The Lola B05/52 was developed by the British company Lola Racing Cars in 2005 as the single car of a brand-new championship. Every team in A1 Grand Prix ran it for the first three seasons, and the design later found a second life in Euroseries 3000 and Auto GP.
Lola B05/52 at a glance
| Maker | Lola Racing Cars, Britain |
|---|---|
| Designed | 2005 |
| Series | A1 Grand Prix, single make |
| Seasons | 2005–06 to 2007–08 |
| Concept | one car for every team |
| Replacement in A1GP | A1GP Powered by Ferrari car |
| Later use | Euroseries 3000 from 2009 |
| After that | Auto GP |
| Type | open-wheel single-seater |
based on one source (English Wikipedia).
History of the Lola B05/52
The B05/52 was conceived for a championship built entirely around a single specification. A1 Grand Prix was created as a contest of nations, and the Lola was the only car admitted: every team used the same chassis, so the racing depended on drivers, engineers and pit crews rather than on the equipment. Lola, already the dominant supplier of customer single-seaters, was the natural choice for the job.
The car served the series for its first three seasons, from 2005–06 to 2007–08. A1 Grand Prix then replaced it with a car powered by Ferrari, and the Lola disappeared from the championship it had helped to launch.
The design did not disappear entirely. The rear wing and the nose were revised and the car was introduced in the Euroseries 3000 championship from the 2009 season. When that series gave way to Auto GP, the 2005 Lola again became the only single-seater allowed, so the same basic design was still the standard car of a European championship years after its first race.
Design and features
- Single specification: the only car admitted to A1 Grand Prix, so every team raced identical machinery.
- Three seasons at the top: the standard car of the series from 2005–06 to 2007–08.
- Revised for a second series: a new rear wing and nose for Euroseries 3000 in 2009.
- Still the standard car: the only single-seater allowed in Auto GP.
Lola B05/52 versions
- A1 Grand Prix car (2005–2008): the original specification as raced by the national teams.
- Euroseries 3000 car (from 2009): modified rear wing and nose.
- Auto GP car: the same chassis as the series’ only admitted single-seater.
The B05/52 belongs to Lola’s long line of customer racing cars, from the T70 sports car of the 1960s to the T92/10 prototype. More in the Lola collection.
Sources
- Lola B05/52, English Wikipedia: design, A1 Grand Prix seasons, later series
