Finally, in 1999, the project launched at the end of 1997 by Gian Carlo Minardi and Gabriele Rumi definitively took off, following the latter's entry into the company, marking his return to Formula 1 after appearances with Osella in the late 1980s and later as a constructor in the early 1990s. The massive renewal of technical staff already carried out in the previous season allowed the small team from Faenza, a small town in the province of Ravenna in Emilia Romagna, to design a single-seater that completely diverged from previous Minardi cars, being an entirely new project without reusing parts from earlier vehicles. It was decided to abandon the previous numbering that identified the Faenza cars and adopt a new one, symbolizing a radical change and a fresh start.
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| MINARDI M01, Luca Badoer Silverstone, British GP 1999 |
The new car was named the Minardi M01 and was built under the guidance of Technical Director Gustav Brunner, an Austrian engineer with a long-standing presence in Formula 1, having worked since the early 1980s for ATS, RAM, Arrows, Rial, Zakspeed, March Leyton-House, and notably Ferrari. The position of Chief Engineer remained with Gabriele Tredozi, a mechanical engineer who graduated from the University of Bologna and had been with the Minardi team since the start of his career. George Ryton also retained his role as Chief Designer, bringing significant experience, particularly from his time at Ferrari under John Barnard, with whom he collaborated in the UK atelier. The position of Head of Aerodynamics, increasingly crucial in the late 1990s, changed hands from Mariano Alperin to French engineer Jean-Claude Migeot, a new addition who brought extensive experience dating back to the early 1980s with Renault and later with Tyrrell and Ferrari in the early 1990s.
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| MINARDI M01, Marc Gené Magny-Cours, French GP 1999 |
The new M01 was an ambitious project for the small Faenza-based team, though at first glance, the car resembled its predecessor, the M198. The high, square nose remained largely unchanged, as did the shape of the side pods and engine cover, while the rear of the car showed more refined aerodynamic solutions with smoother lines and lateral appendages to improve airflow in front of the rear tires. Under the skin, however, everything was new: starting with a stiffer, lighter chassis and revised suspension geometry, still using a push-rod configuration with double wishbones and torsion bars, to work better with the grooved tires already in use the previous season. The engine, though still a classic Ford-Cosworth V10, was the latest VJM Zetec-R this season, theoretically delivering a few more horsepower than the old JD unit and featuring updated electronics supplied by Magneti-Marelli. Other significant innovations included titanium-cast wheel hubs and steering box, while the gearbox housing was a pioneering magnesium alloy casting, a material used for the first time by a Formula 1 team.
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| MINARDI M01, Luca Badoer Monza, Italian GP 1999 |
On the driver front, Gian Carlo Minardi and Gabriele Rumi brought back Italian driver Luca Badoer, who had already impressed with the Faenza team in 1995 before becoming a key figure in Ferrari’s car development, pairing him with rookie Spaniard Marc Gené, supported by his personal sponsor Telefonica. Following Badoer’s injury, which forced him to miss the Brazilian Grand Prix, French driver Stéphane Sarrazin stepped in as a third driver. For Sarrazin, the 31 laps he completed during the 1999 Brazilian GP, totaling 133 km, would remain his only Formula 1 race laps, despite also being under contract with Prost Grand Prix as a test driver. The shakedown of the new M01 took place at Mugello Circuit on January 28, 1999, in a completely bare carbon-black livery, awaiting its final silver and blue paint scheme from the previous season, now featuring two main sponsors: Rumi's Fondmetal on the sidepods and Telefonica on the engine cover. The official presentation of the M01 occurred on February 9 at Telefonica’s headquarters in Barcelona, with Argentine driver Gaston Mazzacane present as a test driver.
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| MINARDI M01, Marc Gené Spa-Francorchamps, Belgian GP 1999 |
However, when the season got underway, despite the promising prospects and high expectations, nothing changed compared to 1998. In the first race in Australia, both M01s started at the back of the grid, with Gené initially excluded for failing to stay within 107% of the pole time but later reinstated based on earlier session times. Unfortunately, the small Italian team lacked its own wind tunnel, and the high costs of using modern facilities severely limited M01’s development. While it was a major step forward for a low-budget team like Minardi, the two cars spent the entire 1999 season fighting only the underperforming Arrows, never qualifying higher than 20th except at the Brazilian GP, where Sarrazin started 17th, and the German GP, where Gené managed 15th place. After three years without scoring a single point, the M01 finally secured one point for Minardi in the Constructors’ Championship thanks to Gené’s 6th place at the European Grand Prix, a race where unpredictable weather and a series of retirements and strategic mistakes from other teams even allowed Badoer to climb to 4th place before a transmission failure forced him to retire 13 laps from the end. After the season, Minardi used the M01 for a series of young driver tests at the Jerez circuit, featuring Max Wilson, Norberto Fontana, Giorgio Vinella, Peter Sundberg, and future two-time Formula 1 World Champion Fernando Alonso.
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