Osella
 |
|
| Full name | Osella Squadra Corse |
|---|---|
| Base | Verolengo, Italy |
| Founder(s) | Enzo Osella |
| Noted staff | Antonio Tommaini |
| Noted drivers |
 Eddie Cheever Piercarlo Ghinzani Jean-Pierre Jarier Jo Gartner Huub Rothengatter Nicola Larini
|
| Next name | Fondmetal |
| Formula One World Championship career | |
| First entry | 1980 Argentine Grand Prix |
| Races entered | 172 (132 starts) |
| Engines | Ford-Cosworth, Alfa Romeo, Osella |
| Constructors' Championships |
0 (best finish: 12th in 1984) |
| Drivers' Championships |
0 (best finish: Piercarlo Ghinzani 19th in 1984) |
| Race victories | 0 (best finish: 4th at the 1982 San Marino Grand Prix) |
| Pole positions | 0 (best grid position: 8th at the 1990 United States Grand Prix) |
| Fastest laps | 0 |
| Final entry | 1990 Australian Grand Prix |
Osella is an Italian racing car manufacturer and former Formula One team. They participated in 132 Grands Prix between 1980 and 1990. They achieved two points finishes and scored 5 championship points.
Named after its founder Vincenzo "Enzo" Osella, the team began life by racing Abarth sports cars in local and national races in the mid 1960s in Italy. Though relatively successful (Osella eventually took over the factory Abarth sports car program), Osella expanded into single seater racing in 1974 to further develop his business. The team would rise to Formula Two in 1975 achieving some success with its own car (the Osella FA2); François Migault scored one point.
Osella Corse made another attempt in 1976 in the same league with unchanged material but by now the team was not competitive. Additionally, the team suffered from severe financial problems which meant that the works team was withdrawn from Formula Two in the middle of 1976. In the following years the Osella FA2s were occasionally entered by privateers, one of them being the Swiss Charly Kiser.
Enzo Osella tried to make some money by selling a self-penned Formula 3 car (Osella FA3) with little success. Only a few privateers (one of them being Giorgio Francia who later would drive Osella's Formula One car) were optimistic enough to buy that simple untested machine. The cars ran with Toyota or Lancia engines in the 1976 German and Italian F3 championships without making any great impression. After this unsuccessful attempt, the racing activities of Osella Corse nearly came to an end. The team attended some local sports car events but avoided any single seater races from 1976 to 1978.
Osella had to wait until the beginning of 1979 when the former Hesketh and Theodore Racing Grand Prix driver Eddie Cheever was persuaded to race the well-used FA2 once again in a Formula Two championship. Surprisingly, the red car was good enough to win three races. This was enough for Enzo Osella to take the plunge into the cut and thrust world of Formula One.
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