Cosworth ‘picking up the F1 pieces’

Mark Gallagher, Cosworth's General Manager for Formula 1, has described the company as one 'picking up the pieces' this year after several key manufacturers pulled out of the sport.

With Honda having pulled the plug on its F1 project in December 2008 followed by announcements from BMW and Toyota in July and November respectively, Cosworth returns to the sport to supply engines for the first time since 2006; as well as a deal with Williams, the Northampton-based firm is also supplying F1's four new teams.

"With car manufacturers catching a cold with the recession, we have found ourselves in the unusual position of picking up the pieces," Gallagher said on Thursday ahead of a seminar in Aberdeen. "We can produce good F1 engines at competitive rates and in these times – when teams are struggling to secure sponsorship – the fact that our engines are inexpensive has played into our hands."

Providing powerplants in the form of 5 million-pound deals, Cosworth is one of four engine manufacturers in the sport this year with Ferrari, Mercedes-Benz and Renault being the others.