Formula One, commonly known as Formula 1 or F1, is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one of the world's premier forms of racing since its inaugural running in 1950. The word formula in the name refers to the set of rules all participants' cars must follow. A Formula One season consists of a series of races, known as Grands Prix. Grands Prix take place in multiple countries and continents on either purpose-built circuits or closed public roads.
The Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile is an association established on 20 June 1904 to represent the interests of motoring organisations and motor car users. It is the governing body for many auto racing events, including Formula One. The FIA also promotes road safety around the world.
Max Rufus Mosley was a British businessman, lawyer and racing driver. He served as president of the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), the governing body for Formula One.
Formula One automobile racing has its roots in the European Grand Prix championships of the 1920s and 1930s, though the foundation of the modern Formula One began in 1946 with the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile's (FIA) standardisation of rules, which was followed by a World Championship of Drivers in 1950.
The South African Grand Prix was first run as a Grand Prix motor racing handicap race in 1934 at the Prince George Circuit at East London, Cape Province. It drew top drivers from Europe including Bernd Rosemeyer, Richard "Dick" Seaman, Richard Ormonde Shuttleworth and the 1939 winner Luigi Villoresi.
The 1978 Swedish Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 17 June 1978 at the Scandinavian Raceway. It was the eighth race of the 1978 World Championship of F1 Drivers and the 1978 International Cup for F1 Constructors, and the last Formula One Swedish Grand Prix to date.
The 1980 French Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Paul Ricard on 29 June 1980. It was the seventh round of the 1980 Formula One season. The race was the 58th French Grand Prix, or the 66th Grand Prix de l'ACF and the sixth to be held at Paul Ricard. The race was held over 54 laps of the 5.809-kilometre circuit for a total race distance of 314 kilometres.
The 1982 San Marino Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 25 April 1982 at the Autodromo Dino Ferrari, Imola, Italy. It was the fourth race of the 1982 Formula One World Championship. The race was boycotted by many teams as part of a political war, unrelated to the event itself, involving the two dominant forces within Formula One, the Fédération Internationale du Sport Automobile (FISA) and the Formula One Constructors' Association (FOCA). Only seven teams took part, giving a field of 14 cars.
The 1985 Belgian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Spa-Francorchamps on 15 September 1985. It was the thirteenth round of the 1985 FIA Formula One World Championship. The race was the 43rd Belgian Grand Prix, the 31st to be held at Spa and the second since the circuit had been rebuilt and re-opened at half its original length in 1979. The race was held over 43 laps of the seven kilometre circuit for a total race distance of 301 kilometres.
The 1982 FIA Formula One World Championship was the 36th season of FIA Formula One motor racing. It included two competitions run over the course of the year, the 33rd Formula One World Championship for Drivers and the 25th Formula One World Championship for Constructors. The season featured sixteen rounds between 23 January and 25 September. The Drivers' Championship was won by Keke Rosberg and the Constructors' Championship by Scuderia Ferrari.
The 1981 FIA Formula One World Championship was the 35th season of FIA Formula One motor racing. It featured the 1981 Formula One World Championship for Drivers and the 1981 Formula One World Championship for Manufacturers, which were contested over a fifteen-race series that commenced on 15 March and ended on 17 October. The 1981 South African Grand Prix, as a non-championship race due to difficulties from the ongoing FISA–FOCA war, was open to Formula One entrants but was not part of the World Championship.
The 1980 Formula One season was the 34th season of FIA Formula One motor racing. It featured the 1980 World Championship of Drivers and the 1980 International Cup for F1 Constructors, which were contested concurrently from 13 January to 5 October over a fourteen-race series. The season also included one non-championship race, the Spanish Grand Prix.
The 1981 United States Grand Prix West was a Formula One motor race held on March 15, 1981, at Long Beach, California. It was the opening race of the 1981 Formula One World Championship.
Desiré Randall Wilson is a former racing driver from South Africa and one of only five women to have competed in Formula One. Born in Brakpan, she entered one Formula One World Championship Grand Prix in 1980 with a non-works RAM Racing-prepared Williams FW07, but failed to qualify. She also raced in the 1981 non-world championship South African Grand Prix in a one off deal with Tyrrell Racing. This race was not part of the 1981 world championship due, in part, to the FISA–FOCA war. She qualified 16th and, after a disastrous start where the car stalled, she moved up through the field in wet conditions; as conditions dried she fell back and damaged the car when it touched a wall while she was letting the race leader through.
The Grand Prix World Championship (GPWC) refers to a number of proposed alternative world championship auto racing series to rival or replace Formula One. Founded in 2001, the GPWC was created as a tool to assist the companies in bargaining with Bernie Ecclestone for an agreeable extension to the 1997 Concorde Agreement, the contract by whose terms the teams compete in Formula One.
The FISA–FOCA war was a political battle contested throughout the early 1980s by two now defunct representative organizations in Formula One motor racing, the Fédération Internationale du Sport Automobile (FISA) and the Formula One Constructors Association (FOCA). The battle boiled during the late 1970s and early 1980s and came to a head when the racing teams affiliated with FOCA, an equivalent to a racing team union, boycotted the 1982 San Marino Grand Prix.
The Brabham BT49 is a Formula One racing car designed by South African Gordon Murray for the British Brabham team. The BT49 competed in the 1979 to 1982 Formula One World Championships and was used by Brazilian driver Nelson Piquet to win his first World Championship in 1981.
The Formula One Constructors' Association (FOCA) was an organization of the chassis builders (constructors) who design and build the cars that race in the FIA Formula One World Championship. It evolved from the earlier Formula 1 Constructors Association and came to be dominated by Bernie Ecclestone and Max Mosley. Frank Williams, Colin Chapman, Teddy Mayer, Ken Tyrrell were also significant members. FOCA served to represent the interests of their privately owned teams – usually against the race organisers and later against the manufacturer-owned or supported teams such as Ferrari, Matra and Alfa Romeo. Ecclestone became the organisation's chief executive in 1978, with Mosley taking on the role of legal advisor.
The 1980 Spanish Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 1 June 1980 at Circuito Permanente del Jarama. Originally scheduled to be part of the 1980 World Championship of Drivers, following the running of the race it was announced that World Championship points would not be awarded to the competitors, making it a non-championship race. The winner of the race was Alan Jones, driving for the Williams team. Jochen Mass finished second for Arrows and Elio de Angelis third for Team Lotus.
The Coloni C4 is a Formula One car designed by Christian Vanderpleyn for the Coloni team for use in the 1991 Formula One season, although it never qualified for a race and was the slowest car in the field.
Carlos Reutemann 
