From Tyrrell shed via Brawn fairytale: the evolution of Mercedes' F1 team

The tragic death of François Cevert and Stewart’s retirement at the end of 1973 marked the end of Tyrrell’s golden era.

However, Tyrrell’s legacy extended beyond victories as the team became a haven for innovation that reached its peak in 1976, when Tyrrell presented the P34 – the first and only six-wheeled car to race in F1.

Though it only won a single grand prix, the P34 became an icon and remains a huge part of F1 folklore.

As Formula 1 moved into the turbocharged 1980s and then into the manufacturer-dominated 1990s, Tyrrell was increasingly exposed by financial realities, even though it had moved out of the old shed and into a factory constructed next door.

By the mid-1990s, it was clear the independent team was struggling to survive in an era that was becoming increasingly corporate.

In 1997, after nearly three decades at the helm, Ken Tyrrell sold the team to British American Tobacco.

The Tyrrell name would appear on the grid for one final season in 1998 — under new management — before disappearing altogether.

BAR (1999–2005): Unfulfilled promises

When British American Tobacco (BAT) acquired the Tyrrell team in 1997, out went the blue-collar pragmatism of Ken Tyrrell, and in came aggressive marketing, big budgets, and even bigger promises.

The new entity made its debut in 1999 as British American Racing (BAR), based in a new state-of-the-art facility in Brackley — the same town that today houses Mercedes.

BAR made headlines before ever turning a wheel, promising to fight for wins in its debut season. The driver line-up was headlined by 1997 world champion Jacques Villeneuve, lured away from Williams by his long-time manager Craig Pollock.

BAT even tried to run two different liveries on their cars — one for Lucky Strike, one for 555 — before the FIA stepped in to ban it.

Amid all the hype and promises, BAR’s debut proved to be an absolute disaster, its uncompetitive and unreliable car failing to score a single point all season.

By 2001, Honda was providing full works engines, and BAR began shedding its PR project image in favour of serious racing credentials.

The breakthrough came in 2004 under David Richards and with Jenson Button at the wheel. BAR finished second in the constructors’ championship, although did this without a single race win.

That year, tensions between BAT, Honda, and team management surfaced and Richards was eventually replaced by Nick Fry as Honda’s influence continued to grow.

In 2005, without a single grand prix victory, BAT agreed to sell the team to Honda, setting the stage for the next transformation.

Honda (2006–2008): Unfulfilled ambition

Honda assumed full ownership of the Brackley-based team in late 2005 after years of playing a supporting role as an engine supplier.

Rebranded as the Honda Racing F1 Team, the operation retained key personnel from the BAR days, including Fry and Button.

The facilities were expanded and staff numbers grew as Honda was determined to build a championship-winning team. For a brief moment, it appeared as though the target was within reach.

In 2006, Button delivered Honda’s first win, but it proved to be an outlier, as the Japanese manufacturer wouldn’t get close to fighting in front regularly.

The 2007 season brought fresh hope with the arrival of Ross Brawn, yet not even his strategic brilliance could salvage what turned out to be a fundamentally flawed car.

The RA107 — adorned with an ambitious “Earth Car” livery promoting Honda’s environmental initiatives — was a visual talking point but a competitive disappointment.

2008 proved much of the same and, frustration mounted, the global financial crisis started to bite.

By the end of the year, Honda’s board announced it was pulling out of F1 with immediate effect.

It appeared to be the end of the road for the team, but Brawn had other ideas.

Brawn GP (2009): The miracle comeback

Honda’s abrupt exit left a fully-formed F1 team stranded, just weeks before pre-season testing. Hundreds of jobs hung in the balance. The 2009 car, developed in secret with a radical double diffuser, was ready — but there was no engine, no budget, and no future.

With just days to go before the team would be shuttered, Brawn orchestrated a management buyout, reportedly purchasing the team for a symbolic £1.

He secured a last-minute engine supply from Mercedes, restructured the staff, and rebranded the team as Brawn GP and made it on the grid in Melbourne — just barely — running a plain white car with minimal sponsorship.

Then came qualifying, and jaws dropped when Button stuck the Brawn BGP 001 on pole. The car proved dominant: Button won six of the first seven races, while teammate Rubens Barrichello added two more victories. The team, born from crisis, was suddenly rewriting the record books.

Button won the the drivers’ championship, and Brawn GP clinched the constructors’ title — all in their first and only season.

By the end of the year, Brawn GP had attracted the attention of a manufacturer with unfinished business in F1.

Mercedes-Benz (2010-present): The return of the Silver Arrows

Having powered championship-winning cars as an engine supplier in the late 1990s and 2000s (notably with McLaren), Mercedes was ready to compete as a full works team for the first time since 1955, taking over the Brawn GP entry at a fraction of what a new entry would cost.

Mercedes also took over the engine plant at Brixworth – previously known as Ilmor – bringing chassis and power unit development under one German banner.

The German manufacturer made headlines by bringing Michael Schumacher out of retirement, pairing him with Nico Rosberg.

Success proved elusive in the early years, however. From 2010 to 2012, Mercedes managed only a single race win until everything changed in 2013.

Mercedes recruited Toto Wolff as executive director and brought in technical director Paddy Lowe from McLaren. The team also signed Lewis Hamilton, prising him away from McLaren in a move that raised eyebrows at the time.

Hamilton was betting on long-term potential over short-term results — a decision that would define the next decade.

When F1 introduced the V6 turbo-hybrid era in 2014, Mercedes was ready and the W05 Hybrid was untouchable. From 2014 to 2021, Mercedes claimed eight consecutive constructors’ championships and seven drivers’ titles – six for Hamilton, one for Rosberg in 2016.

From Tyrrell’s humble beginnings, BAR’s unfulfilled ambition, Honda’s massive investment and Brawn’s genius, it was the culmination of a five-decade journey whose next chapter is still being written.

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