Seat holder(s) Colin Giltrap Race driver(s) Earl Bamber First race 2005-06 Great Britain Location New Zealand Championships 0 Fastest lap 4 | Team principal Bob McMurray Car nickname Black Beauty Rounds entered 33 Date founded 2005 Total points 315 Pole position 4 | |
 | ||
A1 Team New Zealand is the New Zealand team of A1 Grand Prix, an international racing series.
Contents
Management
The team was formed by and is owned by prominent Auckland businessman Colin Giltrap, well known for this car dealerships. The team is managed by Kiwi Bob McMurray who retired last year after nearly 30 years involvement with the McLaren Formula One racing team. The car is run by David Sears' organisation, Super Nova Racing, as is the A1 Team Germany car, meaning that the two teams are often thought of as one. Prior to Super Nova's involvement, the car was run by West Surrey Racing, a British organisation run by New Zealander Dick Bennetts which fields the Team RAC cars in the British Touring Car Championship.
2008–09 season
Driver: Earl Bamber, Chris van der Drift
Team New Zealand shocked the A1 paddock by revealing 18-year-old Earl Bamber as their main driver for the race in Zandvoort, even after the success of Jonny Reid in previous seasons. Bamber however, went on to record two podium finishes at a rain-soaked Zandvoort. However, van der Drift had less success in Chengdu, China, only scoring two points in the Sprint Race and just missed out on points in the Feature Race.
2007–08 season
Driver: Jonny Reid
Again, Team New Zealand challenged for the championship, but lost out at Great Britain to Switzerland. The team recorded 4 victories and 2 podiums.
2006–07 season
Drivers: Matt Halliday, Jonny Reid
Team New Zealand were championship challengers this season, but even with 3 victories and 8 podiums, lost out by 35 points to Germany.
2005–06 season
Drivers: Matt Halliday, Jonny Reid
In the inaugural season, Team New Zealand scored consistently, as well as a podium, to finish 4th in the championship.
Complete A1 Grand Prix results
(key), "spr" indicate a Sprint Race, "fea" indicate a Main Race.