Prost Grand Prix

Prost Grand Prix is old a stable of Formule 1 French (in the past Ligier) founded and directed by Alain Prost in 1997 until in 2001.

History

Prost Grand Prix is the emanation of the old stable Ligier. The latter, property of the director of the stable of Formula 1 Benetton Flavio Briatore since the spring 1994 (which only repurchases the stable to recover the driving contract with Renault Sport then to resell it), is repurchased on February 13rd 1997 for 12 million dollars by the old driver of Formula 1 Alain Prost, which renames it of its name. The repurchase of Ligier by Prost is accompanied by a partnership paying one three seasons duration signed with Peugeot Sport, as from the season of Formula 1 1998. Prost counted upon the beginning on an engagement with supply of free engines over five seasons of Peugeot, like the majority of the partnerships with a large manufacturer, but the motor mechanic east charms himself at the last time.

While waiting, the stable Prost Grand Prix carries out its beginnings Formulates of them 1 in Championnat of the world of Formula 1 1997 with engines Mugen-Honda, a frame initials JS45 (JS being the traditional code name of the single-seaters Ligier), and of the Pneumatique S Bridgestone (Flavio Briatore had managed to take down a profitable partnership of stable of development with the Japanese manufacturer before selling the stable to Alain Prost). This first season is more than promising since Olivier Panis point a time in the third place of the championship before being victim of a serious accident to the Grand Prix of Canada. Its substitute, the Italy N Jarno Trulli, will also highlight himself by carrying out the Grand Prix of Austria later in the season.

The season 1998 is that of the true beginnings of the stable, which starts its partnership with Peugeot Sport and aligns its first single-seater, the F1 Prost AP 01. Prost GP logically loses its statute of stable of development Bridgestone with the profit of McLaren-Mercedes. But the season turns to the fiasco, with only one small point marked by Jarno Trulli with the Grand Prix of Belgium under the rain. In 1999, with the F1 Prost AP 02, the performances improve (let us announce in particular the podium of Jarno Trulli to the Nurburgring at the time of a race become lottery) while Peugeot starts to wonder about following giving to its engagement Formulates 1 of them.

The year 2000 is that of the rupture between Prost and Peugeot. While the pilots Jean Alesi and Nick Heidfeld must fight with a restive single-seater (they will not mark the least point of all the season), the stable is torn by the internal struggles between Prost and its motor mechanic. The conflict culminates during the first tests of the Grand Prix of France, with a short strike symbolic system of the men of Peugeot, wearied criticisms regular in their opposition. Without surprise, Peugeot announces its withdrawal of Formula 1 while Prost GP is in the obligation to find another motor mechanic for 2001.

For 2001, Prost GP signs a driving supply agreement with Ferrari. V10 Ferrari 049C (rebadgé “Acer” of the name of a sponsor of the stable) is a pledge of performance and reliability, but its price (Ferrari is much more expensive than Peugeot A20, with an invoice of 28 million dollars only for the season 2001), comes to weigh down the budget of a team which lost many sponsors, in particular the sponsor titrates, during the last months. The stable passes to the tires Michelin. Sign times, Prost GP is obliged to engage the paying pilot Argentinian Gaston Mazzacane to try to buckle its budget.

Alesi will obtain excellent times during the tests of intersaisons thanks to ultra-tender gums provided by the manufacturer of tires, and this in order to help Prost to attract new sponsors. But it will be a springtide far from the best, and which will be marked by many changes of pilots: the swift not very Mazzacane is quickly replaced by Luciano Burti coming from Jaguar Racing, following an agreement of beginning of the season with this stable which took Pedro of Rosa like her sponsor Repsol in Prost right before the first GP; Burti itself will be replaced by Tomáš Enge after an accident with the GP of Belgium; as for Jean Alesi, it will claquera the door at semi-season to be replaced by Heinz-Harald Frentzen.

The stable is finally placed in Compulsory liquidation the January 15th 2002 (cf Jean-Luc Gripond).

Pilots

1997 : Olivier Panic grass, Shinji Nakano, Jarno Trulli
1998: Olivier Panic grass, Jarno Trulli
1999: Olivier Panic grass, Jarno Trulli
2000: Jean Alesi, Nick Heidfeld
2001: Jean Alesi, Gaston Mazzacane, Luciano Burti, Heinz-Harald Frentzen, Tomáš Enge

Results with the championship of the world of the manufacturers

Principal results

Second place :

1997: Grand Prix of Spain
1999: Grand Prix of Europe

Third place :

1997: Grand Prix of Brazil

Fourth place :

1997: Grand Prix of Monaco
1997: Grand Prix of Germany

Fifth place :

1997: Grand Prix of Australia
2001: Grand Prix of Canada

Sixth place :

1997: Grand Prix of Canada
1997: Grand Prix of Hungary
1997: Grand Prix of Luxembourg
1998: Grand Prix of Belgium
1999: Grand Prix of Brazil
1999: Grand Prix of Spain
1999: Grand Prix of Germany
2001: Grand Prix of Monaco
2001: Grand Prix of Germany

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