A Sponsorship Echoing Past Success
In 2026, Ford will make its return to Formula 1, partnering with Red Bull. The new F1 engine will be developed by Red Bull Powertrains in the UK, with Ford providing financial backing and branding. Essentially, this makes Ford a sponsor rather than a technical partner, echoing the brand's most successful era in the sport. Ford achieved its greatest success in F1 using engines developed by British specialists. When the company attempted deeper technical involvement, such as with its former subsidiary Jaguar Racing in the early 2000s, results were disappointing.
Between 2000 and 2004, Ford competed in Formula 1 under the Jaguar name but struggled to achieve success despite heavy financial investment. The team consistently fell short of expectations, underscoring the challenges large corporations often face in motorsport. Similar cases include Toyota (2002-2009) and Honda (2006-2008). While Honda managed to win a single Grand Prix, both Toyota and Ford exited the sport with little to show for their efforts.
Ford's Cost-Effective Path to Success
However, given the massive financial investments, the return on investment was underwhelming. Mercedes, by contrast, demonstrated a more successful model. The German automaker acquired Brawn GP, the successor to Honda's F1 operation, and went on to dominate the sport after a brief adjustment period. Yet even Mercedes' success came with significant spending. Interestingly, Ford once demonstrated a more cost-effective path to success. Despite the Jaguar failure, the brand retains a legacy as a dominant force in F1 history. There was a time when Formula 1 was practically a "Formula Ford," as an impressive 13 drivers' world championships were powered by Ford engines.
The key detail often overlooked in Ford's success story is that those winning engines were not developed in-house. Instead, they were produced by the independent engine manufacturer Cosworth. Founded in 1958 by Mike Costin and Keith Duckworth, Cosworth quickly became a cornerstone of British motorsport. By the early 1960s, Cosworth's cylinder head designs and tuning expertise transformed the Ford Anglia 105 E engine into a formidable racing powerplant. Success in Formula 2 and Formula 3 soon followed, making Cosworth the go-to choice for aspiring champions.
Cosworth: The Key to Ford's Success
Cosworth's defining moment came with Formula 1's switch to 3.0-liter engines in 1966. Previously, engines had been half that size, leaving teams scrambling for competitive options. Jack Brabham found success with the Repco V8, a modified version of the Oldsmobile-derived Buick 215, winning the 1966 and 1967 world titles.
Bruce McLaren also turned to Ford power, commissioning California tuner Traco to adapt a 4.2-liter Ford Indy V8 for F1. However, the engine's 300 horsepower output was significantly underpowered compared to the Repco V8 and Ferrari's purpose-built V12. While McLaren did score two points with the Ford-powered car at the US Grand Prix, the engine was no match for the competition.
Meanwhile, a game-changing engine was already in development in the UK. Little did anyone know, this powerplant would soon cement Ford's legendary status in motorsport. Back at Ford headquarters in Dearborn, Michigan, Formula 1 was barely on the company's radar in the mid-1960s. The focus was on Le Mans, NASCAR, and the Indianapolis 500. Yet in Britain, a group of Ford engineers had far more ambitious plans.
Walter Hayes Enters the Scene
Then, as now, most Formula 1 teams were based in Great Britain. Motorsport was more accessible, with teams like Cooper, Lotus, and Jack Brabham's MRD competing across multiple racing classes while also building cars for junior series. Cosworth quickly became a dominant force in Formula 2 and Formula 3, making the connection to Ford Great Britain natural. The British Ford subsidiary often advertised Cosworth's racing successes, driven by Walter Hayes, who joined as head of the press department in 1962.
Hayes, a trained journalist, saw motorsport success as a valuable brand asset. His vision led to the creation of 1,000 lightweight Ford Cortinas with a Cosworth-developed cylinder head. Marketed as the "Ford Consul Cortina developed by Lotus," the car excelled in touring car racing. Meanwhile, the introduction of the three-liter Formula 1 regulations in 1966 pushed Cosworth to explore a new engine design, as British teams were struggling to find suitable power units.
Cosworth Seeks Funding for a New Engine
Cosworth needed financial backing to develop the engine. Only when Lotus boss Colin Chapman committed to purchasing five units did plans solidify. The cost for the engines and service was set at £100,000—an amount Lotus struggled to afford. Chapman attempted to convince David Brown of Aston Martin to foot the bill, but Brown declined, seeing no benefit in re-entering Formula 1.
Hayes and Chapman instead approached Ford. They devised a two-phase plan: first, Cosworth would develop a 1.6-liter four-cylinder for Formula 2, the Ford Cosworth FVA (Four-Valve Type A), based on the Ford Cortina block with a new four-valve cylinder head. The next step combined two FVA blocks into a V8, creating the Cosworth DFV (Double Four-Valve) for Formula 1.
Ford Finances the DFV Project
Hayes convinced Ford's Detroit leadership by promising that the DFV could win Grands Prix with a bit of luck. Ford funded the project, and in return, acquired the naming rights. The engine debuted spectacularly, with Jim Clark winning on the Lotus 49's debut at Zandvoort in 1967. Clark secured additional wins at Silverstone, Watkins Glen, and Mexico, though the title went to Denny Hulme in a Brabham-Repco.
Ford Opens the DFV to Other Teams. Lotus initially enjoyed exclusive access to the DFV, Hayes expanded its availability in 1968. Teams like McLaren, Matra, and Brabham also raced with "Ford Power." Lotus initially maintained an edge, having designed the Lotus 49 with the DFV as a stressed chassis component. However, competitors soon caught up.
A Dominant Force Emerges
By 1968, the DFV-powered cars won 11 of the 12 races, with Bruce McLaren securing a win at Spa and Jackie Stewart triumphing at Zandvoort. Ultimately, Graham Hill claimed the drivers' championship with the Lotus-Ford, the first of 12 world titles for the DFV. Between 1967 and 1982, the Ford-powered engine won 155 Grand Prix races. In both 1969 and 1973, every single race was won by a DFV-powered car.
The DFV's dominance began to wane in the early 1980s with the rise of turbocharged engines. Though Cosworth developed short-stroke variants to counter the turbo challenge, the effort ultimately fell short. In 1982, Keke Rosberg was the last world champion with a DFV-powered car. Nelson Piquet's 1983 title with a Brabham-BMW turbo marked a definitive shift.
The DFV Legacy Continues in Formula 3000
After 1983, even backmarker teams shifted to turbos, signaling the end of the DFV era in F1. The final win for the engine came in 1983 with Michele Alboreto's victory for Tyrrell. Ken Tyrrell, loyal to the DFV, only switched to Renault turbos in 1985. By the Dutch Grand Prix that year, no DFV-powered car was on the grid for the first time in 18 years.
Fortunately, the DFV found a new home in Formula 3000, introduced in 1985 as a successor to Formula 2. The legendary engine, revving up to 9,000 RPM, continued powering future champions in junior categories. Yet Ford's F1 story was far from over.
Ford and Cosworth also tried their hand at the turbo!
First, Ford, together with Zakspeed, considered adapting the four-cylinder from the Super Capri of the DRM for Formula 1. Ford Germany purchased a Toleman TG280 for testing. Harald Ertl tested this Formula 2 racing car with DRM turbo engine. Erich Zakowski went in advance in the hope of an order from Ford and delivered an adapted engine. But in the end, Ford decided otherwise and commissioned Cosworth to design a turbocharged engine. Zakspeed competed from 1985 with its own vehicle and engine in the premier class.
The project management of the new engine for Ford took over again Keith Duckworth. Initially, the Briton planned to build a four-cylinder. This was based on world champion BMW. But Duckworth realized that the time of the four-cylinder in Formula 1 was already over despite the BMW title. The six-cylinder engines from TAG-Porsche, Renault and Honda achieved higher revs and better power delivery. In addition, they offered the advantage of fitting into the monoposto of Formula 1 without a subframe. Like the Cosworth DFV before, the V6 engines could be stowed away as a load-bearing element in the chassis.
But with the turbo, Ford came much too late!
At the end of 1984, Cosworth started the development of the new engine. Ford paid as in the DFV for the development and received the naming rights. In addition, the decision on who is allowed to use the engine lay with the American car manufacturer. In 1985, Ford signed an exclusive contract with Carl Haas for the use of the engines. Born in Ludwigshafen, he was an established figure in US motor racing. Haas was the US general importer of Lola and also used its own racing cars. Since 1983, Newman/Haas Racing, which Carl Haas operated together with actor Paul Newman, has competed in the CART series.
At the same time, Carl Haas founded Team Haas (USA) two years later to also compete in Formula 1. On its debut in the fall of 1985, Team Haas initially used Brian Hart’s four-cylinder engine. At the third round of the 1986 season at Imola, Haas entered the Cosworth GBA for the first time. The new Cosworth officially competed as the Ford TEC-Turbo. After less than a year break, Ford was back in Formula 1. By the way, the Cosworth GBA or Ford TEC-Turbo was the last new engine to make its debut in the first turbo era of Formula 1.
The turbo era ended too quickly for Ford!
The start of Haas and Ford was difficult. Because the new engine lacked the maturity to shine in the races. At the end of the year, the six points and eight finishes were offset by a whopping 18 retirements. Carl Haas lost his sponsor with the food company Beatrice and ended the F1 project at the end of his first full season. The engine contract with Ford was taken over by Bernie Ecclestone. The creator of modern Formula 1 initially wanted to use this contract with his Brabham team himself. But eventually, Ecclestone passed the engine on to Benetton.
The Italian clothing group had been the owner of the former Toleman team for a year. Even as a BMW customer, Benetton won a Grand Prix in Mexico in 1986. Ecclestone knew that a factory contract for the supply of engines would spur the Italian group’s commitment. The Briton hoped that the factory contract with Ford would bring the team close to the leading group, which at the time consisted of McLaren and Williams as well as pursuers Ferrari. Ford agreed and actually delivered "its" turbo to Benetton in 1987. But the time of the turbo was already coming to an end.
For the 1987 season, the FISA limited the previously unrestricted boost pressure of the turbos to 4.0 bar overpressure. The Cosworth GBA helped Benetton regularly qualify both cars at the front. Even if it was not enough for a victory, in the end Benetton Ford scored 28 world championship points and secured fifth place in the constructors‘ championship. Nevertheless, the Cosworth GBA alias Ford TEC drove directly to the museum after the end of the season. Because the costs exploded. Cosworth employed around 100 people to build and maintain the 25 engines needed for one season alone.
Benetton remained the factory team of Ford in Formula 1 even after the turbo exit!
In 1988, Formula 1 initially entered its last turbo year. The FISA limited the boost pressure to 2.5 bar overpressure. This required an extensive overhaul of the previous turbo engines. For Honda and Ferrari, this was no problem. But Ford shied away from the costs for only one year. Therefore, the car manufacturer sent its works team in 1988 with a 3.5-liter variant of the proven Ford Cosworth DFV in the race. This was not new. Last year, Tyrrell, AGS, March, Larrousse and Coloni competed with the 3.5-litre DFZ. The DFZ engines were looked after exclusively by tuners such as Heini Marder.
For 1988, Cosworth derived with the Ford DFR again another 3.5-liter variant of the proven DFV. Unlike the DFZ, the DFR was not officially available for sale. In addition, only Cosworth serviced the DFR engines. Thus, the new offshoot of the well-known engine was initially reserved for Benetton. But in the course of the year, Tyrrell and Rial also moved out with the new factory engine. Benetton was always the first to use the resulting further developments. The state of development of customer engines was thus always at least one step behind the state of Benetton’s factory engines.
The Ford HB was a completely new engine!
Parallel to the DFR operations, a completely new engine was built at Cosworth with the Ford HB. It was ready for use in the summer of 1989 and was initially exclusively available to Benetton. Already in autumn, Alessandro Nannini officially won a Grand Prix with the Ford HB in a racing car. However, the Italian benefited from the disqualification of the actual winner. Because on the track Ayrton Senna won the Grand Prix of Japan. But after the collision with his teammate Alain Prost, sports officials pushed the Brazilian’s McLaren and thus caused the disqualification.
The result was the first victory of a Ford in Formula 1 in just over six years. But in fact, the Ford HB was not yet a top engine at that time. Especially since Ford and Cosworth continued to compete with a V8. The competition from Ferrari (V12) as well as Honda (V10) and Renault (V10) already relied on more cylinders. Cosworth countered this with a continuous improvement of the HB. Already in the course of the 1990 season, the Ford HB IV was ready for use. The reward for their efforts was a third place for Benetton in the 1990 Constructors‘ World Championship.
The long way back to the top!
Nelson Piquet also won two Grand Prix in Australia and Japan. A year later, Benetton dropped back to fourth place among the constructors. After all, Piquet won another Grand Prix in Canada. Fifth place in the Constructors‘ Championship went to Jordan, a customer team that was now also allowed to field the Ford HB. However, as with the DFR, Jordan’s engine development was one step behind that of the Benetton works team. A year later, Michael Schumacher won his first Grand Prix with the Benetton Ford B192 with the Ford HB engine
Parallel to the use of the V8, Cosworth had been working on a successor since 1991. At times, Cosworth planned to build a V12. But the engine manufacturer had more than 30 years of know-how in the construction of racing engines with eight cylinders. Cosworth wanted to take advantage of this advantage. Thus, with the Cosworth EC again an eight-cylinder was created, which was initially again exclusively available to Benetton. Officially, this engine was called Ford Zetec-R and carried Michael Schumacher to his first world title in 1994. During this time, the commercials with Schumacher for the Mondeo („hmmm beautiful car“) were created.
Benetton switched to Renault as World Champion!
It is interesting that this time Ford had an engine developed that was only to be used for one year. At the end of 1994, the previous 3.5-litre formula was phased out. The maximum displacement dropped back to three liters. Cosworth responded with the ECA engine. But obviously Benetton lacked the belief that with this engine a title defense would be possible. So the world champion team succumbed to Renault’s advertising and changed the engine partner. This caused a lot of frustration, especially on the executive floor of Ford in the USA. Because world champion Michael Schumacher remained (of course) at Benetton.
Ford placed its EC series factory engines at Sauber instead of Benetton. In addition to the factory engines, there was also a customer version with the Ford ED at Cosworth, which descended from the Ford HB. But the ED was even less competitive than the EC. He remained the engine of the backbenchers. In 1996, Sauber Ford entered the first Cosworth V10. But the Ford Cosworth JD was also not particularly competitive. Ford was far from winning at Sauber. In 1995 in Italy (Heinz-Harald Frentzen) and 1996 in Monaco (Johnny Herbert) Sauber achieved only two podiums.
The frustration with Sauber led Ford to their own team!
In 1997, Ford moved its engines to the new Stewart Grand Prix team. Owners of this team were the former Formula 1 world champion Jackie Stewart and his son Paul. But in the scene it was an open secret that Stewart Grand Prix was an engagement of Ford. Paul Stewart had been running a team since 1989 that temporarily dominated the British Formula 3 Championship (title winners from 1992 to 1994 and 1996) and was also active in Formula 3000. Subsequently, Stewart Grand Prix entered the premier class with his own car. But the F1 was already expensive in 1997!
The money for this rise came almost entirely from Ford. Which is why the logo of the car manufacturer adorned the Stewart SF 01 several times. The drive of the car took over the ten-cylinder developed on behalf of Ford at Cosworth, which Stewart was allowed to use exclusively. Tyrrell (ED) and the short-lived team Mastercard Lola (EC) competed with V8 customer engines. Only a year later, the customers Tyrrell and Minardi received the newer ten-cylinder. But only the Stewart factory team was given access to the current state of development.
Ford took command of Stewart!
With eighth place in the Constructors‘ Championship, Stewart fell well short of expectations in the second year. Therefore, Ford gradually expanded its influence and officially took over the team from the founders in 1999. In addition, Cosworth further developed the V10 to shorten the gap to the front. With success, because Rubens Barrichello already clinched two podium finishes in the spring. In the summer, the Brazilian put Stewart on the top grid position at Magny Cours. And in autumn, Johnny Herbert surprisingly won the European Grand Prix at the Nürburgring.
For the 2000 season, owner Ford renamed the team from Stewart to Jaguar Racing. In addition, the American carmaker pumped a lot of fresh money into the team. But as much as Jaguar and engine supplier Cosworth tried, Jaguar did not get beyond the 7th place in the World Championship of Constructors. In addition to Jaguar, there were other customer teams that were allowed to use Cosworth engines. But as a rule, these were no longer called Ford. The teams found their own namesakes, who paid their Cosworth bills and appeared as „engine suppliers“ in the result lists.
The Last Ford Victory Went to Jordan!
Only in 2003 was Eddie Jordan allowed to call his Cosworth engines Ford RS. This ensured that the customer team Jordan secured Ford's last victory in Formula 1. Giancarlo Fisichella surprisingly won the chaotic race in Brazil. Just a year later, Ford – as we know for now – lost interest in Formula 1. The manufacturer sold the Jaguar Racing team to Red Bull and has abstained from the sport since then. The engine manufacturer Cosworth, which was also owned by Ford for a time, was taken over by American businessmen.
Cosworth continued the business of producing Formula 1 engines without its former partner Ford. However, the engine supplier increasingly lost competitiveness. In 2007, Cosworth failed to secure a single Formula 1 customer but returned in 2010. However, it was no longer enough to fight for victories. Of Cosworth’s clients – Williams, HRT, Virgin (later Manor), and Lotus – only Williams managed to score points. The last Cosworth-powered team, Marussia, remained scoreless in 2013. When the turbo era returned to Formula 1 in 2014, Cosworth exited the sport.
2026: Ford Returns to Formula 1!
In 2026, Ford will return to Formula 1 alongside Red Bull. However, this partnership will likely resemble the collaboration with Cosworth rather than the Jaguar Racing era. The new Ford engines will be developed by Red Bull Powertrains, with Ford focusing primarily on sponsorship. It seems that a glance at the history books has reminded Ford of the key ingredient to their past success.
Ford in Formula 1 in numbers:
- Races: 600 (as Ford – including one race with the Cosworth SCA in 1966, four races with the Ford 406 and the rest different Cosworth types)
- First start: 1966 Monaco Grand Prix (with the Ford 406 3.0 V8 at McLaren)
- Last start: Brazilian Grand Prix (as Ford Cosworth 3.0 V10)
- Constructors‘ Championship title: 10
- Drivers‘ Championship title: 13
- Wins: 176 (in World Championship races), 30 in Formula 1 races that did not count towards the World Championship (or other championship).
- First victory: 1967 Dutch Grand Prix (Jim Clark, Lotus 49 Ford with Ford Cosworth DFV)
- Last win: Brazilian Grand Prix 2003 (Giancarlo Fisichella, Jordan EJ13 with Ford 3.0 V10)
- Pole positions: 140 (in World Championship races)
- Fastest laps: 160 (for World Championship races)
- Podiums: 535 (in World Championship races)
- Team with the most starts: Tyrrell – 310 races (in World Championship races)
- Driver with the most starts: Emerson Fittipaldi – 143 races (in World Championship races)
- Driver with the most wins: Jackie Steward – 25 wins (in World Championship races)
Most successful seasons:
- 1969 with 11 out of 11 possible Grand Prix victories
- 1973 with 15 out of 15 possible Grand Prix victories
- Laps in the lead: 10,684 (in World Championship races)
Drivers‘ World Champion with Ford engines
- 1968 Graham Hill—Lotus Ford
- 1969 Jackie Stewart—Matra Ford
- 1970 Jochen Rindt—Lotus Ford
- 1971 Jackie Stewart—Lotus Ford
- 1972 Emmerson Fittipaldi—Lotus Ford
- 1973 Jackie Stewart—Lotus Ford
- 1974 Emmerson Fittipaldi—McLaren Ford
- 1976 James Hunt—McLaren Ford
- 1978 Mario Andretti—Lotus Ford
- 1980 Alan Jones—Williams Ford
- 1981 Nelson Piquet—Brabham Ford
- 1982 Keke Rosberg—Williams Ford
- 1994 Michael Schumacher—Benetton Ford
Constructors‘ World Champion with Ford engines
- 1968 Gold Leaf Team Lotus — Lotus-Ford Cosworth
- 1969 Matra International — Matra-Ford Cosworth
- 1970 Gold Leaf Team Lotus — Lotus-Ford Cosworth
- 1971 Elf Team Tyrrell — Tyrrell-Ford Cosworth
- 1972 John Player Team Lotus — Lotus-Ford Cosworth
- 1973 John Player Team Lotus — Lotus-Ford Cosworth
- 1974 Marlboro Team Texaco — McLaren-Ford Cosworth
- 1978 John Player Team Lotus — Lotus-Ford Cosworth
- 1980 Albilad Williams Racing Team — Williams-Ford Cosworth
- 1981 Albilad Williams Racing Team — Williams-Ford Cosworth
Picture credits: Archiv AutoNatives.de