Peter Warr
Encyclopedia
Peter E. Warr was an English businessman, racing driver and a manager for several Formula One
teams, including Walter Wolf Racing
, Fittipaldi Automotive
, and Team Lotus
.
Warr served a period of National Service
as an officer in the Guards Division
of the British Army
, after training at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst
. Following demobilisation he moved into business. Warr joined Lotus Cars
in 1958 as a salesman, soon switching to sister company Lotus Components where he handled sales of the company's customer racing cars, quickly rising to become Managing Director. During this period he also enjoyed a career as a racing driver, driving the same Lotus 18
Formula Junior
cars that he sold during his day job. As a driver he did not reach Formula One, but he won a Formula Junior race in a Lotus 20
on the 4.8-mile south circuit at the Nurburgring
on 28 April 1962, and is famous as the first winner of the Japanese Grand Prix
in 1963, driving one of his employer's Lotus 23
sportscars.
Warr was selected by Colin Chapman
in late 1969 to be Team Lotus
' Competitions Manager in Formula One, and helped mastermind Jochen Rindt
and Emerson Fittipaldi
's World Championships in and , respectively. At the end of 1976 Warr moved to the new team set up by Canadian oil magnate Walter Wolf, and oversaw a very successful first year in which Jody Scheckter
won three races and challenged for the World Championship. Wolf's fortunes flagged and at the end of 1979 was merged with the Copersucar Fittipaldi team. By mid 1981 Chapman had enticed Warr back to Lotus, where he would remain until 1989.
After Chapman's death, Warr took over the role of the team boss. He hired a young Ayrton Senna
as a driver against the wishes of John Player & Sons
(JPS), the team's main sponsor, which wanted to keep Nigel Mansell
. After the 1984 Monaco Grand Prix
, in which Mansell crashed out of the lead, Warr famously stated that "he'll never win a Grand Prix as long as I have a hole in my arse". Mansell went on to be the most successful British Formula One driver of all-time with 31 race wins and becoming the only driver ever to hold F1 and CART titles at the same time.
After a poor start to the 1989 season, Warr was asked to stand down as Lotus boss and was replaced by Rupert Mainwaring and Peter Collins.
Warr died suddenly of a heart attack
on 4 October 2010, in France. The sport's commercial rights holder and former Brabham team principal, Bernie Ecclestone
, paid tribute to Warr's importance to Formula One, saying that "he helped me to build it to what it is today".
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...
teams, including Walter Wolf Racing
Walter Wolf Racing
Walter Wolf Racing was a Formula One constructor from 1977 to 1980, notable for winning the very first race the team entered.-1975-77:In 1975, the Slovenian-Austrian-Canadian businessman Walter Wolf had started to appear at many of the F1 races during the season. A year later, he bought 60% of...
, Fittipaldi Automotive
Fittipaldi Automotive
Fittipaldi Automotive, sometimes called Copersucar after its first major sponsor, was the only Formula One motor racing team and constructor ever to be based in Brazil. It was formed during 1974 by racing driver Wilson Fittipaldi and his younger brother, double world champion Emerson, with money...
, and Team Lotus
Team Lotus
Team Lotus was the motorsport sister company of English sports car manufacturer Lotus Cars. The team ran cars in many motorsport series including Formula One, Formula Two, Formula Ford, Formula Junior, IndyCar and sports car racing...
.
Warr served a period of National Service
National service
National service is a common name for mandatory government service programmes . The term became common British usage during and for some years following the Second World War. Many young people spent one or more years in such programmes...
as an officer in the Guards Division
Guards Division
The Guards Division is an administrative unit of the British Army responsible for the administration of the regiments of Foot Guards and the London Regiment.-Introduction:...
of the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
, after training at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst
Royal Military Academy Sandhurst
The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst , commonly known simply as Sandhurst, is a British Army officer initial training centre located in Sandhurst, Berkshire, England...
. Following demobilisation he moved into business. Warr joined Lotus Cars
Lotus Cars
Lotus Cars is a British manufacturer of sports and racing cars based at the former site of RAF Hethel, a World War II airfield in Norfolk. The company designs and builds race and production automobiles of light weight and fine handling characteristics...
in 1958 as a salesman, soon switching to sister company Lotus Components where he handled sales of the company's customer racing cars, quickly rising to become Managing Director. During this period he also enjoyed a career as a racing driver, driving the same Lotus 18
Lotus 18
The Lotus 18 was a race car designed by Colin Chapman for use by Lotus in Formula Junior, Formula Two, and Formula One. It was the first mid-engined car built by Lotus and was a marked improvement over Chapman's early and only moderately successful front-engined formula cars, the 12 and 16. It was...
Formula Junior
Formula Junior
Formula Junior is an open wheel formula racing class first adopted in October 1958 by the CSI . The class was intended to provide an entry level class where you could use inexpensive mechanical components from ordinary automobiles...
cars that he sold during his day job. As a driver he did not reach Formula One, but he won a Formula Junior race in a Lotus 20
Lotus 20
Lotus 20 was a Formula Junior car built by Lotus for the 1962 season as a successor to the Lotus 18.The chassis was a spaceframe, clothed in fibreglass bodywork. It had front double wishbone suspension, but the rear had a lower wishbone with the driveshaft being fixed length and therefore used as...
on the 4.8-mile south circuit at the Nurburgring
Nürburgring
The Nürburgring is a motorsport complex around the village of Nürburg, Germany. It features a modern Grand Prix race track built in 1984, and a much longer old North loop track which was built in the 1920s around the village and medieval castle of Nürburg in the Eifel mountains. It is located about...
on 28 April 1962, and is famous as the first winner of the Japanese Grand Prix
Japanese Grand Prix
The is a race in the calendar of the FIA Formula One World Championship. Traditionally one of the last, if not the last race of the season, the Japanese Grand Prix has been the venue for many title-deciding races, with 13 World Champions being crowned over the 27 World Championship Japanese...
in 1963, driving one of his employer's Lotus 23
Lotus 23
The Lotus 23 was designed by Colin Chapman as a small-displacement sports racing car. Nominally a two-seater , it was a purpose-built for racing with a driver alone. The 23 used a wider version of the Lotus 20 space frame, with the same suspension, clothed in a fibreglass body...
sportscars.
Warr was selected by Colin Chapman
Colin Chapman
Anthony Colin Bruce Chapman CBE was an influential British designer, inventor, and builder in the automotive industry, and founder of Lotus Cars....
in late 1969 to be Team Lotus
Team Lotus
Team Lotus was the motorsport sister company of English sports car manufacturer Lotus Cars. The team ran cars in many motorsport series including Formula One, Formula Two, Formula Ford, Formula Junior, IndyCar and sports car racing...
' Competitions Manager in Formula One, and helped mastermind Jochen Rindt
Jochen Rindt
Karl Jochen Rindt was a German racing driver who represented Austria during his career. He is the only driver to posthumously win the Formula One World Drivers' Championship , after being killed in practice for the Italian Grand Prix...
and Emerson Fittipaldi
Emerson Fittipaldi
Emerson Fittipaldi |São Paulo]], Brazil) is a Brazilian automobile racing driver who throughout a long and successful career won the Indianapolis 500 twice and championships in both Formula One and CART.-Early and personal life:...
's World Championships in and , respectively. At the end of 1976 Warr moved to the new team set up by Canadian oil magnate Walter Wolf, and oversaw a very successful first year in which Jody Scheckter
Jody Scheckter
Jody David Scheckter is a South African former auto racing driver, the Formula One World Drivers Champion.-Career:Scheckter was born in East London, South Africa and educated at Selborne College.-Formula One:...
won three races and challenged for the World Championship. Wolf's fortunes flagged and at the end of 1979 was merged with the Copersucar Fittipaldi team. By mid 1981 Chapman had enticed Warr back to Lotus, where he would remain until 1989.
After Chapman's death, Warr took over the role of the team boss. He hired a young Ayrton Senna
Ayrton Senna
Ayrton Senna da Silva was a Brazilian racing driver. A three-time Formula One world champion, he is widely regarded as one of the greatest F1 drivers of all time...
as a driver against the wishes of John Player & Sons
John Player & Sons
John Player & Sons, known simply as Player's, was a tobacco and cigarette manufacturer based in Nottingham, England. It is today a part of the Imperial Tobacco Group.-History:...
(JPS), the team's main sponsor, which wanted to keep Nigel Mansell
Nigel Mansell
Nigel Ernest James Mansell OBE is a British racing driver who won both the Formula One World Championship and the CART Indy Car World Series...
. After the 1984 Monaco Grand Prix
1984 Monaco Grand Prix
The 1984 Monaco Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Monaco on June 3, 1984. It was the sixth round of the 1984 Formula One season.The race, held amidst heavy rain, was one of the most contentious in Formula One history, and announced the emergence of at least two new stars...
, in which Mansell crashed out of the lead, Warr famously stated that "he'll never win a Grand Prix as long as I have a hole in my arse". Mansell went on to be the most successful British Formula One driver of all-time with 31 race wins and becoming the only driver ever to hold F1 and CART titles at the same time.
After a poor start to the 1989 season, Warr was asked to stand down as Lotus boss and was replaced by Rupert Mainwaring and Peter Collins.
Warr died suddenly of a heart attack
Myocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
on 4 October 2010, in France. The sport's commercial rights holder and former Brabham 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...
, paid tribute to Warr's importance to Formula One, saying that "he helped me to build it to what it is today".