S2 E2: Honda's aborted 1999 F1 team

Bring Back V10s - Classic F1 stories

The Race Media Ltd

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4.9 • 764 Ratings

🗓️ 20 August 2020

⏱️ 63 minutes

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Summary

Honda nearly entered F1 with its own full works team in 2000, and in preparation for that it ran a test car in early 1999 with Jos Verstappen behind the wheel. The project was part of its evaluation of an F1 project, but two months after the car ran alongside most of the grid in pre-season testing, the idea was canned and Honda signed a works engine deal with BAR instead. Glenn Freeman is joined by Gary Anderson and Scott Mitchell to look back on the 1999 Honda project, from early discussions with Eddie Jordan about buying his team (and why he turned the offer down), how it put together a test team under the guidance of Harvey Poselthwaite, why Poselthwaite's HRD group pitched for a budget as big as Ferrari's and the possible impact that had on the direction of Honda's F1 ambitions, and how the Japanese manufacturer's mind was already made up before Poselthwaite's untimely death when the test car was still running in April. We then look at how the BAR deal came together, how Flavio Briatore tried to stop it, and why Honda chose to partner up with the team that was new to the grid in 1999.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	More than 20 years ago, Formula One almost got a brand new full manufacturer team onto the grid.
0:12.0	Honda went as far as building a test car and running it alongside the other teams, but within a matter of weeks it got cold feet, pulled the plug on the project and teamed up with BAR instead.
0:22.6	In doing so it upset F1 and the other teams and all these years later we are left wondering what might have happened
0:29.6	if Honda had gone through with starting its own team from scratch.
0:33.6	And what better place to do that wondering than a dedicated episode of Bring Back V10s?
0:38.8	Before we get into Honda's aborted, projecting great detail,
0:42.2	remember to get your questions and comments in for our series finale
0:45.1	using the hashtag Bring Back V10s on social media.
0:48.6	And why not leave us a five-star review on your podcast platform of choice
0:51.8	and ask a question there as well?
0:54.4	Joining me, Glenn Freeman, for this look back at the major manufacturer F1 team that never was,
0:59.6	are Scott Mitchell and a man who knows a thing or two about working with Honda during this era,
1:04.4	Gary Anderson.
1:06.3	Guys, you know the drill by now.
1:07.8	We start with the opening question where you have to remember the first thing that comes to your mind when you think about this project.
1:15.6	So, Gary, take it away.
1:18.2	When you think of that white car, Yoss Verstappen, turning up in testing, running alongside your Stuart at one point, what was the first thing that comes to mind?
1:26.4	Well, you know, we started working,
1:28.3	or I started working close to a Honda right at the end of 1997. And it was just one of those sort of
1:33.5	things where the project didn't start very well, both from a getting up and running project,
1:40.2	and basically sorting all the problems out. It took a long time. So I think during that period, Honda learned a lot.
1:47.0	I mean, it was called a Mugan Honda with Jordan, but it was actually built by Honda.
	...

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