BAR Racing (British American Racing) use their BAR/Honda 007 during 2005 Formula One competition. The team had come into existence in 1999. Their top driver had been Jacques Villeneuve, until 2003 when he was replaced by Jenson Button. Takuma Sato served as the teams second driver, a position he had held since 2003. The team had an amazing season in 2004 as thy scored 119 points and managed a very impressive second place finish. This had been their best season to date and they had high hopes for 2005. Nick Fry, the Chief Executive Officer of B.A.R. Honda predicted the new 007 racer would continue the teams success and possibly even be a contender for the World Championship by 2007.

The B.A.R. Honda 007 was unveiled at the Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona, Spain. The team had made serious improvements in the prior season by modifying the aerodynamics and improving engineering standards. The relationship with Honda was a big help, as their engines had greatly improved and their financial support provided the means to become a serious contender.

The 007 brought with it further improvements in build quality, high standards of engineering, and changes to the design. It became smaller and more compact with all of the components integrated even closer to one another throughout the vehicle. As size decreased, so did the overall weight of the vehicle which continued to improve the vehicles power-to-weight ratio.

In 2004 the FIA introduced the two-race rule for the engines. This had proven to be beneficial for the team in 2004 and improvements to the engine continued on into 2005. The engine became lighter, smaller, and positioned to have a better center of gravity. The 3-liter RA005E V10 engine was capable of producing 900 horsepower. It was mated to a seven-speed sequential gearbox that sent the power to the rear wheels.

The B.A.R. team really did not hit their stride during the 2005 season until San Marino; they were showing much promise before being disqualified for running with illegal cars. Allegations were made that the cars were below 605 kg which was the minimum weight requirement for a Formula 1 car. The team had interpreted the rule to include 6 kg of fuel which meant it would satisfy the race in pre-race checks but would not pass at post-race examination. In the end, the FIA upheld their allegations and the team's effort was disqualified at the race and banned for two races, including the Monaco Grand Prix.

When the team returned to competition, they struggled to find their stride. A since point would not be scored until mid-season, at the French Grand Prix. Throughout the entire season, Sato would score just one point which caused him to be replaced at the end of the season, by former Ferrari driver Rubens Barrichello. Button managed two podium finishes. The team finished the season with a total of 38 points and in sixth place in the Constructors Championship.

Honda obtained 100% of the B.A.R. team at the end of the 2005 season.

by Dan Vaughan

Chinese Grand Prix: Free Practice and First Qualifying Race Results

B.A.R Honda's Jenson Button will line up on the 2nd row of the grid for what promises to be a thrilling finale to the 2005 season in Shanghai tomorrow.

Jenson qualified 4th for the Chinese Grand Prix after a faultless lap as the 16th runner out on track. His team-mate Takuma Sato was the first driver to leave the pitlane for his decisive single-lap run and posted the 17th fastest time in a ‘green' track, which puts his B.A.R Honda 007 on the 9th row.

Jenson and Takuma continued to make steady progress throughout the morning's free practice sessions to improve the car balance. In the first session both drivers were in the top eight drivers. The conditions changed significantly for the qualifying hour and Takuma suffered the brunt of that change with the early timing of his run. Running later in the session, Jenson delivered a very clean lap that, at the time, was good for P1.

JENSON BUTTON

Free Practice 3 – Position: 6th / Fastest lap time: 1:35.004

Free Practice 4 Position: 4th Fastest lap time: 1:34.729

Qualifying – Position: 4th / Lap time: 1:34.801

'I had a good lap and the car felt good, so I'm pleased to be on the second row for the final race of the season. We had a bit of understeer on the lap but generally the car has been great all weekend. We're not too far away from the competition ahead of us - only about 0.4secs - so I feel quite positive about the race tomorrow. I think we can all look forward to a great race, which I'm sure will be action-packed as the decider for the Constructors' Championship. Hopefully I can be part of that action and give the whole team a well-earned boost to end the season.'

TAKUMA SATO

Free Practice 3 Position: 12th Fastest lap time: 1:35.461

Free Practice 4 Position: 16th Fastest lap time: 1:35.280

Qualifying Position: 17th Lap Time: 1:37.083

'It was a very difficult lap for me, not least because I was the first driver out on track and the circuit was incredibly slippery - very different to the conditions we had in free practice this morning. We have done all the preparation that we could and, as this is my final qualifying session of the season and my last for the B.A.R Honda team, I am determined to keep pushing for a good result tomorrow to express my thanks to the team.'

GIL DE FERRAN, SPORTING DIRECTOR

'We are reasonably satisfied with our qualifying today. Taku was the first out in the session and as predicted he found very little grip; nevertheless we had taken this into account with our strategic considerations for the race. Jenson had a good clean run and we are cautiously optimistic for tomorrow, since he has been quite happy with the car balance.'

SHUHEI NAKAMOTO, ENGINEERING DIRECTOR, HONDA RACING DEVELOPMENT

'Not too bad. I think Jenson did a good lap and it was clear that Taku had problems by going out first. It has been a long and challenging season for everybody - not just the race team - and I want to have a good result to help our motivation during the winter. Next year must be better.'

by Honda

by BAR

Formula One World Championship - Round 02: Malaysian GP Qualifying 1

Malaysian Grand Prix: Free Practice and First Qualifying

The Lucky Strike B·A·R Honda team had an eventful day in Malaysia following the decision to retire Takuma Sato from Sunday's Grand Prix after he was diagnosed with a viral infection.

Third driver Anthony Davidson took over the wheel of car number 4 with effect from this morning's free practice sessions, completing 27 laps of crucial circuit acclimatisation in the searing heat and humidity of the Sepang Circuit. Anthony went on to post the 15th fastest time in this afternoon's first qualifying session – a valiant performance considering the fact that he was the first driver out on the track and this was his first proper low fuel run in the B.A.R Honda 007.

Jenson Button experienced a frustrating morning after his engine had an oil leak as the third free practice session came to a close. He was forced to sit out the fourth session as the team worked furiously to fix the leak and avoid changing the engine, which would incur a 10-place penalty. His lack of valuable running meant that he was unable to complete any new tyre runs, which made his 9th place commendable if not a true reflection of the potential pace of car or driver.

Jenson Button, Position: 9th

'The car felt good but I haven't had any running on new tyres today, which meant it was difficult to get a real feel for the car in qualifying set-up. We also had a problem with the engine this morning and I wasn't able to get out in second practice. Despite that, the lap was OK and I'm reasonably happy. I lost of a bit of time in the last sector but we're close enough to be able to get some of that back tomorrow. I'm sure we can do a better job in the morning and look forward to a more positive race.'

Anthony Davidson, Position:15th

'It's been a tough but exciting day for me. When I had the final confirmation that I would be driving this morning, I was packing my bags ready to go home! This is probably the toughest race challenge I've ever been faced with, and although I know the car very well, I'm still learning the track because I had limited running on the Friday here last year. It's always tough being the first car out and I wanted to take it a bit steady and keep the car on track. Overall I'm pleased with my performance under the circumstances and I'm confident that there's more to come in tomorrow's final qualifying run.'

Geoffrey Willis - Technical Director

'We are reasonably pleased with our qualifying results, given the fact that Jenson lost the whole of the second practice session today while we sought to rectify an engine oil leak and Anthony stepped into the car at short notice with only two short sessions to adjust to the circuit and had the significant disadvantage of running first this afternoon. Both drivers are happy with the car set-up and clearly could have gone quicker this afternoon. The nature of the aggregate qualifying time will make it more of a challenge to improve our positions in Sunday's session but we are confident that the cars and tyres will work well in tomorrow's race.'

Shuhei Nakamoto - Engineering Director, Honda Racing Development

'It's been a busy day! It's a shame for Taku that he had to pull out, but Anthony was able to get some good track time in free practice after being called into action this morning. Unfortunately we lost the second free practice session on Jenson's car with an engine oil leak. In the first qualifying run, Anthony had to deal with different circuit conditions from this morning, and Jenson's lap time suffered from having missed a session. We'll do our best to have a better second qualifying session tomorrow.'

by Honda

by BAR