The rise of a new F1 superpower
Benetton may be best remembered for its successes, controversies and colourful liveries, but former engineering chief Pat Symonds argues that 1993's B193 is a forgotten gem that preceded title glory in the following years
Nearly – but not quite. That sums up Benetton in the early 1990s. The close-knit team based in a patchwork of industrial units in Witney was established as Ford’s factory-powered squad and through Flavio Briatore’s marketing hustle from 1989 boasted a decent budget, with limited but consistent support from the Italian ‘woolly jumper company’ that owned it.
Yet it always seemed to be a pretender tapping on the glass ceiling of success, with only the odd crack to show for its efforts. Despite the potential sum of its considerable parts, would Benetton ever crash through and beat the established McLaren/Williams hegemony?
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