Paul Stoddart
Encyclopedia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n millionaire airline magnate, and former owner of the Minardi
Minardi
Minardi was an automobile racing team and constructor founded in 1979 by Giancarlo Minardi. It competed in the Formula One World Championship from 1985 until 2005 with little success, nevertheless acquiring a loyal following of fans...
Formula One
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 team. He later took the Minardi brand into the Champ Car World Series after his purchase of a portion of CTE-HVM Racing
CTE-HVM Racing
HVM Racing is an auto racing team owned by Keith Wiggins that competes in the IndyCar Series. It competed in the Champ Car World Series in 2007 as Minardi Team USA when it was co-owned by Paul Stoddart...
which he renamed Minardi Team USA for 2007.
Early life and establishment of European Aviation
Born in CoburgCoburg, Victoria
Coburg is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 8 km north from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Moreland, although a handful of properties on Coburg's Eastern boundary are located in the City of Darebin...
, Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, and attended Preston Technical School and St Joseph's College Melbourne. Stoddart's first business was a car dealership; he was a racing patron from the start and entered a number of his own GT cars in various local competitions. He was later based in England and was the Yugo car distributor for the UK and also had a hire car detailing business in Manchester detailing the ex-hire cars before sale to the public.
In late 1989, Stoddart purchased both BAC 1-11 aircraft (and three Falcon 20 business jets and a large spares package for both types) from the Royal Australian Air Force, Canberra based No 34 SQN, the VIP Squadron, intending to sell the BAC 1-11 to a VIP operator or charter service in the UK/Africa. The Falcon 20 aircraft were onsold from his Sydney base, at Hawker Pacific Mascot, to civilian buyers. The first BAC1-11 was flown to England in April 1990 with the second following in 1991. He bought a number of BAC 1-11 aircraft from DAN AIR forming European Aviation, but soon after this, British Airways dumped all of its BAC 1-11 onto the market drowning it. He had some success as a VIP charter service using the BAC 1-11.
Historic racing
Stoddart returned to racing in 1996 when he purchased ten old TyrrellTyrrell Racing
The Tyrrell Racing Organisation was an auto racing team and Formula One constructor founded by Ken Tyrrell which started racing in 1958 and started building its own cars in 1970. The team experienced its greatest success in the early 1970s, when it won three drivers' championships and one...
F1 cars, a Minardi
Minardi
Minardi was an automobile racing team and constructor founded in 1979 by Giancarlo Minardi. It competed in the Formula One World Championship from 1985 until 2005 with little success, nevertheless acquiring a loyal following of fans...
, a Benetton
Benetton Formula
Benetton Formula Ltd., commonly referred to simply as Benetton, was a Formula One constructor that participated from to . The team was owned by the Benetton family who run a worldwide chain of clothing stores of the same name. In 2000 the team was purchased by Renault, but competed as Benetton for...
, and a Brabham for his own use. European Aviation sponsored Tyrrell in 1997; the same year, Stoddart entered his numerous F1 cars in an F1 Historical Championship; he established his own team, European Formula Racing, whose driver Nigel Greensall won the championship in 1997 and 1998.
Formula One sponsor
Tyrrell had almost adopted Stoddart and European Aviation as a technical partner, and were planning a team wind tunnel at the company's headquarters, when in early 1998, British American TobaccoBritish American Tobacco
British American Tobacco p.l.c. is a global tobacco company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the world’s second largest quoted tobacco company by global market share , with a leading position in more than 50 countries and a presence in more than 180 countries...
bought out the Tyrrell family and established its own team, British American Racing
British American Racing
British American Racing was a Formula One constructor that competed in the sport from 1999 to 2005. BAR began by acquiring Tyrrell, and used Supertec engines for their first year...
. Stoddart bought much of the old Tyrrell equipment and became a sponsor of Jordan Grand Prix
Jordan Grand Prix
Jordan Grand Prix was a Formula One constructor that competed from 1991 to 2005. The team is named after Irish businessman and founder Eddie Jordan...
in 1999; he also entered two drivers in the Formula 3000 championship.
European Aviation moved on to sponsor Arrows
Arrows
Arrows Grand Prix International was a British Formula One team active from to . For a period of time, it was also known as Footwork.-Origins :...
in and his European Racing became the Arrows Junior Team, with driver Mark Webber
Mark Webber
Mark Alan Webber is an Australian Formula One driver.After some racing success in Australia, Webber moved to the United Kingdom in 1995 to further his motorsport career...
.
Minardi team owner
Stoddart realized his dream to become a Formula One team owner when Minardi shareholder Gabriele Rumi sold out to him shortly before the season began. Under Stoddart, the team struggled from 2001 to , remaining a perennial backmarker due to its shortage of lucrative sponsorship. Stoddart almost sold European Aviation at the end of 2002 and Wilux became Minardi's title sponsor. Longtime Minardi sporting director John Walton died on the eve of the 2004 British Grand Prix2004 British Grand Prix
The 2004 British Grand Prix was a Formula One race held on 11 July 2004 at the Silverstone Circuit.__FORCETOC__- Qualifying :-Race:- Notes :* Lap Leaders: Kimi Räikkönen 11 and Michael Schumacher 49...
; the team ran a sponsor-free tribute livery for that race, but Wilux subsequently ended its sponsorship, stating that they would rather have been informed beforehand. A lack of sponsorship once again left Minardi's future very much in doubt. For most of what would turn out to be Minardi's final season on the grid, the black cars were emblazoned with OzJet
OzJet
Ozjet Airlines Pty Ltd was a scheduled and charter airline with its head office in Tullamarine, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, operating within Australasia from Melbourne Airport, Sydney Airport and Perth Airport. In 2008 the airline was sold to HeavyLift Cargo Airlines, and on 20 May 2009 it...
, a three aircraft Boeing 737-300 business class only airline in Australia owned by Stoddart, that flew for a few months but is now operating as a Charter service. On 12 September 2005, Stoddart announced that he had sold his team to Red Bull Racing
Red Bull Racing
Red Bull Racing is a Formula One racing team based in Milton Keynes, England which currently holds an Austrian licence. It is, along with Scuderia Toro Rosso, one of two teams owned by beverage company Red Bull GmbH. The team have won two Constructors' Championship titles, in and , becoming the...
owner Dietrich Mateschitz
Dietrich Mateschitz
Dietrich Mateschitz is an Austrian businessman who co-founded the Red Bull energy drink company and holds 49 per cent of the company's shares.-Biography:...
.
In March 2006, less than a year after selling his team to Red Bull, Stoddart announced his intentions to return the Minardi name to Formula One after lodging an entry with the FIA
Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile
The Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile is a non-profit association established as the Association Internationale des Automobile Clubs Reconnus on 20 June 1904 to represent the interests of motoring organisations and motor car users...
for the championship season. However, rival entry Prodrive
Prodrive F1
Prodrive F1 Team is the name of a proposed Formula One team to be run by Prodrive. The team was selected by the FIA in 2006 to be the 12th entry into the 2008 Formula One world championship...
were awarded the 12th and final place on the grid (which they ultimately did not use).
Move to North America
In December 2006 Stoddart purchased the CTE-HVM ChampCar team which he renamed Minardi Team USA - Giancarlo MinardiGiancarlo Minardi
Giancarlo Minardi is the founder and former Managing Director of the now-defunct Minardi Formula One team.Minardi was born in Faenza , Italy and has spent his life with cars. As a young boy, his family managed a Fiat dealership and an Agip fuel station, and currently manages Iveco and Selenia...
retains the rights to use the name in some formulae and markets, Stoddart in others. The team was successful, Robert Doornbos
Robert Doornbos
Robert Michael Doornbos is a Dutch racing driver. He has been test and third driver for the Jordan and Red Bull Racing Formula One teams, as well as driving for Minardi and Red Bull Racing in 2005 and 2006. Doornbos then drove for Minardi Team USA in the 2007 and final season of the Champ Car...
finishing 3rd overall and taking the Rookie of the Year honours. However, a month before the 2008 season, ChampCar was absorbed by the rival Indy Racing League. Although enthusiastic about the future of the series, Stoddart opted not to enter it, fearing that he and the other ex-ChampCar teams would be unable to be competitive. However, the half of the team owned by Keith Wiggins
Keith Wiggins
Keith Wiggins is a motor racing team owner born in Great Britain.Born in London, England in 1958, Keith began his racing career while at school as a kart driver in 1973. He was selected as a member of the British International Kart Team for 1975-76...
continued on as HVM Racing in the IRL.