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David Richards (motorsport executive)

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David Richards
CBE
Richards in 2005
NationalityBritish
Occupation(s)Chairman of Prodrive
Chairman of Motorsport UK
former Chairman of Aston Martin
World Rally Championship record
Active years1974–1981
TeamsFord
Rallies25
Championships1 (1981)
Rally wins4
Podiums11
Stage wins198
First rally1974 RAC Rally
First win1980 Acropolis Rally
Last win1981 1000 Lakes Rally
Last rally1981 RAC Rally

David Pender Richards CBE is the chairman of Prodrive and chairman of Motorsport UK. He is former chairman of Aston Martin and a former team principal of the BAR and Benetton Formula One teams.

Rally driving

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Richards won the 1981 World Rally Championship as a co-driver to Ari Vatanen.[1][better source needed]

Prodrive circuit racing

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In 1987 Prodrive entered into what was to become a long-standing partnership with BMW in the British Touring Car Championship. They took the Class B title three times, from 1988 to 1990, winning outright in 1988 with Frank Sytner.[2]

Formula One

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Jacques Villeneuve driving for the then Prodrive-run BAR team at the US Grand Prix at Indianapolis in 2003

Richards became chief executive of Benetton Formula in 1998, replacing Flavio Briatore.[3] He left after just a year in his post and was replaced by Rocco Benetton for 1999.[3]

When the British American Racing (BAR) team was restructuring after the departure of Craig Pollock in 2001, the owners, British American Tobacco (BAT), brought in Prodrive to run the team with Richards as its team principal. Under his direction there was an immediate improvement in performance, ultimately leading to the team taking second place in the 2004 F1 Constructors' Championship. Richards also brought Jenson Button to the team and made him lead driver, providing the majority of their championship points in 2004. This success led to BAT selling a 45% share of the team to Honda in late 2004. With Prodrive having completed its management contract with BAT, Richards stood down as team principal and Prodrive's then managing director Nick Fry assumed this role.[4]

His Prodrive company entered a bid to enter a Formula One team for the 2008 season and on 28 April 2006, Prodrive were officially granted entry when the FIA announced the list of entrants to the 2008 Formula One World Championship.[5] However, on 22 November 2007, he was forced to announce that Prodrive F1 would not be competing in the 2008 Formula One World Championship after a lack of clarity over the legality of 'customer cars' and the threat of possible legal action.[6]

Aston Martin

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On 12 March 2007, Richards led a consortium of investors including Investment Dar and Adeem Investment, raising $925 million to finance the purchase of Aston Martin from Ford. Richards subsequently became chairman of the car company. He stepped down from this role at the end of 2013.[7]

Personal life

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On 16 September 2007 Richards and his wife, Karen, survived a forced landing in their helicopter in Essex whilst returning from the 2007 Belgian Grand Prix, less than 24 hours after his former WRC driver, Colin McRae, perished in a similar accident along with his son and two others.[8] Based on Prodrive's statement after the incident, Richards was piloting Prodrive's Eurocopter EC 135. Both Richards and his wife Karen walked away unharmed.[9]

In the 2005 New Year Honours, Richards was appointed a CBE for his services to motorsport.[10] In 2017, he was inducted into the Motor Sport Hall of Fame and received the Spirit of Le Mans award from the Automobile Club de l’Ouest (ACO).[citation needed] In 2019 he received the Autocar Outstanding Leader Award.[citation needed] Cranfield School of Management awarded Richards an Honorary Doctor of Science degree in 2008.[11]

Footnotes

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  1. ^ "Season 1981 rally". ewrc-results.com. Retrieved 8 May 2024.
  2. ^ "Company History". Prodrive.com. Archived from the original on 27 September 2013. Retrieved 26 September 2013.
  3. ^ a b "Benetton boss steps down". BBC News. 30 October 1998. Archived from the original on 16 February 2023. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  4. ^ Cropley, S (10 November 2004). "Out, but not down". Autocar: 72–73.
  5. ^ "2008 FIA Formula One World Championship Entry List". Archived from the original on 22 June 2007.
  6. ^ "Prodrive no-go for 2008".
  7. ^ Bradley, Charles (5 February 2016). "Sixty-car grid confirmed for 2016 Le Mans 24 Hours". Motorsport. Retrieved 5 February 2016.
  8. ^ "Rally boss in helicopter escape". BBC News. 16 September 2007. Retrieved 2 January 2010.
  9. ^ "AAIB investigation into helicopter crash".
  10. ^ "Supplement 57509, 31 December 2004". The London Gazette. 30 December 2004. Archived from the original on 1 May 2020. Retrieved 14 August 2020.
  11. ^ "Cranfield University Hon Grad". Archived from the original on 7 August 2011. Retrieved 11 November 2008.

References

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