Jaguar Racing is the name given toJaguar Land Rover's racing interests. The Jaguar brand currently competes inFormula E under the nameJaguarTCS Racing for sponsorship reasons.[2] It won the2023–24 Formula E World Teams' Championship.
From2000 to2004, Jaguar competed inFormula One. Its best finish was in the Constructors' Championship was 7th, which it achieved three times, from 2002 to 2004. The team was subsequently sold toRed Bull, which renamed the team toRed Bull Racing.
In December 2015, Jaguar announced that it would start a Formula E team, building its own chassis andpowertrain.[3]Panasonic agreed to become the team's lead sponsor,[4] with secondary sponsorship fromLear Corporation.[5] The team also signedGorillaz guitaristNoodle as a team ambassador, and launched a commercial in which Noodle drives an electric open-wheeled car before getting out and saying the experience could be improved.[6]
Jaguar made their debut in the2016–17 season, replacing the foldedTrulli GP. The team signedA1 GP championAdam Carroll and2012GP3 championsMitch Evans as its drivers.[7][8] Jaguar finished 10th in the Teams' Championship, with the best result being a double points finish of 4th and 8th at the2017 Mexico City ePrix. Carroll along withAndretti'sRobin Frijns were the only two drivers to finish all 12 races of the season.
Prior to the season, Jaguar entered a multi-year partnership withGKN.[9] A new sponsorship deal withViessmann was also announced.[10] In an effort to boost its chances at good results, Jaguar signedNelson Piquet Jr., the series' inaugural Drivers' Champion.[11] Piquet had the option to stay with his previous employerNIO, but chose not to as a performance clause allowed him to exit the team.[12] Evans was retained to partner Piquet, who replaced Carroll.Ho-Pin Tung remained with the team for another season as a reserve driver.[11] At the season's firstevent in Hong Kong, Jaguar scored points in both of the weekend's races and took their first podium in the series when Mitch Evans was moved up to third following a post race disqualification ofDaniel Abt.[13] The team usedPaul di Resta andPietro Fittipaldi for a rookie test held in Marrakesh which followed the2018 Marrakesh ePrix.[14] At theZürich ePrix, Evans claimed the team's maiden pole position.[15]
Jaguar would finish 6th in Teams' Championship, with the best result being Evans' inherited third place in the second race of the2017 Hong Kong ePrix. The team managed three double points finishes throughout the season. Both drivers finished in top 10 of the Drivers' Championship – Evans was seventh, while Piquet ended the season at ninth place. Piquet, however, also had the most retirements out of all drivers who competed in the season – he missed the chequered flag five times.
Evans driving the I-Type 3 at the2019 Marrakesh ePrix. This car/driver combination would give the team its first victory at the2019 Rome ePrix.
Evans and Piquet were retained for the2018–19 season.[16]Ho-Pin Tung was also retained in his position. In addition to his reserve driver duty, Tung also served as a pundit and was part of theJaguar I-Pace eTrophy broadcast team.[17] For the 2019 rookie test (which was once again held in Marrakesh following theePrix), the team opted to bring backPietro Fittipaldi and pair him withHarry Tincknell.[18] In March 2019, just after the inauguralSanya ePrix, Piquet left the team following a string of poor results (in contrast to Evans' string of points finishes) and was replaced by formerVirgin driverAlex Lynn.[19] Evans managed to win the following race inRome, giving Jaguar their first win – this was also the team's first actual podium finish in the series. His teammate Lynn finished 12th on his Jaguar debut.[20] Evans' car was subsequently sent to the FIA headquarters in Geneva for checks to analyse one of thewishbones and its compliance with the wishbone/arm element sealed at the homologation. No issues were found, thus the win became officially confirmed.[21]
Evans' point-scoring streak came to an end in a rain-soakedParis ePrix, where he was the last driver to physically cross the finish line in sixteenth place, being a lap down after an unscheduledpit stop for a new nose. Lynn was forced to retire from a promising eleventh place after an accident withVenturi'sEdoardo Mortara, effectively ending Jaguar's chances to score points in this round. As a result, this was the first race of the season where both cars failed to score points.[22] The following race inMonaco was a success, with both cars finishing on points for the first time since the opening round inAd Diriyah. The race also marked Lynn's first point-scoring finish for the team.[23] The team had a strong finish to the season, with Evans picking up multiple podium finishes, which even inserted him into Drivers' Championship fight at theSwiss ePrix, after which he found himself third in the ongoing championship with 87 points. Lynn was mostly dealing with reliability issues, most notably retiring from second place in the firstNew York City race at theBrooklyn Street Circuit.[24]
Despite improved form in the second half of the season, Jaguar would finish 7th in Teams' Championship with 116 points, which is down from a 6th place achieved in the previous season. Evans, however, improved his result in Drivers' Championship as he finished fifth with 105 points, only three points short fromLucas di Grassi, who finished third. Evans was also the only driver who managed to physically cross the finish line in every race of the season, even thoughAudi'sDaniel Abt was classified in every race as well (but failed to finish inRome as he retired in the final lap).
In June 2019, Jaguar began theirseason six development testings with Alex Lynn and Mitch Evans.[25] The team also testedJames Calado, a potential candidate for the second seat.[26] On 26 September, Jaguar formally confirmed Evans as their first driver as he signed a multi-year contract with the team. This will be Evans' fourth consecutive season with Jaguar.[27] On 2 October, Calado was confirmed as Evans' teammate.[28] On the same day, Jaguar also unveiled the newI-Type 4 along withCastrol as its new partner, which returns to Jaguar's motorsport activities after a near 30-year absence.[29][30] On 7 January 2020, it was announced thatAlex Lynn was brought back to the team to become a reserve and test driver.[31] With this move,Ho-Pin Tung, Jaguar's previous reserve driver, became the Jaguar Racing Global Ambassador while also remaining in the I-Pace eTrophy commentary team.[32]
At theMexico City ePrix, Evans gave Jaguar their second Formula E win while also picking up a second consecutive bonus point for being the fastest driver in group qualifying stage. Calado finished ninth, but was later disqualified for a technical infringement.[33] On 19 February, Jaguar announcedJamie Chadwick as the first of the two selected drivers for the third annualMarrakesh rookie test.[34] On the following day,Sacha Fenestraz was announced to join Chadwick for the rookie test.[35] On 30 July, Jaguar announcedTom Blomqvist as its new reserve driver, after Lynn got signed toMahindra Racing and leaving Jaguar in the process.[36] Calado's final race for Jaguar would be thefourth Berlin race as2020 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps prevented him from attending the final two races, in which the new reserve Blomqvist would take his place.[37]
After an unsuccessful season finale inBerlin, Jaguar would only score 81 points in their campaign, finishing 7th in Teams' Championship once again.
James Barclay (bottom, pictured in 2023) has been the team principal since the project started.Gerd Mäuser (top left) served as chairman between 2016 and 2021, withThierry Bolloré (top right) replacing him in the role. Bolloré himself stepped down in 2022.
On 14 July 2020, Jaguar became the first team to announce its driver lineup for the 2020–21 season after signingSam Bird to the team. Bird would finish the ongoing2019–20 season withEnvision Virgin Racing before completing the switch.[38] Evans continues with the team as he signed a multi-year contract prior to the 2019–20 season.[27] In October 2020, Jaguar unveiled the development version of theI-Type 5 car, with the team only referencing to itself asJaguar Racing, quietly splitting with the title sponsor Panasonic.[39] On 27 November, the team held a virtual launch of theI-Type 5 along with the drivers presentation, revealing new sponsors and announcing the car numbers.[40] In February 2021,Sacha Fenestraz returned to the team as a reserve driver, replacing Blomqvist who joinedNIO 333 as a full-time driver.[41]
TheDiriyah ePrix double-header saw the team scoring two podium finishes and two retirements. In the first race, Evans finished third after successfully defending his position overRené Rast.[42] Bird retired from the race following a collision withAlex Lynn, who was later given a penalty for the incident.[43] In the following race, Bird won his first race in the Jaguar overalls after starting from third and successfully overtakingDragon'sSérgio Sette Câmara at the start and later the pole-sitterRobin Frijns, his former Virgin Racing teammate.[44] The race however ended prematurelyred-flagged due to Alex Lynn being involved in a huge collision with Evans, who retired in the process. He tried to check on Lynn, who was later taken to hospital.[45] After this race, Jaguar moved to the lead in Teams' Championship for the very first time. At theValencia ePrix double-header, the team lost its lead in Teams' Championship as it failed to score a single point after poor qualifying performances in both races due to wet conditions in their qualifying group.[46]
In May 2021,Tom Dillmann joined the team as a second reserve driver, returning to the sport after previously competing forVenturi andNIO.[47] On 22 July 2021,Jaguar Land Rover formally committed to Formula E for the next set of rules which are set to keep Jaguar Racing on the grid until 2026.[48] Then on 3 August, it was announced that Evans signed another multi-year extension with the team.[49] Before theBerlin ePrix, it was announced thatGerd Mäuser would step down from his role as a chairman after the season withThierry Bolloré succeeding him in the role.[50] In their most successful season to date, Jaguar Racing finished second in Teams' Championship with 177 points, having led it on two separate occasions (the second one being before the final round), with two victories scored by Bird and further six podium finishes, five of which scored by Evans who as a result scored the most podium finishes out of anyone that season.
On 2 November 2021, the team announced their latest rebranding toJaguar TCS Racing along with confirming the unchanged driver lineup of Bird and Evans.Thierry Bolloré was also confirmed as the team's new chairman.[2] On 17 January 2022,Norman Nato was announced as Jaguar's new reserve and simulator driver, joiningTom Dillmann and replacingSacha Fenestraz.[51] On 8 February 2022, it was announced that Jaguar would become powertrain suppliers forEnvision Racing over the duration of the Gen3 era of Formula E which is set to start with the2022–23 season.[52]
After a poor start to the season, Jaguar recovered at theRome ePrix where Evans got a double victory. Bird was also looking for a double points finish, but he was forced to retire from the second race.[53] At the inauguralJakarta ePrix, Evans added another win to his resume, remaining fourth in the championship, but getting closer to his title rivals that gained advantage on him after a less successfulBerlin ePrix double-header.[54]
Bolloré stepped down as Jaguar Land Rover CEO in November 2022.[55] With no direct replacement announced for Jaguar Racing's chairman position, Barclay would now remain the sole official authority in the team heading into theGen3 era of Formula E.
Jaguar retained Evans and Bird for their Gen3 debut. The team changed its visual presentation, ditching teal in favor of white, while keeping black as primary colour. Also part of this change, the newI-Type 6 cars would also run asymmetric liveries.[56] Jaguar had a troublesome season opener inMexico City. Bird was suffering from technical issues throughout the whole weekend and had to retire early into the race. Evans, despite crashing after the first free practice due to a different unspecified problem,[57] finished the race in eighth position. Further drama came at the inauguralHyderabad ePrix, where Bird collided with Evans after unsuccessfully attempting an overtake onSacha Fenestraz, taking both him and Evans out of the race.[58]
Jaguar-powered cars were initially uncompetitive againstPorsche-powered teams in race conditions (despite having a superior one-lap pace), but slowly took over, scoring several poles, podium finishes and wins since, splitting them between the factory drivers of Evans and Bird and the customer Envision Racing driver lineup ofNick Cassidy andSébastien Buemi, who became Jaguar's biggest title rivals in the process. Jaguar lost the teams' title by 12 points to Envision; Evans secured the third in the drivers' championship.
On 12 January 2024, it was announced thatJoel Eriksson andTom Dillmann would both remain as test, reserve, and simulator drivers for the2023–24 season.[59] Meanwhile, Nick Cassidy would replace Bird to partner Evans.[60] The team experienced their best season to date, as two wins from each of their drivers would put them on the brink of winning all three titles come the final round inLondon. Whilst their results would be enough to win both the teams' championship and, along with customer team Envision, the newly-formed manufacturers' trophy, a puncture for Cassidy and a late attack mode miss from Evans meant that Jaguar missed out on the drivers' title toPascal Wehrlein, with Evans and Cassidy ending up second and third respectively.[61][62][63]
In June 1999, Jaguar's then-parent company, American automakerFord, purchasedJackie Stewart'sStewart Grand Prix Formula One team for a price variously reported at £65 or £100 million.[70][71] Ford was already a minority investor in the Stewart outfit and supplied the team with engines through its then-subsidiaryCosworth. It renamed the team to Jaguar in September 1999.[72] Ford announced a $400 million project to build a unified facility inSilverstone for its engine and constructor operations,[73][74] but these plans never came to fruition, and Jaguar remained inMilton Keynes.
The team operated for five seasons, from2000 to2004. During this period,The Times estimated that Ford spent £500 million on the team and incurred significant operating losses.[75] Due to Jaguar's combination of works-team backing and limited success, it was deemed a major flop. Looking back in 2023,Motor Sport wrote that Jaguar was "one of the most high-profile failures in F1," with "a revolving door of management that made Jaguar Racing look like an employment bureau rather than a slick F1 team."[76]
At the end of the 2004 season, Ford sold the team toRed Bull for £1.[77] The Austrian company concurrently pledged to invest at least £200 million in the team over three years.[78] Ford also sold Cosworth to the owners ofChamp Car, thus effecting its complete operational withdrawal from F1 after 35 years as a competitor and/orengine supplier.[79] Elements within the Ford organisation made a last-ditch attempt to save the team by rebranding it from Jaguar to Ford, but company leadership in Detroit went ahead with the sale; it was estimated that Ford was losing $50 million/year on F1.[80]Formula One Group CEOBernie Ecclestone regretted the loss but emphasized that Jaguar as a whole was in poor shape, explaining that with the parent company "closing a factory ... it would have been a bit cheeky to keep the Formula One factory going in those circumstances."[81]
For2000, Jaguar retained Stewart driverJohnny Herbert and partnered him with 1999 world championship runner-upEddie Irvine,[73] who reportedly received a $15m contract.[76] However, the team fell short of Stewart's 1999 results, finishing ninth in the Constructors' Championship, with Irvine scoring all four of the team's points. The only teams Jaguar beat wereMinardi andProst, which both failed to score any points. The highlight of the year was Irvine's fourth-place finish atMonaco.
Jaguar's rookie year introduced a common theme: the struggle for control between Ford headquarters in Detroit and Jaguar Racing's headquarters in Milton Keynes. The team was overseen byWolfgang Reitzle, the head of Ford's Premier Automotive Group, whose remit included both Jaguar Racing and Ford's various luxury marques.[76] Although Jackie Stewart initially stayed on as chairman and CEO,[70] he stepped down in January 2000. Neil Ressler, Ford's chief technical officer, was appointed chairman and interim CEO in January,[82] and became full-time CEO in May.[83][76]Paul Stewart remained as COO but stepped down in the middle of the season due to colon cancer.[84]
Ressler planned to fill the CEO role until Ford procured the services of Ferrari'sRoss Brawn,[84] a veteran of Jaguar's title-winning sports car operation,[85] but this did not happen and Brawn stayed withFerrari. In the meantime, he clashed with some of Jaguar's UK-based personnel. It was reported that during theMalaysian Grand Prix, Ressler nearly came to blows with technical directorGary Anderson, a holdover from Stewart GP who resented the Ford bureaucracy's intrusion on his turf.[77][86] Anderson also complained that the England-based team was forced to use awind tunnel in California[77][76] (albeit the same wind tunnel that Stewart had previously used[87]) and that Cosworth got more attention than Jaguar from Ford leadership in Detroit.[86]
For2001, Jaguar retained Irvine and replaced Herbert withLuciano Burti, who was himself replaced byPedro de la Rosa after four races.[76] Irvine scored the team's first podium inMonaco, finishing third. This allowed Jaguar to finish eighth in the Constructors' Championship, with nine points, including four points-scoring performances.
The year was marked by continued management turmoil. In September 2000, Ressler appointed three-timeCART championBobby Rahal as team principal for 2001.[88] Ressler then stepped down as CEO before the season began. As part of a broader management shakeup, Ford created a "Ford Premier Performance Division" to oversee Jaguar and its other racing operations. Reitzle was named chairman and three-time Drivers' ChampionNiki Lauda was named CEO,[89] with a reported salary of $3 million/year.[73] However, following financial turmoil at Jaguar, Ford redirected its efforts towards auto production and capped the racing team's budget at $150 million, of which $50 million went to the engine department.[74]
Rahal recruited McLaren's former technical directorAdrian Newey, but although Newey reportedly signed a contract with Jaguar, he refused to join the team, citing its fractured internal politics.[90] Rahal also signed decorated chassis designerSteve Nichols.[77] However, following Ressler's exit, Reitzle assumed overall control of the team and gave Lauda more authority.[90] Following theHungarian Grand Prix, Lauda ousted Rahal and appointed himself team principal.[91]
At the end of the 2001 season, Ford movedGuenther Steiner from itsrally team to serve as Jaguar's managing director.[76][92]John Allison took responsibility for the commercial and administrative aspects of the business.[92] More broadly, the team's budget and performance came under closer scrutiny after Ford CEOJacques Nasser retired and was replaced byWilliam Clay Ford Jr. Although Nasser was enthusiastic about Formula One, Ford Jr. questioned why the company was spending so much money on a team that did not bear the Ford name.[76]
Jaguar retained the Irvine-de la Rosa pairing for2002 and were rewarded with another improvement in the Constructors' Championship, finishing seventh, scoring eight points, all from Irvine. Irvine recorded another podium atMonza, which would ultimately be Jaguar's last podium in Formula One. However, the team was held back by a disappointing car; at one point it was reported that Lauda was considering reusing the 2001 season's car.[93] Lauda blamed the R3's poor aerodynamics on the lack of an on-site wind tunnel.[94] Nichols left the team after the R3 performed badly in pre-season testing.[95] Mark Gillan was appointed as technical director.[76]
In mid-2002, Wolfgang Reitzle left Ford as part of a broader corporate reorganisation, declining an offer to take a reshaped role that did not include motorsports.[96][97] At the end of the season, Ford stripped Lauda of the team principal role and laid off over 60 personnel.[71] Although Lauda was asked to stay in an advisory role, he opted to leave the company, and Ford paid him to sit out the 2003 season.[98][76]
To replace Lauda and Steiner, the team hired a new triumvirate of Ford overseerTony Purnell (replacing Lauda at the Premier Performance Division),[99] managing directorDavid Pitchforth, and sporting and commercial directorJohn Hogan.[94] No team principal was appointed.[100] Hogan complained that he was being "pulled all over the place because Ford in America wanted control,"[101] and left the team at the end of the season.[102] He added that Ford continued to underinvest in the team, and questioned the wisdom of "run[ning] an F1 team on £150m a season."[103] However, the team benefited from earlier investments in facility upgrades, including the long-awaited wind tunnel.[94]
For2003, Irvine and de la Rosa were replaced byMark Webber andAntônio Pizzonia,[99] a decision made by Lauda shortly before his ouster.[93] In addition, Pizzonia was replaced in mid-season byJustin Wilson.[76] The team jumped from eight to 18 points in the Constructors' Championship, but remained in seventh place. Webber scored seven times in seventeen races, and Wilson scored an additional point atIndianapolis.
2004 marked Jaguar's final season in Formula One. The team retained Webber and replaced Wilson with Austrian driverChristian Klien, who reportedly brought in over £10m in sponsorship money from Thai-Austrian energy drink manufacturerRed Bull.[104] Although the team took a step back on track, scoring only ten points in eighteen races, it nonetheless finished seventh in the Constructors' Championship for a third straight year. At the end of the year, Red Bull bought the team and renamed itRed Bull Racing.
The team earned an odd form of publicity when two of its engineers adopted an inflatable donkey (acquired following a give-away on a soda can) from the movieShrek as an impromptu team mascot. After the2004 Brazilian Grand Prix,Bernie Ecclestone,Max Mosley, much of the sport's management, and every driver exceptMichael Schumacher signed the donkey, which the engineers promised to auction off for charity.[105][106]
In addition, the team set a $300,000 diamond into the nose cone of each car to promote the filmOcean's Twelve during the2004 Monaco Grand Prix. However, Klien crashed on the first lap, and his car's diamond was never found.[107][108]
Invictus ran two cars in the2018 season, both in Pro-Am class.Jason Wolfe and Matthew George were the full-time professional drivers of these cars, while Steve McCulley, Paul Vice, Ben Norfolk and Basil Rawlinson have been selected as the amateur drivers.[112] The entry was reduced to a single car for the2019 season, with George, McCulley and Vice staying in the team.
The Invictus team disbanded prior to the2020 season. In February 2020, both cars along with spare parts were auctioned via Silverstone Auctions and eventually sold for £213,750.[113]
For the2018–19 season, Jaguar Racing launched a support series for Formula E, dubbed theJaguar I-PACE eTROPHY. The series operated an 'Arrive and Drive' package for up to 20 drivers at each race, including a different VIP driver at every venue.[114] The series would be cancelled after the2019–20 season due to theCOVID-19 pandemic.[115]
^The current Formula E team has no connection to the Formula One team, which originated fromStewart Grand Prix, is now owned byRed Bull and currently competes under the nameRed Bull Racing.
^Davis, Jr., David E. (5 July 2002)."Ford Loses Wolfgang Reitzle".American Driver.Archived from the original on 12 March 2024. Retrieved22 January 2025.
Although World Championship races held in 1952 and 1953 were run to Formula Two regulations, constructors who only participated during this period are included herein to maintain Championship continuity. Constructors whose only participation in the World Championship was in theIndianapolis 500 races between 1950 and 1960 are not listed.