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Paul Stoddart | |
|---|---|
 Stoddart at the2006 Australian Grand Prix | |
| Born | (1955-05-26)26 May 1955 (age 70) |
| Occupations | Businessman and formerFormula One Team owner |
| Known for | Minardi European Aviation OzJet |
Paul Gerard Stoddart[1] (born 26 May 1955) is anAustralian businessman, airline owner and formerMinardiFormula One team boss.
Born inCoburg, a suburb ofMelbourne, Victoria,Australia, and attendedPreston Technical School and St Joseph's College Melbourne. Stoddart's first business was a car dealership.[2] He was later based in England and was theYugo car distributor for the UK and also had a hire car detailing business in Manchester detailing the ex-hire cars before sale to the public.[3]
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In late 1989, Stoddart purchased twoBAC 1-11 aircraft and threeFalcon 20 business jets (and a large assortment of spare parts for both aircraft) from the Royal Australian Air Force's 'VIP Squad' (the Canberra-based No 34 SQN). Stoddart formedEuropean Aviation, hired Trevor Whetter fromBritish Aerospace as his Managing Director and sold theBAC 1-11 aircraft toOkada Air inNigeria. Following discussions with British Airways, Stoddart purchased 16 aircraft, and following Dan Air's absorption intoBritish Airways, the airline was formed in 1994.[4]
During theCOVID-19 pandemic,Airbus A340 aircraft, acquired fromEtihad Airways and owned by Stoddart's business were used to transport PPE from China and Malaysia back to the UK.[5][6][7][8]
In 2005, Stoddart formedOzJet an Australian based, all business class airline. He wanted to challengeQantas who at the time were the only domestic carrier with this luxury option. The airline flew with threeBoeing 737 aircraft that had 60 seats. It was not a commercial success, and in March 2006 Stoddart cancelled its commercial service and turned it into a charter airline. In 2009, OzJet was sold toStrategic Airlines.[9][10]
In 1996, Stoddart purchased a 1990Tyrrell 019 Formula One car. During this time, he connected with Rupert Mainwaring the team manager atTyrrell. In 1997, Stoddart sponsored the team with his company, European Aviation, appearing on the front wing of the car and in 1998 the rear. Stoddart's relationship with ownerKen Tyrrell grew, and the two were discussing building a wind tunnel at Stoddart's base atBournemouth Airport.[11] Tyrrell was lining up the sale of the team to Stoddart and in 1997, a deal of $25 million was almost agreed upon.[12] However,British American Tobacco ultimately would purchase Tyrrell and enter the 1999 season asBritish American Racing.[13] Stoddart purchased a volume of Tyrrell cars and equipment and moved them to his base inLedbury,Herefordshire.[14]
In 1999, European Aviation sponsored theJordan Grand Prix team. There was speculation he would purchase a minority shareholding in the team from ownerEddie Jordan.[15]
European Aviation moved on to sponsorArrows in2000 and his European Racing became the Arrows Junior Team, with driverMark Webber.[16]
In 2001, Stoddart purchasedMinardi whenGabriele Rumi sold the team to him prior to the2001 Formula One Season.[17][18] From purchase to the first race the team completed thePS01 in six weeks. The car was emblazoned with European Aviation sponsorship and used an uprated version of the 2000 MinardiFondmetal V10.[19][20] Whilst perennial backmarkers, during 2001 future world championFernando Alonso drove for the team and was rated highly.[21] In 2002, Stoddart hired Australian Mark Webber who scored points on his debut at the2002 Australian Grand Prix.[22]
Finances were always a challenge for the team, as was sponsorship. In 2003, Formula One ownerBernie Ecclestone invested $4 million into the struggling team.[23] Wilux became a lead sponsor in 2004, however terminated their agreement after they were not told the team would run without logos at the2004 British Grand Prix.[24][25][26] Stoddart had elected to run blank cars due to the death of Minardi sporting directorJohn Walton.[27] In 2005, the team was sponsored by another Stoddart firm—OzJet.[28] One of the team's greatest successes under Stoddart's ownership would come at the2005 United States Grand Prix where just six cars competed—Minardi scoring 7 points with both cars finishing.[29][30]
Throughout his ownership, Stoddart regularly campaigned for budget caps and greater consideration of financial incentives to smaller teams like his own. This included a public battle withMcLaren bossRon Dennis.[31][32][33] When Eddie Jordan sold Jordan Grand Prix toAlex Shnaider in 2005, Stoddart expressed concerns for his team's future.[34][35] On 12 September 2005, Stoddart announced that he had sold the team toRed Bull Racing ownerDietrich Mateschitz who subsequently rebranded the team asToro Rosso.
In March 2006, less than a year after selling his team to Red Bull, Stoddart announced his intentions to return the Minardi name to Formula One after lodging an entry with theFIA for the2008 championship season.[36] However, rival entryProdrive were awarded the 12th and final place on the grid (which they ultimately did not use).[37]
With the new F1 management wanting to expand the F1 experience for fans, starting from the2017 Spanish Grand Prix Stoddart is offering fans the ability to ride in one of his Minardi Fx2 cars.[38]
In December 2006 Stoddart purchased the CTE-HVMChampCar team which he renamed Minardi Team USA.[39] The team was successful, withRobert Doornbos finishing third overall and taking the Rookie of the Year honours.[40] However, a month before the 2008 season, ChampCar was absorbed by the rivalIndy Racing League. Although enthusiastic about the future of the series, Stoddart opted not to enter it, fearing that he and the other ex-ChampCar teams would be unable to be competitive.[41] However, the half of the team owned byKeith Wiggins continued on asHVM Racing in the IRL.
