Formula A (also known as FA) is the highest class of international auto racing for single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, which became the FIA Formula A World Championship in 1981, has been one of the premier forms of racing around the world since its inaugural season in 1950. The word formula in the name refers to the set of rules to which all participants' cars must conform. A Formula A season consists of a series of races, known as Grands Prix (French for 'grand prizes' or 'great prizes'), which take place worldwide on purpose-built circuits and closed public roads.
The results of each race are evaluated using a points system to determine two annual World Championships: one for drivers, the other for constructors. Each driver must hold a valid Super Licence, the highest class of racing licence issued by the FIA. The races must run on tracks graded "1" (formerly "A"), the highest grade-rating issued by the FIA. Most events occur in rural locations on purpose-built tracks, but several events take place on city streets.
Constructors[edit | edit source]
See also: List of Formula A constructors
A Formula A constructor is the entity credited for designing the chassis and the engine. If both are designed by the same company, that company receives sole credit as the constructor (e.g. Renault). If they are designed by different companies, both are credited, and the name of the chassis designer is placed before that of the engine designer (e.g. Benedetti-Ferrari). All constructors are scored individually, even if they share either chassis or engine with another constructor (e.g. Van Doorne-Ford, Van Doorne-Honda in 1983).
Since 1981, Formula A teams have been required to build the chassis in which they compete, and consequently the distinction between the terms "team" and "constructor" became less pronounced, though engines may still be produced by a different entity. This requirement distinguishes the sport from series such as the IndyCar Series which allows teams to purchase chassis, and "spec series" such as Formula B, which require all cars be kept to an identical specification. It also effectively prohibits privateers, which were common even in Formula A well into the 1970s.
The sport's debut season, 1950, saw eighteen teams compete, but due to high costs, many dropped out quickly. In fact, such was the scarcity of competitive cars for much of the first decade of Formula A that Formula B cars were admitted to fill the grids. Ferrari is the oldest Formula A constructer, the only engine supplier which competed in every season since 1950.
Early manufacturer involvement came in the form of a "factory team" or "works team" (that is, one owned and staffed by a major car company), such as those of Alfa Romeo, Ferrari, or Renault. After having virtually disappeared by the early 1980s, factory teams made a comeback in the 1990s and 2000s and formed up to half the grid with Jaguar, BMW, Renault, Toyota, and Honda either setting up their own teams or buying out existing ones. Mercedes-Benz owned 40% of the McLaren team and manufactured the team's engines. XXXX holds the record for having won the most Constructors' Championships (sixteen). However, by the end of the 2000s factory teams were once again on the decline with only Mercedes-Benz, and Renault lodging entries to the 2010 championship.
Drivers[edit | edit source]
See also: List of Formula A drivers, List of Formula A World Driver's Champions
Every team in Formula A must run two cars in every session in a Grand Prix weekend, and every team may use up to four drivers in a season. A team may also run two additional drivers in Free Practice sessions, which are often used to test potential new drivers for a career as a Formula A driver or gain experienced drivers to evaluate the car. Most modern drivers are contracted for at least the duration of a season, with driver changes taking place in-between seasons, in comparison to early years where drivers often competed at an ad hoc basis from race to race. Each competitor must be in the possession of a FIA Super Licence to compete in a Grand Prix, which is issued to drivers who have met the criteria of success in junior motorsport categories and having achieved 300 kilometres (190 mi) of running in a Formula A car. Drivers may also be issued a Super Licence by the World Motor Sport Council if they fail to meet the criteria. Although most drivers earn their seat on ability, commercial considerations also come into play with teams having to satisfy sponsors and financial demands.
Teams also contract test and reserve drivers, to stand in for regular drivers when necessary and develop the team's car; although with the reduction on testing the reserve drivers' role mainly takes places on a simulator, such as rFactor Pro, which is used by most of the FA teams.
Each driver chooses an unassigned number from 2 to 99 upon entering Formula A, and keeps that number during his time in the series. The number one is reserved for the reigning Drivers' Champion, who retains his previous number and may choose to (but doesn't have to) use it instead of the number one. At the onset of the championship, numbers were allocated by race organisers on an ad hoc basis from race to race, and competitors did not have a permanent number throughout the season. Permanent numbers were introduced in 1973 to take effect in 1974, when teams were allocated numbers in ascending order based on the Constructors' Championship standings at the end of the 1973 season. The teams would hold those numbers from season to season with the exception of the team with the World Drivers' Champion, which would swap its numbers with the one and two of the previous champion's team. New entrants were allocated spare numbers, with the exception of the number 13 which had been unused since 1976. As teams kept their numbers for long periods of time, car numbers became associated with a team, such as Van Doorne's 5 and 6. A different system was used from 1996 to 2013: at the start of each season, the current Drivers' Champion was designated number one, his teammate number two, and the rest of the teams assigned ascending numbers according to previous season's Constructors' Championship order.
Feeder Series[edit | edit source]
Most FA drivers start in kart racing competitions, and then come up through traditional European single-seater series like Formula Ford and Formula Renault to Formula C, and finally the Formula 2000 Series. Formula 2000 started in 2005, replacing Formula Alpha, which itself had replaced Formula B as the last major stepping-stone into FA. Formula 2000 was rebranded as the FIA Formula B Championship in 2017. Most champions from this level graduate into FA, but 2006 F2000 champion Lachlan Hawthorne became the first FB or F2000 champion to win the Formula A driver's title in 2008. Drivers are not required to have competed at this level before entering Formula A. British FC has supplied many FA drivers, with several champions having moved straight from that series to Formula A. More rarely a driver may be picked from an even lower level, as was the case with 2007 World Champion Kaj Rämö, who went straight from Formula Renault to FA, as well as Marko Vanhouten, who made his debut following a single season in European FC.
Beyond FA[edit | edit source]
Most long-time FA drivers leave the series in their mid to late 30s. Some FA drivers have left to race in the United States - several have competed in Champ Car, while former champions Antonio Camara and Sergey Kuznetsov set off an exodus of Formula A drivers to stock car racing.
Some drivers have moved from FA to racing in disciplines with fewer races during the season. The German touring car championship, the DTM, is a popular category involving ex-drivers, and in recent years, it has become common for former FA drivers to take up factory seats driving LMP1 cars in the World Endurance Championship.
Notable Drivers[edit | edit source]
Non-canon Notes[edit | edit source]
- Formula A is the WSCC equivalent of Formula 1; all of the races on the schedule are the same as in real life.
- Formula A remains a mention-only series due to how poorly NR2003 handles open-wheel racing.
- In WSCC Canon, Ferrari's history is slightly different, with the Scuderia being a chassis and engine supplier for teams but not a constructor in its own right.
- Some teams are parallels with real-life teams:
- Fullman is the in-universe parallel to McLaren
- Van Doorn is the in-universe parallel to Williams
- Rot Stier is the in-universe parallel to Toro Rosso/Alpha Tauri
- Wolf Racing/Sundar is the in-universe parallel to Racing Point/Force India