Brabham BT50
Encyclopedia
The Brabham BT50 was a Formula One
racing car designed and raced by the Brabham team. The car, powered by the four-cylinder 1.5 litre turbocharged BMW engine, raced in the 1982 Formula One season
.
, to accommodate the requirements of the more powerful turbo engine, and was also one of the first Formula One cars to feature onboard telemetry
as a means of monitoring the engine's fuel injection. The team's lead driver, Nelson Piquet
, tested the BT50 throughout 1981, but the car proved chronically unreliable until Bosch introduced a digital electronic management system at the end of the year, which immediately improved the situation. The BT50 made a solitary race weekend appearance at the 1981 British Grand Prix
, where Piquet set a qualifying time 0.7 seconds slower than his effort in the Cosworth DFV
-powered BT49. The BT50 handled poorly but recorded 192 miles per hour (309 km/h) through the speed trap, some 15 miles per hour (24.1 km/h) faster than the BT49. Meanwhile, Brabham won the Drivers' Championship with Piquet, who drove the BT49 throughout the season.
with two BMW-powered BT50 chassis at the South African Grand Prix
, where Piquet and Patrese qualified second and fourth respectively, but retired early in the race. Team principal Bernie Ecclestone
was under pressure from the team's title sponsor, Parmalat
, to defend Piquet's championship, and opted to race with the Cosworth-powered BT49 chassis at the Brazilian Grand Prix
, which Piquet won but was later disqualified for circumventing the minimum weight limit by running "water-cooled brakes". Both drivers also raced the BT49 at the Long Beach Grand Prix
, and the team boycotted the San Marino Grand Prix
as part of the ongoing FISA–FOCA war. For the following race, the Belgian Grand Prix
, Piquet and Patrese switched back to the BT50, but Piquet finished three laps behind the winner and Patrese retired. As the relationship between Brabham, BMW and Parmalat became strained, Ecclestone was forced to compromise, with Piquet continuing development of the BT50 whilst Patrese raced with the Cosworth chassis. At the Monaco Grand Prix
, Patrese won, whilst Piquet was more than two seconds slower in qualifying and retired from the race. In Detroit, engine reliability problems prevented Piquet from qualifying.
Brabham's fortunes suddenly improved, however, at the next race in Canada
, where the cool conditions suited the turbocharged engines and allowed Piquet to lead home Patrese (still in the BT49), to record BMW's first Formula One victory. For the remainder of the season, both drivers raced with the BT50, and used Murray's radical strategy of a planned pit stop for refuelling mid-way through the race to run at the front of the field on numerous occasions. The car was still unreliable, though, restricting Piquet and Patrese to just four further finishes before the end of the season. The BMW engine's competitiveness was shown by the fact that Piquet retired from the lead of the British
, French
and German
Grands Prix, whilst Patrese likewise retired from the lead of the Austrian Grand Prix
. Patrese also secured BMW's first fastest lap at the French Grand Prix, whilst Piquet took the marque's maiden pole position
at the Austrian race.
Formula One
Formula One, also known as Formula 1 or F1 and referred to officially as the FIA Formula One World Championship, is the highest class of single seater auto racing sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . The "formula" designation in the name refers to a set of rules with which...
racing car designed and raced by the Brabham team. The car, powered by the four-cylinder 1.5 litre turbocharged BMW engine, raced in the 1982 Formula One season
1982 Formula One season
The 1982 Formula One season was the 33rd FIA Formula One World Championship season. It commenced on January 23, 1982, and ended on September 25 after sixteen races. The World Drivers' Championship was won by Williams driver Keke Rosberg. Rosberg was the first driver since Mike Hawthorn in the 1958...
.
Design and development
The BT50 featured a longer wheelbase and a larger fuel cell than the preceding Cosworth-powered BT49Brabham BT49
The Brabham BT49 is a Formula One racing car designed by South African Gordon Murray for the British Brabham team. The BT49 competed in the to Formula One World Championships and was used by Brazilian driver Nelson Piquet to win his first World Championship in .The car was initially designed in...
, to accommodate the requirements of the more powerful turbo engine, and was also one of the first Formula One cars to feature onboard telemetry
Telemetry
Telemetry is a technology that allows measurements to be made at a distance, usually via radio wave transmission and reception of the information. The word is derived from Greek roots: tele = remote, and metron = measure...
as a means of monitoring the engine's fuel injection. The team's lead driver, Nelson Piquet
Nelson Piquet
Nelson Piquet Souto Maior , known as Nelson Piquet, is a Brazilian former racing driver. He was Formula One world champion in , and . He is one of eight drivers to win three or more world championships, the others being Jack Brabham, Jackie Stewart, Niki Lauda, Ayrton Senna , Alain Prost , Juan...
, tested the BT50 throughout 1981, but the car proved chronically unreliable until Bosch introduced a digital electronic management system at the end of the year, which immediately improved the situation. The BT50 made a solitary race weekend appearance at the 1981 British Grand Prix
1981 British Grand Prix
The 1981 British Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Silverstone on July 18, 1981. John Watson won his first race for five years, and McLaren's first since James Hunt's victory at the 1977 United States Grand Prix...
, where Piquet set a qualifying time 0.7 seconds slower than his effort in the Cosworth DFV
Cosworth DFV
The DFV is an internal combustion engine that was originally produced by Cosworth for Formula One motor racing. Named Four Valve because of the four valves per cylinder, and Double as it was a V8 development of the earlier, four-cylinder FVA , making it a Double Four Valve engine...
-powered BT49. The BT50 handled poorly but recorded 192 miles per hour (309 km/h) through the speed trap, some 15 miles per hour (24.1 km/h) faster than the BT49. Meanwhile, Brabham won the Drivers' Championship with Piquet, who drove the BT49 throughout the season.
Race history
Brabham began the 1982 season1982 Formula One season
The 1982 Formula One season was the 33rd FIA Formula One World Championship season. It commenced on January 23, 1982, and ended on September 25 after sixteen races. The World Drivers' Championship was won by Williams driver Keke Rosberg. Rosberg was the first driver since Mike Hawthorn in the 1958...
with two BMW-powered BT50 chassis at the South African Grand Prix
1982 South African Grand Prix
The 1982 South African Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Kyalami on 23 January 1982. Turbo-charged cars took the first six positions on the grid...
, where Piquet and Patrese qualified second and fourth respectively, but retired early in the race. Team principal Bernie Ecclestone
Bernie Ecclestone
Bernard Charles "Bernie" Ecclestone is an English business magnate, as president and CEO of Formula One Management and Formula One Administration and through his part-ownership of Alpha Prema, the parent company of the Formula One Group of companies. As such, he is generally considered the primary...
was under pressure from the team's title sponsor, Parmalat
Parmalat
Parmalat SpA is a multinational Italian dairy and food corporation. Having become the leading global company in the production of ultra high temperature milk, the company collapsed in 2003 with a €14 billion hole in its accounts in what remains Europe's biggest bankruptcy...
, to defend Piquet's championship, and opted to race with the Cosworth-powered BT49 chassis at the Brazilian Grand Prix
1982 Brazilian Grand Prix
The 1982 Brazilian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Jacarepaguá on March 21, 1982. It was the second round of the 1982 Formula One season....
, which Piquet won but was later disqualified for circumventing the minimum weight limit by running "water-cooled brakes". Both drivers also raced the BT49 at the Long Beach Grand Prix
1982 United States Grand Prix West
The 1982 United States Grand Prix West was a Formula One race held on April 4, 1982 at the temporary street circuit at Long Beach, California.__FORCETOC__-Summary:...
, and the team boycotted the San Marino Grand Prix
1982 San Marino Grand Prix
The 1982 San Marino Grand Prix was the fourth race of the 1982 Formula One World Championship. It was held on the weekend of April 23–25, 1982 at the Autodromo Dino Ferrari, Imola...
as part of the ongoing FISA–FOCA war. For the following race, the Belgian Grand Prix
1982 Belgian Grand Prix
The 1982 Belgian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Zolder on May 9, 1982. It was the fifth round of the 1982 Formula One season.-Qualifying:...
, Piquet and Patrese switched back to the BT50, but Piquet finished three laps behind the winner and Patrese retired. As the relationship between Brabham, BMW and Parmalat became strained, Ecclestone was forced to compromise, with Piquet continuing development of the BT50 whilst Patrese raced with the Cosworth chassis. At the Monaco Grand Prix
1982 Monaco Grand Prix
The 1982 Monaco Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Monaco on May 23, 1982.This was the first race following the death of Gilles Villeneuve at the Belgian Grand Prix; consequently Ferrari entered only one driver, Didier Pironi....
, Patrese won, whilst Piquet was more than two seconds slower in qualifying and retired from the race. In Detroit, engine reliability problems prevented Piquet from qualifying.
Brabham's fortunes suddenly improved, however, at the next race in Canada
1982 Canadian Grand Prix
The 1982 Canadian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on June 13, 1982. Riccardo Paletti was killed at the start of the race, when his car ran into the back of the stationary Ferrari of Didier Pironi who had stalled on the grid...
, where the cool conditions suited the turbocharged engines and allowed Piquet to lead home Patrese (still in the BT49), to record BMW's first Formula One victory. For the remainder of the season, both drivers raced with the BT50, and used Murray's radical strategy of a planned pit stop for refuelling mid-way through the race to run at the front of the field on numerous occasions. The car was still unreliable, though, restricting Piquet and Patrese to just four further finishes before the end of the season. The BMW engine's competitiveness was shown by the fact that Piquet retired from the lead of the British
1982 British Grand Prix
The 1982 British Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Brands Hatch on July 18, 1982.- Classification :-Standings after the race:Drivers' Championship standingsConstructors' Championship standings...
, French
1982 French Grand Prix
The 1982 French Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Paul Ricard on July 25, 1982. Six turbo-charged cars completed the first 6 grid positions, and 4 turbo-charged cars driven by 4 French drivers finished in the top 4 places, and the French Renault team finished 1-2 with René Arnoux...
and German
1982 German Grand Prix
The 1982 German Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Hockenheimring on 8 August 1982. It was won by Patrick Tambay for Scuderia Ferrari.-Race report:...
Grands Prix, whilst Patrese likewise retired from the lead of the Austrian Grand Prix
1982 Austrian Grand Prix
The 1982 Austrian Grand Prix was a Formula One World Championship race held on 15 August 1982 at the Österreichring in Spielberg, Styria, Austria. The race was won by Lotus' Elio de Angelis, who held off Keke Rosberg's Williams to win by just 0.050 seconds, or less than half a car length.- Report...
. Patrese also secured BMW's first fastest lap at the French Grand Prix, whilst Piquet took the marque's maiden pole position
Pole position
The term "pole position", as used in motorsports, comes from the horse racing term where the number one starter starts on the inside next to the inside pole. The term made its way, along with several other customs, to auto racing. In circuit motorsports, a driver has pole position when he or she...
at the Austrian race.