Automobile Racing
Honda made its official automobile racing debut in 1964 when it entered Formula One as a constructer for the German Grand Prix. Their second effort in the 1965 Belgian Grand Prix scored Honda their first point, and they won their first ever Grand Prix the following year in Mexico. Meanwhile Honda-powered Brabhams were victorious in the 1966 French Formula Two Championship. 1967 brought another Grand Prix victory for Honda in Italy before a tragedy in 1968, the death of Honda driver Jo Schlesser during the French Grand Prix, marked the start of Hondas ten year hiatus from automobile racing.
By the early 80s Honda was back in the swing of things and once again taking part in the Formula One and the Formula Two. By the end of the 80s Honda really began achieving in Formula One and their success ran into the 90s allowing them to win six consecutive Formula One Constructors Championships.
Honda has also been successful in IndyCar racing. It debuted in this field in 1994 as a supplier to the CART IndyCar World Series and after some development on their initial engines they produced engines which powered six drivers championships in a row! By 2004 their presence in the IndyCar scene was unavoidable and the dominated winning 14 of 16 IndyCar races, one of which was the Indianapolis 500. They also won the IndyCar Series Manufacturers’ Championship, drivers’ Championship and Rookie of Year Titles in 2004. Subsequently, by 2006 every IndyCar vehicle had a Honda engine. 2006 also saw Honda win at the Hungarian Grand Prix with Jenson Button behind the wheel.
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