Caterham Cars to enter F1

LONDON: British sportscar maker Caterham Cars will enter F1 at its home Grand Prix at Silverstone this weekend  when its name will appear on the F1 cars of new partner Team Lotus. The move, which elevates Caterham into the pinnacle of world motorsport and provides a global springboard for its cars to be marketed in new and previously unreachable territories, comes 50 years after Innes Ireland gave Team Lotus its first F1 victory in the United States Grand Prix. Following its purchase by a holding company, part-owned by Malaysian entrepreneur Tan Sri Tony Fernandes in April, Caterham will be emblazoned on the sidepods of the two Team Lotus F1 cars, driven by Heikki Kovalainen and Jarno Trulli.


Caterham Cars was founded in the 1960s by Graham Nearn to act as a dealership for the Lotus Seven designed by Colin Chapman, who himself went into F1 in 1954. Caterham acquired the rights to build the Seven in 1973. Over the years, the Seven has evolved into a supercar and the Caterham brand has developed as an independent brand. "In terms of global visibility for the Caterham brand, you don't get much better than Formula One. Caterham has a long and distinguished history in grassroots motorsport but this puts the firm in front of a truly global audience to sit alongside major car brands including Ferrari, McLaren and Mercedes Benz,” said Caterham Cars managing director Ansar Ali.

The purchase of Caterham has already seen a rebranding of the Caterham Team AirAsia GP2 team. Caterham Team AirAsia shares the Team Lotus facilities in Hingham, UK and provides a stepping stone for drivers, engineers, mechanics and all support staff to move into F1. Earlier this year, Caterham launched its first new model for 15 years – the SP/300.R, a prototype racing car.

-thestar online.