Team Principals
Managing Director - David Richards
David Richards, Lucky Strike B.A.R Honda’s Team Principal Designate, began his formative motorsport career as a professional rally co-driver, following completion of articles as an accountant.
After competing in a number of factory teams in the late 70s, his last stop, with the Ford Motor Company, saw him win the World Rally Championship title in 1981, alongside Ari Vatanen. He retired at the end of the 1981 season and hasn’t been in a rally car since.
Following his retirement from active competition, Richards devoted his energy towards establishing Prodrive.
Under his direction, Prodrive has grown from a small motorsport engineering business employing only a handful of people to an organisation in excess of 1000 people, recognised globally for its achievements in motorsport and with a growing reputation for developing advanced technology for road vehicles.
Today, its MotorSport division is based in Banbury, Oxfordshire and its Automotive Technology business at Warwick on a 240 acre site which is used as a testing ground and showcase track for vehicle manufacturers. Further operations in both America and Australia, ensure a group turnover well in excess of £100 million per annum.
With successful relationships managing race and rally programmes with manufacturers including Porsche, BMW and MG, in 1990 Prodrive formed its longest standing partnership with Subaru to run its World Rally Championship programme, which still stands today.
In addition to his role as Chairman of Prodrive, Richards became the Team Principal of Benetton’s Formula One team for the 1998 season.
In November 1999, Richards sold 49% of Prodrive to Venture Capitalists Apax and in April 2000, bought International Sportworld Communicators (ISC) from Bernie Ecclestone. In doing so he acquired the television and commercial rights to the FIA World Rally Championship.
As well as retaining his focus on transforming the fortunes of the World Rally Championship, Richards is now charged with taking Lucky Strike B.A.R Honda out of Grand Prix racing’s midfield and into a team capable of winning the Formula One World Championship title.
David Richards is married with three children.
Engineering Director - Malcolm Oastler
Engineering Director for Lucky Strike B.A.R Honda, Malcolm Oastler has been involved in the design of successful racing cars since the mid-80s.
Interested in cars from an early age, Malcolm raced in Australian Formula Ford in 1983 and 1984, finishing second in the National Championship in his rookie year. Before embarking on his racing activities though, he received a degree from New South Wales University of Technology in Sydney with first class honours.
He moved to the United Kingdom in February 1985, to work as a mechanic in Formula Ford 1600 and Formula Ford 2000, and also drove in FF2000, albeit with limited success. Deciding that his aspirations to become a world-class driver might not be realistic, Malcolm turned to racing car design.
Oastler joined Reynard in 1986, designing the company's Formula Ford 1600 and Formula Ford 2000 chassis. In 1988, he collaborated with Adrian Reynard on the first Reynard Formula 3000 chassis, and his designs won five titles in as many seasons. When the Indy Car concept became a reality in 1994, Malcolm led the design team from the start. His 95I chassis won eight races, including the prestigious Indianapolis 500, and started from pole position no less than 13 times.
Malcolm readily admits that 1998 was an interesting time for him and his team as they made preparations for the newly formed British American Racing to enter the world of Formula One. But it was nothing compared to the challenge they faced once they actually went racing the following year.
"The last three years have been tough," said Oastler. "No-one would deny that, but we didn't expect anything else. Now we are a 'battle-hardened' group that has lived through the trials and tribulations of three full seasons of Grand Prix racing. There is no doubt that this shared experience has brought everyone together as a more unified team and made us even more determined to build on the progress we've made so far."
Commenting on the new 2002 BAR004, he continues, "The BAR004 is a careful evolution of our first three cars, incorporating many of the lessons we have taken away from fifty races in Formula One. There hasn't been a drastic technical revolution. Instead we have worked hard to make sure that the problems we had in 2001 have been eradicated and that the BAR004 will be another step forward from its predecessors. We think we have produced a very sound package and are happy with the results so far."
The Drivers
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