How Benetton built a Ferrari empire

Michael Schumacher, Rory Byrne and Ross Brawn. Three men who formed an axis of power so potent it would define a Formula 1 generation.

Seven drivers' world championships, including five on the bounce for Ferrari; seven constructors' titles, six consecutively in Maranello red. But the roots of sheer domination were established here, in vivid yellow, with a conventional and relatively simple racing car under the garish banner of a trendy Italian clothing company.

Benetton's first toe in the F1 water was as a sponsor for Tyrrell and Alfa Romeo, before ambition led to the purchase of the Toleman team at the end of 1985.

Powered by BMW's explosive turbo, Byrne's B186 made Benetton a grand prix victor in their first season when Gerhard Berger won in Mexico City, but during the rest of the decade the team became established as nothing more than a regular best-of-the-rest contender: wins were sporadic, titles just out of reach.

Flamboyant boss Flavio Briatore knew little about motor racing, but that didn't prevent him making big decisions.

Short on patience and long on ambition, Briatore recruited proven design kingpin John Barnard from Ferrari to raise the stakes, as Byrne, chief engineer Pat Symonds and others defected to Adrian Reynard's new F1 project.

Under Barnard, Nelson Piquet won three races over two seasons - but the marriage of obstinate English visionary and instinctive Italian entrepreneur was a brief and unhappy union.

As Barnard returned to Ferrari, Briatore showed the astute common sense that would ultimately make him a successful F1 team principal: he hired back Byrne, Symonds and the other defectors, once Reynard's project proved to be a non-starter.

Significantly, the team structure was also rebooted as Tom Walkinshaw and his crack TWR sports car team entered the F1 fray.

It was Walkinshaw who brought in Brawn, fresh from his fabulous all-purple Jaguar XJR-14 Group C car, complete with the same Ford Cosworth HB V8 F1 engine that powered Benetton. That same year, 1991, Michael Schumacher burst on to the scene with a stunning qualifying performance on his debut for Jordan at Spa, before Briatore and Walkinshaw swooped in to snatch the German for Monza.

Three consecutive points finishes underlined Schumacher's next-big-thing potential. The pieces were now in place for Benetton to take the next step.

Working together for the first time, Byrne and Brawn adopted the pragmatic theory of evolution over revolution that would underpin their future success. In Barnard's high-nose B191 they recognised sound potential. Barnard had been frustrated that his groundbreaking semi-automatic gearbox, pioneered at Ferrari, could not be mated to Benetton's software and, without traction control and ABS, the team lacked the sophistication that would mark the rival Williams FW14B as one of the greatest F1 cars in history.

But Byrne and Brawn knuckled down nevertheless, and made the very best from what they had.

The team started the year with the B191 for the first three races, before the new car took its bow at the first European round, in Spain. Impressively, Schumacher finished second only to Nigel Mansell and the FW14B.

The B192 was tidy, conventional and, with the dependable Cosworth HB V8, capable of giving Schumacher and new team-mate Martin Brundle - another Walkinshaw recruit - the means to contend with McLaren, if not the dominant Williams.

Passive suspension and a standard H-pattern gearbox would only take them so far, but this was a car Schumacher and engineer Symonds could work with. The team would score points at every one of the season's 16 races.

Exactly one year on from his explosive debut in the Jordan, Schumacher would score his breakthrough win, in a wet-dry Belgian race at Spa. At the time, this was considered a lucky victory.

Senna's early gamble of staying on slick tyres on a wet track backfired, taking him out of contention. Later, Schumacher was running third on wets behind the Mansell-Riccardo Patrese Williams train on a drying track. Under pressure from Brundle he skated off at Stavelot, but as the sister Benetton slipped past, Schumacher noticed the blisters on its tyres. On dirty Goodyears anyway following his moment, Michael chose to dive straight in for slicks.

The decision would jump him ahead not only of Brundle, but also the Williams duo after their stops. Lucky? Sure, he'd had some - but the first of his 91 career wins was typically instinctive and intelligent.

Brundle's chances of a first F1 win had been slim at Spa, but the one that really got away was Canada in June.

From seventh on the grid he rose through the order, even passing Schumacher for third place. With poor reliability taking care of Williams, Brundle was closing on Berger's leading McLaren... only for the bolts in his differential to come undone.

At Silverstone too, he'd beat Schumacher fair and square and enjoy a spirited duel with old Formula 3 rival Senna to finish second to Mansell, and conquered his talented young team-mate again at Monza for another podium.

But it didn't save him. Briatore sacked Martin in favour of Patrese for 1993 - a decision in later years he would admit was a mistake.

The Spa victory and seven other podiums (five in the B192) lifted Schumacher to third in the drivers' standings, three points behind runner-up Patrese and ahead of Senna, despite the Brazilian's three wins. Brundle was sixth, as Benetton claimed third in the constructors' standings.

Pretty good - but the team had achieved as much in '88 and under Barnard in '90. But after more of the same in '93, the power axis of Byrne, Brawn and Schumacher - ably supported by Briatore and Walkinshaw's canny leadership, and Symonds' engineering nous - would flourish to finally deliver on Benetton's true aspirations.

Schumacher's controversial first title in '94 justified Briatore's decision to welcome back Byrne and Symonds.

Unquestionable dominance and Benetton's single constructors' crown would follow with Renault V10 power in '95, before Schumacher switched to Ferrari. Luring Byrne and Brawn to follow in his wake would change everything for Benetton, but more significantly for the whole of F1.

This group of remarkable men were only just getting started.

SPECIFICATION

Chassis: Carbon fibre composite and honeycomb monocoque

Front and rear suspension: Double wishbone, pushrod-actuated springs and dampers

Engine: Ford HB V8
Engine capacity: 3494cc
Power: 700bhp
Gearbox: Transverse six-speed manual
Tyres: Goodyear
Weight: 505kg
Notable drivers: Michael Schumacher, Martin Brundle

RACE RECORD

Starts: 26
Wins: 1
Poles: 0
Fastest laps: 2
Other podiums: 10
Retirements: 6
Points: 80