Force India

52°04′33″N 1°01′46″W / 52.07583°N 1.02944°W / 52.07583; -1.02944

Force India
Full nameForce India
Formula One Team
(2008–2011)
Sahara Force India
Formula One Team
(2012–2018)
BaseSilverstone,
United Kingdom
Founder(s)Vijay Mallya & Michiel Mol
Noted staffSteve Curnow
Bob Fernley
Mike Gascoyne
Andrew Green
James Key
Colin Kolles
Subrata Roy
Otmar Szafnauer
Noted driversMexico Sergio Pérez
France Esteban Ocon
Italy Giancarlo Fisichella
Germany Nico Hülkenberg
Italy Vitantonio Liuzzi
United Kingdom Paul di Resta
Germany Adrian Sutil
Previous nameSpyker F1 Team
Next nameRacing Point Force India
Formula One World Championship career
First entry2008 Australian Grand Prix
Races entered203
EnginesFerrari & Mercedes
Constructors'
Championships
0 (best finish: 4th, 2016 and 2017)
Drivers'
Championships
0
Race victories0 (best finish: 2nd, 2009 Belgian Grand Prix)
Podiums6
Points987
Pole positions1
Fastest laps5
Final entry2018 Hungarian Grand Prix

Force India Formula One Team Limited, commonly known as Force India and later Sahara Force India, was a Formula One racing team and constructor based in Silverstone, United Kingdom, with an Indian licence.[1] The team was formed in October 2007 when a consortium led by Indian businessman Vijay Mallya and Dutch businessman Michiel Mol bought the Spyker F1 team for €88 million.[2]

Force India VJM07 at pre-season test in Jerez

After going through 29 races without scoring points, Force India won their first Formula One world championship points and podium place when Giancarlo Fisichella finished second in the 2009 Belgian Grand Prix.[3] Force India scored points again in the following race when Adrian Sutil finished fourth, and set the team's first fastest lap, at the Italian Grand Prix. The team's other podium finishes are five third-places, in the 2014 Bahrain Grand Prix, 2015 Russian Grand Prix, 2016 Monaco Grand Prix, 2016 European Grand Prix and the 2018 Azerbaijan Grand Prix, all achieved by Sergio Pérez.

In October 2011, Indian company Sahara India Pariwar, purchased 42.5% of Force India F1's shares at US$100 million.[4]

In 2018, Vijay Mallya, accused of fraud and defaulting on loans, could not afford to continue to run Force India. By July 2018, ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix, the team announced that they had been put into administration by the High Court in London.[5] The team's assets were bought by a consortium of investors, named Racing Point UK, led by Lawrence Stroll, the father of then Williams driver Lance Stroll.[6] The consortium used the assets to create a new entry into the sport named Racing Point Force India. The constructor that had been founded in 2008 ceased to exist prior to the 2019 Australian Grand Prix when the new team changed their constructor entry to "Racing Point".

  1. ^ "Force India". StatsF1. Archived from the original on 29 January 2022. Retrieved 4 April 2022.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Spyker Brought was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ "Spa-Francorchamps results". BBC Sport. 30 August 2009. Archived from the original on 30 May 2020. Retrieved 30 August 2009.
  4. ^ "Sahara buys 42% stake in Mallya's Force India F1 team". The Times of India. The Times Group. 12 October 2011. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 12 October 2011.
  5. ^ Andrew Benson (28 July 2018). "Hungarian Grand Prix: Force India put into administration by High Court". BBC. Archived from the original on 17 May 2022. Retrieved 28 July 2018.
  6. ^ "Lance Stroll's father agrees Force India takeover deal to save all 405 jobs". The Independent. 8 August 2018. Archived from the original on 26 January 2022. Retrieved 20 August 2018.