English F1 engine builder Brian Hart dies at 77 - MotorSportsTalk

Brian Hart, an English Formula One engine builder, has died today at the age of 77. Hart’s lightweight creations always seemed to punch above their weight.

He competed in several non-championship F1 races as a driver in the 1950s through 1960s, and made a single Grand Prix start in the 1967 German Grand Prix.

Where he excelled was in engine construction, with the creation of Brian Hart Limited in 1969. Hart first worked with Cosworth after serving an apprenticeship at the de Havilland aircraft company in Hatfield. Hart-tuned Ford Cosworths did well in the 1970s and in 1981, he entered Formula One with a 1.5-liter, 4-cylinder turbocharged engine to supply the also-new Toleman team.

Hart-built engines powered Toleman until the team was sold to Benetton (this is now the current Lotus squad), and also the RAM, Haas Lola and Tyrrell teams in the 1980s before turbocharging was banned at the end of 1988. One of the highlights in that stint was Ayrton Senna’s runner-up finish in the rain-shortened 1984 Monaco Grand Prix.

In the 1990s, Hart returned in the normally aspirated era with Jordan and Arrows. Less success followed although there were two additional podiums, when Rubens Barrichello came third in the 1994 Pacific Grand Prix and Gianni Morbidelli took the marque’s final podium in the 1995 Australian Grand Prix. Hart’s last two years in F1 came when his V10s were badged as Arrows in 1998 and 1999, and Brian Hart Limited was sold to Arrows team boss Tom Walkinshaw.

Interestingly, the one year a Hart powerplant didn’t supply Arrows from 1995 through 1999 was in 1997, when Walkinshaw’s team signed reigning World Champion Damon Hill and switched to Yamahas. Hart powered Minardi’s entries that year.

Gary Anderson, a veteran designer who worked with the Jordan-Hart operation in 1993 and 1994, told Autosport, “There was nothing in the world as satisfying for Brian Hart and myself as taking on the big boys who had 10 times the budget and showing them up on Sunday afternoon!”

Meanwhile Taki Inoue, who drove the Arrows-Hart in 1995 and is better known now for his candid, humorous style on Twitter, had this genuine tribute:

Formula 1 engine builder Brian Hart dies. Thank you for all your passions to Motorsport. I’m proud of having raced with your engine.

— Taki Inoue (@takiinoue) January 6, 2014

Follow @TonyDiZinno

Ryan Hunter-Reay was named to replace Conor Daly in Ed Carpenter Racing’s No. 20 Dallara-Chevrolet, starting in the NTT IndyCar Series event next week at Road America.

Hunter-Reay is the 2012 series champion and 2014 Indianapolis 500 winner. He finished 11th for Dreyer & Reinbold last month in the 107th Indy 500, his first start since the 2021 season finale. He drove full time for Andretti Autosport from 2010-21.

“We need to improve our competitiveness and I wanted to add a fresh perspective from a driver like Ryan who has a massive amount of experience and success as well as a reputation as a team leader. I am excited to welcome Ryan to the team,” team owner Ed Carpenter said in a team release. “We have worked together in the past as teammates and he tested for ECR at Barber Motorsports Park in October 2021, where he made an immediate impact as we were able to qualify one of our cars on the pole following that test. I am confident that his experience and technical abilities will be an asset to ECR as we move forward toward our goals as a team.”

Hunter-Reay has 18 IndyCar victories, most recently in 2018. He also is a winner in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, having been a part of winning entries in the 2020 Twelve Hours of Sebring and 2018 Petit Le Mans. Last year, he was an endurance driver for Cadillac Racing while being on standby for Chip Ganassi Racing.

He replaces Daly, whose departure was announced a day earlier in what the driver and team said was a mutual decision.

“I was surprised when I got the call from Ed,” Hunter-Reay said in a team release. “He described how frustrated he was that his team has not been able to realize its potential despite their efforts, investments, as well as technical and personnel changes over the past few years and asked for my help. Ed and I are very close friends and have been for a long time. I’ve worked with the team in the past and they are a very talented group with high expectations and a committed partner in BITNILE.COM.

“This will certainly be a challenge for me as well. It’s a tough situation jumping in a car in the middle of the season without any testing in what I believe to be the most competitive series in the world. Certainly, part of my motivation in saying ‘yes’ to Ed is the great challenge ahead. The last time I turned right driving an NTT IndyCar Series car was in October of 2021 with this team at Barber. However, I remain very confident in both my driving and technical abilities and believe by working with the talented people at ECR and Team Chevy, while representing BITNILE.COM, we will make progress. I am going to do everything I can do to help the team achieve its long-term objectives.”

Said Milton “Todd” Ault, the chairman of sponsor BitNile.com: “It is great for BitNile.com to be aligned with an Indy 500 Winner and an NTT IndyCar Series champion. I have followed Ryan’s career for years and I am confident he will challenge the entire ECR team to perform at higher levels. I wish everyone luck at Road America.”