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An in-depth look at Project Brabham with David Brabham – Part 2

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Following on from our first part of this three part feature, we continue our journey in discovering Project Brabham with David Brabham

With the team aiming to take part in the FIA World Endurance Championship LMP2 class for the 2016 season, we asked why he didn’t take another route to get into motorsport such as a national championship.

“I have raced in sports cars for many years and the FIA World Endurance Championship provides us with a global platform; rather than a national one, as we already have a community that involves 64 countries” said Brabham confidently.  

Brabham believes that the knowledge he has gained while taking part in the championship himself will help the team gain the global platform that could allow them to progress further in the category, to gain new partnerships that are needed to secure the team’s future and also celebrate the legacy of his father.

 “Le Mans is a big event and is one of the jewels in motorsport’s crown. It is one of the biggest motorsport events in the world and it is globally watched by millions of people. I really do understand the importance of the event, especially after competing 18 times and winning three times in my career.

“With regards to the LMP2 series, a team can be involved by buying a customer car and go racing. Our unique Brabham-Digital platform makes it more attractive for sponsors looking for a more engaging programme that could then progress into the LMP1 class for overall honours.

“After speaking to the organisers of the FIA WEC Championship about our project, they were completely open to us joining the series. It meets our aims with fan engagement and they are excited by the prospect of the iconic Brabham Racing name  being part of the series. It is also perfect timing for Brabham, as it will be 50 years in 2016 since my father won in his own car; bearing his own name.”

Brabham understands that it is not easy to raise the money needed to go racing firstly; never mind being competitive straight away.

“We have to raise the money to do it properly or not at all,” added Brabham. “We have to build the new race team, the next level of Brabham-Digital, and recruit the right people with the right motorsport experience. When we launched Project Brabham we were inundated with CV’s so I am sure we can put a great team together. It is a big challenge yes, but we can do it.

“With the technology involved in motorsport generally evolving very quickly, we will have to secure partnerships with technology companies. We have already been approached and held talks with some highly experienced companies and it’s encouraging to hear our programme fits their objectives.”

With this challenge in mind, TCF asked when the car would be launched or if any artist impressions would be released, Brabham stated that there is a lot to organise to get to the first race, but this is where the Project Brabham community can contribute.

“We will be giving our community several options of different designs covering the look and feel of the car and team, so they will help us make those kind of decisions. We will also have over 400 supporter names included in the design, so it will be an interesting project in itself,” Brabham commented.

Brabham-2

“When we start putting the project together really depends on when we bring in further investment. It has taken time to define who we are as a business and how we will pitch it to investors because of the sheer scope of the project. When we launched our crowdfunding campaign in September of last year we described ourselves as a sustainable racing team. By the time we worked through various document versions to leverage the iconic Brabham brand and consulted a few key business advisors, we realised that what are taking to market is a unique online motorsport experience utilising one of the most iconic racing brands in the world with today’s internet connectivity, so all the language had to change again…!

The investor document had to be absolutely right before we went to market and I made sure I held back until I was happy, even when the pressure was on to get going. The good news is we are ready and now going out to market to raise the investment for what is an amazing business idea.

Looking forward to this season, Brabham is concentrating on building up the first stage of Brabham-Digital and the racing team in order to be fully prepared for their first season of racing in 2016.

“We have a lot to do like building the race factory, get the personnel needed for us to race such as engineers, mechanics, marketing people etc. It is important to be well prepared before the 2016 season as there will be a lot to understand like the car and the way we deliver the motorsport experience of an open and transparent racing team through Brabham-Digital.

 We asked David where he saw the Brabham Racing name in a year’s time.

“As a team, we will have the knowledge, the experience and hopefully some strong performances in the first few races and hopefully have a race win or two under our belts,” revealed Brabham.

“Our goals are to build a big Project Brabham community of fans, drivers and engineers from around the globe that can get really close to and help develop the Brabham Racing team to become a World Championship winning team,

“We’re working closely with an Educational Consultant and we’ve spoken with universities and Engineering Institutions about our unique motorsport experience and it’s clear we can also become a content provider to help inspire students to learn through a live racing team.

Come back next week for the third part of this three part feature.

[list]
[list_item icon=”entypo-globe”]Brabham Official on Facebook[/list_item]
[list_item icon=”entypo-globe”]Brabham Official on Twitter[/list_item]
[list_item icon=”entypo-globe”]Brabham website[/list_item]
[list_item icon=”entypo-globe”]Brabham Digital website[/list_item]
[/list]

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About author
English Literature and History Graduate. Writing about the sport for two and a half years and currently alongside TCF write for Driving For Pleasure and Jones On F1. Big F1 fan (especially McLaren and Jenson Button) but also love Everton Football club, music, TV and books.
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