2007 Formula One World Champion Kimi Räikkönen, 2008 and 2014 Formula One World Champion Lewis Hamilton and other Formula One drivers such as Antônio Pizzonia. They entered Formula Three in 1999,[4] winning successive British titles with Marc Hynes and Pizzonia.[5][6]

In 2007, Manor Motorsport saw a change of ownership when Formula Renault UK team manager, Tony Shaw, bought out John Booth and continued operating under the name of Manor Competition from a completely separate base. In turn, John Booth retained the Manor Motorsport name and continues to race in the Formula 3 Euro Series until 2009.

From 2010, Manor Motorsport has been participating in the Formula One World Championship.[7]

Formula One

2010-11: Virgin

Main article: Virgin Racing

On 12 June 2009, it was announced Manor's application to participate in the 2010 Formula One season had been accepted.[4] Their Formula One team was registered as Manor Grand Prix although it raced as Virgin Racing for sponsorship reasons. Powered by Cosworth engine, the team distinguished itself for designing its cars only digitally.[7] This design approach was abandoned in 2011 when the team forged a technical partnership with McLaren.[7]

2012-14: Marussia

Main article: Marussia F1

The Formula One team was renamed the Marussia F1 Team after Marussia Motors bought a controlling interest in the team.[7] In 2014, when no longer powered by Cosworth but Ferrari, the team scored its first ever World Championship points thanks to the exploits of their leading Ferrari-sponsored driver, Jules Bianchi, during the Monaco Grand Prix.[8] At the Japanese Grand Prix, the team suffered a blow after Bianchi suffered severe head injuries during that race. At the following race, the inaugural Russian Grand Prix, Marussia fielded only one car out of respect for Bianchi but also as a result of mounting financial pressure, which then saw the team enter administration alongside its rival, Caterham.[9] Marussia would take no further part in the 2014 season. It risked losing its 2014 prize money unless able to further compete in the sport the following year.

2015-present: Manor

On 19 February 2015, Manor Motorsport's administrators announced that the team had come out of administration and planned to enter the 2015 Formula One season under the name Manor F1 Team with John Booth and Graeme Lowdon continuing to run the team.[10] This was possible thanks to businessman Stephen Fitzpatrick buying the team, with Justin King joining as chairman.[11]

2015 season

On 5 February 2015, however, the team's request to compete in the 2015 season using their 2014 chassis was declined by the other Formula One entrants, after Force India voted against the proposal.[12] This report was refuted by the team the following day.[13] Manor was ultimately allowed to race their 2014 car as long as they could present a new chassis by Bahrain. Should they fail to do so, they would lose their entitlement on the prize money from 2014.[14] On 25 February 2015, Will Stevens was confirmed as Manor's first driver. On 9 March, it was also announced that Roberto Merhi will be Manor's second driver[3] with Jordan King - son of the new chairman - also joining as the development driver.

On 5 March 2015, Manor Marussia (as officially registered with the FIA), completed mandatory crash testing and were cleared to take their place on the starting grid at the Australian Grand Prix Grand Prix,[15] just in time for the Air Freight deadline on 6 March. Despite this, neither car completed a single lap due to technical difficulties.[16]

At the following Malaysian Grand Prix, both drivers failed to qualify for the race, but received permission from the stewards to start. However, Stevens was unable to leave his garage on race day due to a fuel system problem on his car. Merhi finished his first race in 15th position. A short-lived controversy ensued after the race thanks to claims made by Force India's Deputy Team Principal, Bob Fernley, that Manor Marussia had a clear strategy to run just one car in Malaysia. These were dismissed by the new team.[17]

Driver accidents

Main articles: María de Villota and Jules Bianchi

The Manor team has had the misfortune of seeing two of its drivers sustain severe head injuries. In 2012, test driver María de Villota crashed heavily into a team transporter during straight line aerodynamic tests.[18] She died a year later due to a heart attack believed to have been caused by her underlying brain injuries.[19] Jules Bianchi also suffered severe brain injuries while racing at the 2014 Japanese Grand Prix and he has remained hospitalised since.[20]

Immediately following the 2015 Australian Grand Prix, team principal John Booth attributed the team's return from the ashes of the Marussia F1 Team, to the point-scoring and prize-winning performance of Jules Bianchi in 2014.[21]

Results

Formula One

Year Name Car Engine Tyres No. Drivers Points WCC
Virgin
2010 United Kingdom Virgin Racing VR-01 Cosworth CA2010 2.4 V8 B 24.
25.		 Germany Timo Glock
Brazil Lucas di Grassi		 0 12th
2011 Russia Marussia Virgin Racing MVR-02 Cosworth CA2011 2.4 V8 P 24.
25.		 Germany Timo Glock
Belgium Jérôme d'Ambrosio		 0 12th
Marussia
2012 Russia Marussia F1 Team MR01 Cosworth CA2012 2.4 V8 P 24.
25.		 Germany Timo Glock
France Charles Pic		 0 11th
2013 Russia Marussia F1 Team MR02 Cosworth CA2013 2.4 V8 P 22.
23.		 France Jules Bianchi
United Kingdom Max Chilton		 0 10th
2014 Russia Marussia F1 Team MR03 Ferrari 059/3 1.6 V6 t P 4.
17.		 United Kingdom Max Chilton
France Jules Bianchi		 2 9th
Manor
2015 United Kingdom Manor Marussia F1 Team MR03B Ferrari 059/3 1.6 V6 t P 28.
98.		 United Kingdom Will Stevens
Spain Roberto Merhi		 0* 10th*

* Season in progress.

Complete Formula One World Championship results

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

Year Chassis Engine Tyres No. Drivers 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 Points WCC
2015 MR03B Ferrari 059/3 1.6 V6 t P AUS MAL CHN BHR ESP MON CAN AUT GBR HUN BEL ITA SIN JPN RUS USA MEX BRA ABU 0* 10th*
28 United Kingdom Will Stevens DNP DNS 15 16
98 Spain Roberto Merhi DNP 15 16 17

* Season in progress.

F3 Euroseries

Formula 3 Euro Series results[22]
Year Car Drivers Races Wins Poles F.Laps Points D.C. T.C.
2004 Dallara F304-Mercedes HWA Netherlands Charles Zwolsman 20 0 0 0 9 16th 5th
United Kingdom Lewis Hamilton 20 1 1 0 68 5th
2005 Dallara F305-Mercedes-HWA Brazil Lucas di Grassi 20 1 1 0 68 3rd 4th
United Kingdom Paul di Resta 20 0 0 0 32 10th
2006 Dallara F305-Mercedes Japan Kohei Hirate 20 1 0 0 61 3rd 2nd
Argentina Esteban Guerrieri 20 2 2 0 58 4th
Japan Kazuki Nakajima 20 1 0 0 36 7th
2007 Dallara F305-Mercedes France Franck Mailleux 20 1 0 4 38 7th 2nd
United Kingdom James Jakes 20 1 0 0 42 5th
Switzerland Cyndie Allemann 20 0 0 0 0 N/A
Netherlands Yelmer Buurman 20 0 0 0 40 6th
2008 Dallara F308-Mercedes Japan Koudai Tsukakoshi 20 0 0 0 36 7th 5th
United Kingdom Sam Bird 20 0 0 0 23 11th
Republic of Ireland Niall Breen 16 0 0 0 8 16th
Japan Kazuya Oshima 20 1 0 0 7 19th
2009 Dallara F308-Mercedes Brazil César Ramos 16 0 0 0 0 25th 4th
Brazil Pedro Enrique 20 0 0 0 0 27th
Spain Roberto Merhi 20 0 0 0 42 7th

* Season in progress

GP3 Series

Year Car Drivers Races Wins Poles Fast laps Points D.C. T.C.
2010 Dallara-Renault United Kingdom James Jakes 12 0 0 0 21 8th 4th
France Adrien Tambay 4 1 0 0 6 20th
Indonesia Rio Haryanto 16 1 0 0 27 5th
United Kingdom Adrian Quaife-Hobbs 16 0 0 0 10 15th
2011 Dallara-Renault United Kingdom Adrian Quaife-Hobbs 16 1 2 2 36 5th 3rd
Indonesia Rio Haryanto 16 2 0 1 31 7th
Finland Matias Laine 16 0 0 0 0 31st
2012 Dallara-Renault Cyprus Tio Ellinas 16 1 0 3 97 8th 5th
Brazil Fabiano Machado 16 0 0 0 0 21st
Russia Dmitry Suranovich 16 0 0 0 0 23rd
2013 Dallara-Renault Cyprus Tio Ellinas 16 2 1 1 116 4th 5th
United Kingdom Ryan Cullen 16 0 0 0 0 29th
United Kingdom Dino Zamparelli 16 0 0 0 13 18th
2014 Dallara-Renault Finland Patrick Kujala[nb 1] 18 0 0 0 22 14th 6th
United Kingdom Ryan Cullen[nb 2] 16 0 0 0 0 25th
United Kingdom Dean Stoneman[nb 3] 18 5 1 2 163 2nd
  1. ↑ Kujala joined Trident Racing for the last two weekends of the 2014 season. At that point he had collected 22 points with Marussia Manor Racing.
  2. ↑ Cullen joined Trident Racing for the last round of the 2014 season.
  3. ↑ Stoneman joined Koiranen GP for the last two weekends of the 2014 season. At that point he had collected 95 points with Marussia Manor Racing.

Timeline

Type 1990s 2000s 2010s
90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15
Formulas Formula One
British Formula Three Championship Formula 3 Euro Series GP3 Series
British Formula Renault Championship Formula Renault 2.0 NEC
FR2000 Eurocup EFR 2.0 Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0
Auto GP Auto GP

References

  1. ↑ "Lowdon fighting for Manor entry". BT Sport (BT Sport). 18 February 2015. Retrieved 19 February 2015.
  2. ↑ "Will Stevens secures Manor Formula 1 race seat". autosport.com. 25 February 2015. Retrieved 25 February 2015.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 "Manor Marussia announce Roberto Merhi as second driver". BBC Sport. 10 March 2015. Retrieved 10 March 2015.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 "Manor - History". Manor F1 Team. Manor Motorsport. Retrieved 30 March 2015.
  5. ↑ "Pizzonia flies in Snetterton test". Autosport (Haymarket Publications). 19 February 2000. Retrieved 6 April 2015.
  6. ↑ "Pizzonia's title, Monteiro's race". Crash.net (Crash Media Group). 24 September 2000. Retrieved 6 April 2015.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 "FIA - Marussia team". Formula1.com. Formula One Administration. Retrieved 30 March 2015.
  8. ↑ Straw, Edd; Noble, Jonathan (25 May 2014). "Jules Bianchi says Marussia's first F1 points not luck". Autosport (Haymarket Publications). Retrieved 26 May 2014.
  9. ↑ "Marussia F1 team goes into administration". BBC News. 27 October 2014. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
  10. ↑ Esler, William (4 February 2015). "Marussia's administrators say the team will exit administration on February 19". Sky Sports (BSkyB). Retrieved 6 February 2015.
  11. ↑ Benson, Andrew (5 March 2015). "Manor Marussia aim to be ready for start of F1 season". BBC Sport. BBC. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  12. ↑ "Marussia comeback blocked by Force India no vote". bbc.co.uk (BBC Sport). 5 February 2015. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
  13. ↑ Gill, Pete (7 February 2015). "Defiant Marussia insist their return as Manor F1 in 2015 is still going ahead". Sky Sports (BSkyB). Retrieved 7 February 2015.
  14. ↑ "Marussia stellt Stevens vor". Autobild.de (in German). 26 February 2015. Retrieved 30 March 2015.
  15. ↑ http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/31757211
  16. ↑ Rose, Gary (14 March 2015). "Australian Grand Prix qualifying – As it happened". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 14 March 2015.
  17. ↑ "Force India unimpressed with Manor no-show". Crash.net. 1 April 2015. Retrieved 27 March 2015.
  18. ↑ "F1 test driver De Villota loses eye after accident". Yahoo! Eurosport. TF1 Group. 4 July 2012. Retrieved 6 April 2015.
  19. ↑ "Hallan el cuerpo sin vida de María de Villota en un hotel de Sevilla". ABC (Catalina Luca de Tena, Grupo Vocento). 11 October 2013. Retrieved 6 April 2015.
  20. ↑ Smith, Luke (5 October 2014). "Bianchi suffers severe head injuries at Suzuka, requiring surgery". MotorSportsTalk (NBC Sports). Retrieved 6 December 2014.
  21. ↑ "Booth: Bianchi made Manor return possible". GP Update. 19 March 2015. Retrieved 21 March 2015.
  22. ↑ F3 Euroseries complete results speedsportmag.com

External links