HRT

Hispania

FIA Entry: HRT F1 Team
Car 22: Narain Karthikeyan
Car 23: Vitantonio Liuzzi
Engin:e Cosworth V8
Team Principal: Colin Kolles
Technical Director: Geoff Willis
Race Engineer Car 22: Angel Baena
Race Engineer Car 23 Richard Connell

Stats as of end 2010

First Entered 2010
Races Entered 19
Race Wins 0
Pole Positions 0
Fastest Laps 0
Driver World Championships 0
Constructor World Championships 0

Campos Racing

Having run cars in lower formulae former F1 driver Adrian Campos secured one of the 3 places for new teams in F1 for 2010. He commissioned Dallara to build a chassis and signed a deal to use Cosworth engines and Xtrac gearboxes. They also announced that Bruno Senna, nephew of Ayrton, would drive for them.

Struggling for funds, especially to pay for the Dallara Chassis, Campos was bought out by major shareholder in Campos Racing Jose Ramon Carabante and the team renamed Hispania Racing Team

HRT

The team’s financial problems meant they were unable to take part in any pre-season testing and arrived at the first race with Karun Chandhok partnering Senna in completely untried cars. Unsurprisingly both cars were somewhat off the pace and retired early on. By Malaysia reliability had improved, if not speed, and both cars finished.

Continuing financial problems meant both Senna and Chandhok were substituted for Sakon Yamamoto, at various races and at the end of the season Christian Klien was drafted in to try and move the team further up the grid. Despite their poor pace the team finished 11th out of 12 in the Constructors Championship on count back of minor placing’s.

2011

Financial problems continue to dog the team into 2011 and they again missed pre-season testing as the new F111 car wasn’t built in time. Jordan driver from 2005 Narain Karthikeyan is partnered by Force India refugee Vitantonio Liuzzi and the team continue with Cosworth engines.

 

[FB]

HRT accused of misleading a supplier who confirms they went into liquidation a month ago

Anyone think this will get messy? Certainly don't think anyone will be planning to invest in them somehow.

 

[teabagyokel]

FB - I'm sure anyone would want a slow F1 team without a place on the grid.

 

[canis]

For anyone to consider buying the team they would have needed to pay the entrance fee for next year, or at least have an agreement that the fee could be paid late so that any potential buyer would be able to re-invest in a viable team with a grid slot. Now they have nothing to sell other than out of date tech and a slow car so I doubt anyone will even consider this a viable investment into F1. Shame really as I think some of the team had the right attitude and really wanted to make a go of it, just once again the management did everything wrong

 

[Brogan]

They were at a huge disadvantage from the start.
Forced to use out-dated, under-powered, thirsty Cosworth engines by Mosley, as a pre-requisite for having their bid accepted.
Lack of in-season testing. trying to compete against teams who have decades of test data on every circuit.
Then of course there's the exorbitant cost.

I'm surprised they lasted as long as they did and I would be surprised if Caterham and Marussia make it too.

 

[FB]

You really are a cheery chap aren't you Mr B

 

[sushifiesta]

I know the Cosworth engines have a bad reputation and Williams certainly made a big step forward this year which might be partly due to dropping it and moving to Renault engines, but is there actually any proof that the Cosworths are significantly worse than the other engines? And aren't all the engines out-dated, the engine regs have been pretty much fixed for quite a few years now!

I'd be surprised if the engine is more than 20% of the difference to the back of the midfield.

 

[Slyboogy]

It's lacking in all areas, and the engine freeze started in 2008 (I think), and Cosworth left at the end of 2007, add to that they didn't nor do they now, have a big team to push them forward.

Ferrari, Mercedes, Renault, Honda and Toyota were all behind a team, and those that are still in the sport still have a team associated with them. Cosworth only supplied Williams and Toro Rosso in 2006, and then Williams, Caterham, Marussia and HRT in 2010 and so on.

They seem to be lacking a little in majority of the areas.

Someone here can probably (more like definitely) give a better answer, I'm just bored right now and can't sleep.

Edit: Surprised Marussia aren't looking at getting a Ferrari engine, there were rumours in 2011 that HRT where aiming at the Ferrari engine and KERS.

 

[Galahad]

They are all too far off the pace for a change of engine to make much material difference, as Caterham have shown. They were allowed in under false expectations, but notwithstanding that, they've done very poorly and contributed, for me, nothing to the category.

 

[teabagyokel]

Galahad - Bit of comedy, though!

 

[The Pits]

And some crudites

 

[Slyboogy]

HRT could be bought over, by American and Canadian investors.

USF1 maybe?

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/105319

Scorpion Racing sounds a bit funky for a F1 team name, I would welcome them on the grid. But it seems as if they buyout HRT then they will enter in 2014, the last part though with Bernie's letter seems to contradict that.

Also, even if they do enter in this season, how are they even expected to make it on the grid? It says they'll be using an 'updated' version of the last car, which was a disaster as it was nowhere near the other two backmarker teams, add to that, teams have had a lot of time to improve their cars and pull away much further from them.

 

[teabagyokel]

At the last dry Q1 in Austin the time required to qualify was 1:43.3, with HRT recording 1:42.0 and 1:42.7.

Given the other teams will have three test sessions and a whole summer, will the best make a second up on the HRZ* team for Australia? Yes, damnit, yes!

107% awaits.

*Hispania Racing Zombie

 

[Slyboogy]

If they are serious backers then I wouldn't mind if they just used this year to get back on their feet.

But by the sound of it, they kind of sound like the previous Spanish owners.

Anyway, if it all goes through, good luck to them.

 

[canis]

The logistics of this makes it impossible for them to make the grid in 2013 even if they do ignore the rules over entry deadlines.

Though they do look to be serious with the proposed move to Silverstone. Makes availability of good quality staff much greater than if they are out on their own in Spain...

 

[Tuscan1969]

Given that 2014 is all about new regs surely its better for them to bite the bullet and move the kit to Silverstone, build a real team and design from the ground up a 2014 car using the old cars simply as mules.... and test as much as they want since they would have no limits this year?????

 

[MCLS]

Kinda like what Toyota did in 2001, not that it did them that much good in terms of results against expectations

 

[Galahad]

Oh, come on. Let it die.

 

[Brogan]

 

[Brogan]

The end.

Motor racing-HRT cars sold to Spanish recycling firm and Pirelli

 

[RasputinLives]

No Scorpion Racing then. I still hope we get at least one new team for 2014.

Goodbye HRT. May you trundle around happily at the back in the great F1 race in the sky. The greatest driver you ever had was Antonio Liuzzi. I think that says it all.

Goodnight sweet prince.