Prost Grand Prix
French team founded and managed by the four-time Formula 1 world champion, Alain Prost, operated in Formula 1 between 1997 and 2001. The transalpine legend of motoring was contacted by French government circles to take the reins of the Ligier team. The experience lasted the space of 83 grands prix, with two podiums obtained with Olivier Panis in 1997 and sixth place among the constructors of the same year, as the sporting peak of the team.
“Prost never wanted to invest his own money, he only wanted to use the company’s coffers. He managed to mobilize France, getting Peugeot engines making all the colors and banging like crazy, but he too realized at a certain point that he couldn’t make it economically. He did not want to risk anything of his own, he has always risked only the sponsors’ money, in fact Prost is very well today, he is one of the few who did not go downhill with Formula 1. In my opinion he understood that it was the right time to stop and he did very well to do so. “
Jaguar Racing
Active in Formula 1 between 2000 and 2004, it was the continuation of the Stewart Grand Prix and sold its facilities to the current Red Bull Racing. They were five seasons characterized by meager results and constant changes in management. 85 races disputed, without ever the joy of a success (best result two podiums with Eddie Irvine in 2001 and 2002) and three seventh places among the manufacturers (2002, 2003, 2004).
“The Jaguar experience was disastrous. They had very weak people in their management, then they took Lauda for a year and didn’t even give him the chance to work quietly. Probably the Jaguar experience would have been successful if Bobby Rahal, who at one point was called to manage the team, had been able to take Adrian Newey, which he actually almost did, then Newey took his word back and went back to McLaren. . Actually Rahal and Newey had been close friends since Adrian’s American experiences and if he had come earlier, it probably would have changed the whole landscape. However, Jaguar made a mistake from above, with a management that did not know what Formula 1 was and that always treated it as a toy and not a business. Stewart instead gave life to an excellent team, well organized because Jackie himself was behind him to search for sponsors, then there was his son who managed it inside. They had excellent managers, they had excellent drivers, let’s not forget that Barrichello passed from Stewart to Ferrari and he was a good Barrichello that Ferrari at that moment did well to contact and take; they had Johnny Herbert, in short: the team was excellent, so much so that they then managed to sell it very well to Jaguar. “
Toyota Racing
The Japanese manufacturer decided to enter Formula 1 in 2002, remaining there until the 2009 season. It was a project created from scratch, characterized by enormous resources available and numerous changes at both management and technical and driver levels. Toyota can score 139 world championship grands prix, with 13 podiums (with three different drivers, 7 with Jarno Trulli, 3 with Ralf Schumacher and Timo Glock) and fourth place in the constructors of 2005 as a positive peak of eight years in the top category of motoring.
“Toyota’s is a management talk because they had the potential. Even the paradox is that Toyota has left an amazing racing department, which now works for third parties, and has even left a wind tunnel which Ferrari and McLaren have used. Thinking about it, it was half madness. Toyota was only run by the wrong men from the start, they made bad choices right from the start: they gave the team management first to the Japanese, then Germans with little experience took over, and then some Brits appeared who did. proclamations rather than winning projects. It could only end like this. They had the equipment, they had everything to win, they lacked the brains. “
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