Fernandes's project originally entered Formula One in 2010 as Lotus Racing, licensed to use the Lotus name from Group Lotus under the banner of 1Malaysia F1, operating as 1Malaysia Racing Team Sdn Bhd. The initiative was aligned with former Prime Minister Najib Razak's 1Malaysia programme. When Proton — parent company of Group Lotus — terminated the licence, Fernandes acquired the privately owned Team Lotus name for the 2011 season. With Proton commencing legal proceedings, Fernandes simultaneously acquired British sportscar manufacturer Caterham Cars. In November 2011 the team formally applied to rename itself Caterham for the 2012 season, at the same moment that Renault rebranded as Lotus. The FIA World Motor Sport Council ratified the name change, and the team relocated to the Leafield Technical Centre in Leafield, Oxfordshire — previously home to Arrows and Super Aguri — ahead of the new season. The team had finished 10th in the Constructors' Championship in 2011, with three 13th-place finishes across its two drivers.
Jarno Trulli and Heikki Kovalainen were initially retained, but Vitaly Petrov replaced Trulli following the latter's dissatisfaction with the development pace. The Caterham CT01 was the team's first car built to run KERS. Despite a slow start, the car showed flashes of competitiveness: Kovalainen reached Q2 at the Bahrain Grand Prix, eliminating Michael Schumacher in the process, and achieved a season's best thirteenth place at Monaco while holding off Jenson Button. At Valencia, Kovalainen qualified sixteenth after eliminating both Toro Rossos and title contender Mark Webber. Petrov delivered a team-record eleventh-place finish in the season finale, helping Caterham pip Marussia for tenth in the Constructors' Championship.
Former Marussia driver Charles Pic joined for 2013 alongside rookie Giedo van der Garde. Alexander Rossi and Ma Qinghua were named reserve drivers, while Kovalainen returned in a technical development role. Van der Garde achieved the team's best-ever qualifying result with fourteenth place at the 2013 Belgian Grand Prix. Despite being regarded as holding a performance edge over rivals Marussia, Caterham finished eleventh in the Constructors' Championship — behind Marussia.
Marcus Ericsson and Kamui Kobayashi formed the new driver pairing for 2014. After the Monaco Grand Prix, Caterham became the record holders for the most Formula One race starts without scoring a single championship point, after Marussia's Jules Bianchi claimed ninth place in that race — the team's first points finish since entering the sport.
In July 2014, Fernandes and his partners sold the team to a consortium of Swiss and Middle Eastern investors advised by former team principal Colin Kolles. Christijan Albers, assisted by Manfredi Ravetto, took over day-to-day operations. Under the new management, Kobayashi was absent from the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps, replaced by André Lotterer — a former Jaguar F1 test driver and three-time 24 Hours of Le Mans winner — who made his Formula One debut, retiring early with mechanical issues and declining further outings unless conditions improved.
On 21 October 2014, Caterham entered administration, with Smith & Williamson taking control. Bernie Ecclestone granted the team dispensation to miss the United States and Brazilian Grands Prix. In a first for Formula One, the administrators launched a crowdfunding campaign during the Brazilian Grand Prix weekend to fund a return for the Abu Dhabi finale. The initiative raised the necessary funds, and Kobayashi and British driver Will Stevens raced at Yas Marina Circuit. A small UK pub — the Windmill Inn in Littleworth, West Sussex — appeared as a crowdfunding sponsor on the cars, a striking contrast to the multinational branding typical elsewhere on the grid.
The FIA's revised 2015 entry list, published on 27 February 2015, removed Caterham and reinstated Manor Marussia. By March 2015 the team's assets were sold at auction, ending all prospects of revival. Over forty former employees had already launched legal action for unfair dismissal following cost cuts by the new owners, and 230 staff members not directly involved in Grand Prix preparation were made redundant in November 2014. Redundancy payments were eventually received in January 2019, more than four years after the team's bankruptcy.
During its active years, Caterham supported several drivers through a development programme linked to the GP2 Series and Formula One test sessions. Of those involved, only Giedo van der Garde and Will Stevens went on to race for the team in a championship Grand Prix.
Gallery · 4 related images
