With the 002 single-seater, the adventure in Formula 1 continues for the British team British American Racing (BAR), created by Craig Pollock after acquiring what remained of the now-defunct Tyrrell team. At the end of 1999, the disastrous results obtained by the first car built by the Brackley-based team in Northamptonshire certainly failed to satisfy the executives of British American Tobacco who, through Tom Moser, had financed the entire project with the dormant hope, fueled at the start of ’99 by Pollock’s and Reynard’s words, of achieving significant results right away. An immediate change of direction was needed, and Adrian Reynard, Technical Director of the team as well as owner of Reynard Motorsports (which built the chassis for BAR), found it in a new engine supplier: Honda.
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| BAR 002, Ricardo Zonta Interlagos, Brazilian GP 2000 |
During the 1999 season, Craig Pollock had announced that Honda would become their engine supplier starting in 2000, under an agreement that not only included the supply of the V10 RA000E engine, but also that a team of Japanese technicians from Honda Racing would work with the British team at their Brackley base, receiving full factory support from Honda. This marked the first time Honda had been directly involved in Formula 1 in an official capacity since 1992, their last season supplying the V12 RA122E/B to McLaren. Pollock chose not to change the technical staff working on the new BAR 002, which remained virtually unchanged from the previous season. In addition to the aforementioned Technical Director Adrian Reynard, his trusted associate Ron Meadows was still Factory Manager, Malcolm Oastler remained the car’s chief designer, Willem Toet continued to assist the engineers responsible for the car’s aerodynamics, and Andrew Shovlin, currently still employed at Mercedes AMG-Petronas F1 in Brackley, was still responsible for vehicle dynamics and control.
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| BAR 002, Jacques Villeneuve Montecarlo, Monaco GP 2000 |
After conducting the first shakedown with the new engine at Silverstone in December 1999, where Jacques Villeneuve completed 34 laps, the new BAR 002 was officially presented on January 24, 2000, at the Queen Elizabeth II Centre in London. Both main drivers from the previous season were confirmed: former World Champion Jacques Villeneuve from Canada and promising young Brazilian Ricardo Zonta, along with test drivers Darren Manning and Patrick Lemarié, who would continue the car’s development throughout the season. Aesthetically, the new 002 did not differ much from the previous 001, though there was evident aerodynamic refinement in small details, with flow deflectors and small winglets spread across the car’s bodywork. The distinctive 1999 livery, featuring the yellow-and-blue 555 on the right side and the red-and-white Lucky Strike on the left, separated by a fake zipper running longitudinally to the nose, was abandoned in favor of a completely white Honda-style livery, with only the Lucky Strike sponsor visible on the car.
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| BAR 002, Jacques Villeneuve Imola, San Marino GP 2000 |
Beneath the surface, all the mechanical components were reviewed and improved, drawing on the experience of a first season plagued by constant retirements and mechanical failures. Thanks to the new, powerful, and reliable Honda V10, capable of delivering 815 hp at 17,000 rpm, paired with BAR’s new six-speed longitudinal sequential gearbox, the new Brackley single-seater made a clear step forward in quality and could be considered a good car capable of high-level performance. This was demonstrated by two points finishes in the first race of the season, with Villeneuve in fourth and Zonta in sixth. Despite improved reliability and competitive speed, Pollock’s team still had to postpone their first podium in 2000, with Villeneuve’s fourth place in Australia remaining the season’s best result, repeated three more times, in France, Austria, and the United States.
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| BAR 002, Jacques Villeneuve Suzuka, Japanese GP 2000 |
The BAR 002 scored points on six other occasions: two fifth places and one sixth for the Canadian, and three sixth places for the young Brazilian. This allowed the Brackley team to secure 20 points in the Constructors’ Championship, finishing the season as the fifth force on the grid, behind only Ferrari, McLaren, Williams, and level on points with Benetton, who were classified fourth thanks to two podiums from Fisichella. Thanks to these significant improvements, Jacques Villeneuve was convinced to renew his contract with the young British team, while by mid-season 2000 Pollock had already announced to the press that Brazilian driver Zonta would be replaced by Frenchman Olivier Panis for the 2001 season.
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