A bolt from the blue: the rise and fall of Leyton House Racing

Founded by Akira Akagi, Leyton House was involved in various motorsport activities in the mid-1980s, but its involvement in F1 was sparked by the death of the team's driver, Akira Hagiwara, who was killed in an accident while driving a Mercedes-Benz 190E 2.3-16V at Sportsland SUGO in Japan. 

In need of a new driver, Akagi met Ivan Capelli's manager at an F3000 race, and Capelli was eventually signed to Leyton House to compete in the Japanese Formula 2 Championship on the basis that he could put a significant amount of his prize towards a career in F1. Akagi gave Capelli more money than initially had been agreed upon, and then arranged a sponsorship deal so that the Italian could race in Formula 3000 in 1986 in a March car — a Championship Capelli won by 2 points over countryman Pierluigi Martini.

Keen to maintain the relationship, Akagi offered Capelli a full-time drive in Japan's Formula 2. However, the Italian declined the offer, wanting to progress to racing in F1. So instead, Akagi made a sponsorship deal with March Engineering for 1987's season, bringing March back to F1 for the first time in five years.  

At the opening round of the season in Brazil, the team's car, the March 87P, was based on an F3000 machine with a bigger fuel tank and revised aerodynamics. The planned full-spec Cosworth DFZ engines weren't ready, so the team relied on a World Sportscar Championship motor down on power and 60mph slower than its turbocharged rivals on the straights. Perhaps it was for the best, then, that the car blew its only remaining engine on the warm-up lap, leaving Capelli unable to start the race. 

The March 871 was introduced at the next race in San Marino, where it was forced to retire with engine troubles, a fate it again suffered at the next race in Belgium. A points-scoring result finally came at the Monaco Grand Prix, where Capelli drove from 19^th in qualifying to a sixth-place finish. But that would be the only points the team would score all season, and it ultimately finished 13^th in the Constructors’ Championship.

Fortunes changed the following year, however, with the arrival of Adrian Newey. Not yet 30, Newey was signed to design the 1988 car, while Maurício Gugelmin would be the team's second driver. The March 881 was his first design in F1, and while the rest of the grid relied on turbocharged power to make up for their relatively crude aerodynamics, the 881 was aerodynamically advanced with a raised nose, sculpted endplates and a compact design that took full advantage of the short stature of the team's lead driver.   

The result was a car that was consistently the fastest naturally-aspirated design on the grid, with Capelli clocking a top speed of 194mph on Hockenheim's straight at the German Grand Prix. Capelli would take second place at the Portuguese Grand Prix, and his 881 was the only non-turbocharged car to lead a Grand Prix after Capelli briefly overtook Alain Prost over the start-finish line on lap 16 of the Japanese Grand Prix, only to be undone when he switched the engine off by mistake.

Capelli would take seventh place in the 1988 Drivers' Championship, joining forces with Gugelmin guide March to sixth in the Constructors' Championship, its 22-point haul two more than that of the mighty Williams. Such was the success of Newey’s debut design that it became the starting point for most of the competition going into the following season.

The following year brought even bigger changes; March sold its F1 team to Akagi, although it would continue to be known as March for the 1989 season, meaning the main sponsor had to transform into a fully functional F1 team — with staff ballooning from 19 people to 120. 

Then, tragedy struck. Cesare Gariboldi, the manager who'd originally brokered the deal to bring Capelli to the team, died in a car accident at the age of just 39. Gariboldi was like a second father to Capelli; he understood him intrinsically and was impossible to replace. The loss would have a devastating effect on the driver. 

The team's only podium in '89 came with Gugelmin's third-place finish at the opening round in Brazil, still driving the 881. When the CG891 — tributing Garibaldi's initials — was introduced in the third round of the season, it proved very unreliable, with neither driver steering it home to a points finish. The car's inboard gear cluster was at the centre of many of its problems, as was its Jude V8 motor; Newey later said the team didn't have the infrastructure needed to develop a new racing car while simultaneously competing with the old one. 

The 1990 season should have been the beginning of a bright new hope for the team now officially known as Leyton House Racing, but it wasn't to be. Behind the scenes, the team was sent into disarray when its manager, Ian Philips, fell victim to meningitis and took a leave of absence to be replaced by the team's accountant, Simon Keeble.

Front of the house wasn't faring much better. Newey's latest design, the CG901, was a serial underperformer, failing to qualify for the Brazil and Mexican Grands Prix. Newey eventually traced the source of the issues to the bowed floor at the University of Southampton's wind tunnel. 

The Spec B car introduced later in the season showed immediate performance gains, with Capelli leading the French Grand Prix for 45 laps (although he was eventually overtaken by Prost) before he finished in second place, the result coming just two rounds after the team's disastrous performance in Mexico. However, the turnaround didn't come quick enough for Newey, who banged heads with Keeble and was fired halfway through the season. 

Keeble's appointment was no doubt down to problems behind the scenes. Akagi was starting to struggle financially, borrowing heavily from the banks. He needed to stay in F1 for the minimum cost possible so they didn't catch wind that he was on the verge of financial ruin. Keeble, meanwhile, was at the centre of a power struggle to permanently usurp Philips, who would eventually leave to join Jordan in 1991.

On track, Leyton House Racing continued its reputation for bucking the trend, with Capelli finishing tenth in the Drivers' Championship in 1990, and the team taking sixth in the Constructors’ Championship. But the writing was on the wall for the 1991 season.

The CG911 car proved very unreliable, with Capelli retiring from the first nine races of the season despite showing decent pace by running in the top six in San Marino and Canada. 

Problems off the track were much worse, though. In September '91, a financial scandal led to Akagi’s arrest. His associate, Ken Marrable, took control of the team, but money was in short supply, and Capelli stepped down to make way for Mercedes-backed Karl Wendlinger, who brought a cash injection to Leyton House Racing. The team would finish the year 12^th in the Constructors' Championship, while Capelli signed for Ferrari and Gugelmin moved to Jordan. 

Under new owners, the team struggled on into the 1992 season but attempts to sell the team failed, and it eventually folded in 1993 after failing to qualify for the opening round in South Africa. The team withdrew from F1 four days before the season's second race.

Leyton House Racing was consigned to history, but for a time it was a bright spark that launched the career of a superstar designer who would shape F1 in his image for decades to come.

The 2025 Festival of Speed takes place on 10^th-13^th July. Thursday tickets are now limited. A small batch of extra tickets for Friday–Sunday have just been released, exclusively for members of the GRRC.

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