Simtek
 |
|
| Full name | MTV Simtek Ford |
|---|---|
| Base | Banbury, Oxfordshire, United Kingdom |
| Founder(s) |
Max Mosley Nick Wirth |
| Noted drivers |
 David Brabham Roland Ratzenberger Andrea Montermini Jean-Marc Gounon Domenico Schiattarella Taki Inoue Jos Verstappen
|
| Formula One World Championship career | |
| First entry | 1994 Brazilian Grand Prix |
| Races entered | 20 |
| Engines | Ford |
| Constructors' Championships |
0 |
| Drivers' Championships |
0 |
| Race victories | 0 (best finish: 9th, 1994 French Grand Prix and 1995 Argentine Grand Prix) |
| Pole positions | 0 (best grid position: 14th, 1995 Argentine Grand Prix) |
| Fastest laps | 0 |
| Final entry | 1995 Monaco Grand Prix |
Simtek (Simulation Technology) was an engineering consultancy firm and Formula One racing team. The Formula One (F1) engineering consultancy arm, Simtek Research, was founded in 1989 by Max Mosley and Nick Wirth. It originally was involved in many areas of Formula One, including wind tunnel construction and chassis building for third parties. Simtek Grand Prix, the racing team, launched in 1993 and competed in the 1994 and 1995 seasons achieving a best result of ninth place. With large debts and a lack of sponsorship money, Simtek went into voluntary liquidation in June 1995.
Simtek Research was founded in August 1989 by Nick Wirth and Max Mosley aiming to provide a cost-effective design, research and development service to the highest possible standards. Initially working out of an office in Wirth's home, the company grew quickly and moved to its own facility, including a windtunnel, on the Acres Industrial Estate in Banbury, Oxfordshire. Simtek's clients included the FIA, F1 constructors Ligier and numerous Formula 3000 and Indycar teams.
In 1990 Simtek designed a Formula One car for BMW who were making plans to found a works team. The project was aborted, and BMW instead entered the German Touring Car Championship (Deutsche Tourenwagen Meisterschaft) in 1991, the BMW 3-series cars being run by Simtek engineers. The BMW F1 car design was revived, updated and sold to Andrea Moda Formula to compete in the 1992 season. In 1992, after becoming president of the FIA, Mosley sold his share in Simtek to Wirth.
In 1993, Simtek were commissioned to design a car for the new Bravo Grand Prix team, however following the sudden death of Bravo's project backer, Jean François Mosnier, the plans were scrapped.
In August 1993, Nick Wirth took the decision to enter Formula One with his own team for the 1994 season. Triple world champion Jack Brabham became a shareholder in Simtek Grand Prix, and his son David Brabham was signed as a driver before the end of 1993.Andrea de Cesaris and Gil de Ferran, both carrying sponsorship money, were initially considered for the second seat but negotiations broke down. Frenchman Jean-Marc Gounon was also considered, but already had commitments for the start of the season so eventually 31-year-old F1 rookie Roland Ratzenberger took the place. Charlie Moody, a former Leyton House manager, was appointed Simtek's team manager.
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