Graham Watson | |
---|---|
Born | Pukekohe, New Zealand | 24 June 1967
Occupation | Associate Director |
Employer | Formula One |
Known for | Formula One mechanic |
Title | Associate Director |
Graham Watson (born 24 June 1967) is a Formula One mechanic. He is currently an associate director at Formula One. [1] Though born and raised in New Zealand, Watson is a citizen of the United Kingdom.
From an early age Watson had deep interest in motorsport, he took part in rallying events in his native New Zealand as a driver and co-driver. This led to Watson deciding to pursue a career in motorsport but as a mechanic, where he moved to the UK to work with the Ford World Rally Team. Eventually Watson decided to make the switch to single seaters, where he joined Paul Stewart Racing in Formula 3000. [2] He then made to the step up to F1 where he joined Benetton in 1996 and then later BAR Honda in 2001. [3] Watson remained at the Brackley outfit for eight years as it transitioned into Honda and later Brawn GP where he won a championship as Engineering Coordinator. [4] Seeking a new challenge, he then moved to the fledging Lotus Racing as team manager before moving to Toro Rosso in 2014 where he remains today under the guise of Visa Cash App RB F1 Team. In his current role he represents the team in discussions with the FIA and Sporting Working group as well as managing garage and logistical operations. [5]
Takuma Sato, nicknamed "Taku", is a Japanese professional racing driver. He competes part-time in the IndyCar Series, driving the No. 75 Honda for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing. Sato is a two-time winner of the Indianapolis 500, having won the event in 2017 and 2020. He was the first Asian driver to win the Indianapolis 500, and the twentieth driver to win the race more than once. Before winning the Indianapolis 500, Sato became the first Japanese-born driver to win an IndyCar Series race when he won the 2013 Grand Prix of Long Beach.
Red Bull Racing, currently competing as Oracle Red Bull Racing and also known simply as Red Bull or RBR, is a Formula One racing team, racing under an Austrian licence and based in the United Kingdom. It is one of two Formula One teams owned by conglomerate Red Bull GmbH, the other being RB Formula One Team. The Red Bull Racing team has been managed by Christian Horner since its formation in 2005.
The Red Bull Junior Team, commonly referred to as the Red Bull Driver Academy, is a driver development programme run by the conglomerate company Red Bull GmbH in an attempt to identify potential future racing stars in open wheel racing. The similar Red Bull Driver Search, now ended, was an American spinoff of the same idea held in 2005. Members of the Junior Team are financed and sponsored by Red Bull in lower racing formulae.
Rodin Motorsport is a motor racing team based in the United Kingdom. It currently competes in six championships: FIA Formula 2 Championship, FIA Formula 3 Championship, GB3 Championship, F1 Academy, F4 British Championship and Spanish F4 Championship.
The Japanese automobile manufacturer Honda has participated in Formula One, as an engine manufacturer and team owner, for various periods since 1964. Honda's involvement in Formula One began as a full team and engine entry in the 1964 season, and in 1965 they achieved their first victory at the Mexican Grand Prix. After further success with John Surtees, Honda withdrew at the end of the 1968 season due to difficulties selling road cars in the United States and Honda driver Jo Schlesser's fatal accident.
Franz Tost is a former racing driver and the former team principal of the Scuderia AlphaTauri Formula One team, a role he departed from at the end of the 2023 Formula One season.
Brendon Morris Hartley is a New Zealand professional racing driver who is currently competing in the FIA World Endurance Championship with Toyota Gazoo Racing.
Daniil Vyacheslavovich Kvyat is a Russian professional racing driver competing under an Italian licence for Lamborghini Iron Lynx in the 2024 FIA World Endurance Championship, and part-time for SS-Green Light Racing in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. Kvyat competed in Formula One between 2014–2017 and 2019–2020. He became the second Formula One driver from Russia and is the most successful of the four Russian drivers to date, with three podiums.
Naoki Yamamoto is a Japanese racing driver for Honda Racing Corporation, currently driving in Super GT with Team Kunimitsu and in Super Formula with Nakajima Racing. He is a three-time champion in Super Formula and a two-time champion in the GT500 class of Super GT. Yamamoto is also the only driver to have won both the Super Formula and GT500 championships in the same season multiple times, a feat which he accomplished in 2018 and 2020.
There have been ten Formula One drivers from New Zealand, with four of them having started two or fewer races. The late 1950s to mid-1970s is viewed as the "golden age" for New Zealand in the sport and saw Denny Hulme crowned as World Drivers' Championship in 1967. New Zealand drivers were absent from Formula One events from 1984 to 2017.
Pierre Jean-Jacques Gasly is a French racing driver currently competing in Formula One for Alpine. He won the 2016 GP2 Series championship, and finished as runner-up in the 2014 Formula Renault 3.5 Series and the 2017 Super Formula Championship.
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The Scuderia Toro Rosso STR13 is a Formula One racing car designed and constructed by Scuderia Toro Rosso to compete in the 2018 FIA Formula One World Championship. The car was driven by Pierre Gasly and Brendon Hartley, both of whom were retained by the team after contesting selected events in 2017. The STR13 made its competitive début at the 2018 Australian Grand Prix and is the first car built by Scuderia Toro Rosso to use a Honda engine after the team agreed to end its engine partnership deal with Renault to allow the French manufacturer to partner McLaren.
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Scuderia AlphaTauri S.p.A, or simply AlphaTauri, was an Italian Formula One racing team and constructor that competed from 2020 to 2023. It was one of two Formula One constructors owned by Austrian conglomerate Red Bull GmbH, the other being Red Bull Racing. The constructor was rebranded for the 2020 Formula One World Championship from "Toro Rosso" to "AlphaTauri" in order to promote Red Bull's AlphaTauri fashion brand. According to Franz Tost and Helmut Marko, the rebrand as Scuderia AlphaTauri also acknowledged that it had transitioned from Red Bull Racing's junior team to its sister team. Throughout its history, the team has only scored one victory and two podiums, all scored by Pierre Gasly, winning the 2020 Italian Grand Prix and placing third in the 2021 Azerbaijan Grand Prix. The team was rebranded as RB in 2024.
The AlphaTauri AT01 is a Formula One car designed and constructed by Scuderia AlphaTauri to compete in the 2020 Formula 1 World Championship. The car was driven by Daniil Kvyat and Pierre Gasly. The AT01 was the first car to be built and run under the AlphaTauri name; the team, previously known as Scuderia Toro Rosso, was renamed ahead of the 2020 championship.
Luca Furbatto is an Italian Formula One engineer. He is currently the engineering director at the Aston Martin Formula One team.
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Racing Bulls S.p.A., competing as Visa Cash App RB Formula One Team, is an Italian Formula One racing team and constructor that is competing in the 2024 season. It is one of two Formula One constructors owned by Austrian conglomerate Red Bull GmbH, the other being Red Bull Racing. Known as Scuderia Toro Rosso from 2006 to 2019 and Scuderia AlphaTauri from 2020 to 2023, the team was rebranded to its current name for the 2024 season. The current CEO is Peter Bayer. The current drivers are Daniel Ricciardo and Yuki Tsunoda, and the team principal is Laurent Mekies.