The switch away from pure CFD reflected the team's reassessment of the design philosophy that had characterised the Virgin VR-01 and MVR-02. One immediately notable feature was the absence of the stepped nose that dominated most 2012-season designs; alongside the McLaren MP4-27 and the HRT F112, the MR01 ran a conventional flat nose at the start of the year, though by the British Grand Prix it had adopted a larger nose structure comparable to solutions Force India had used in 2010–11.
Development delays meant the MR01 could not complete its mandatory crash tests before the final pre-season test at Circuit de Catalunya in early March. Technical advisor Pat Symonds attributed one failure to a component performing "inconsistently." The car finally passed its crash test on 6 March, leaving virtually no proper test mileage before the opening race in Australia.
The MR01 was the only car to begin the 2012 season without a Kinetic Energy Recovery System. HRT later admitted their car also lacked KERS, but the Marussia was the first to race without it.
With almost no test running, the Australian Grand Prix served largely as a shakedown. Both HRTs failed to qualify under the 107% rule, and a gearbox penalty for Sergio Pérez reshuffled the back of the grid, placing the two Marussias 20th and 21st on the grid — their best of a difficult season to that point. Glock finished 14th; Pic retired late but was classified 15th having covered over 90% of the race distance.
The Malaysian Grand Prix was run in torrential conditions that led to a red-flag stoppage on lap nine. After a lengthy delay the race resumed on a drying track; Glock crossed the line 17th and Pic 20th, enough to hold Marussia ahead of Caterham in the battle for tenth in the Constructors' Championship — the de facto prize for the leading non-points team.
At Spa-Francorchamps, Pic recorded the team's highest-ever session result to that date by setting the fastest time in a wet Free Practice 2, a consequence of many front-runners not pushing in the conditions. In Singapore, Glock produced his personal best race result with 12th place, a finish that tilted the Marussia-versus-Caterham fight in Marussia's favour due to a superior non-points finishing record.
On 3 July 2012, test driver María de Villota was conducting straight-line aerodynamic runs at Duxford Airfield in preparation for the British Grand Prix when her car struck the lift gate of the team transporter at high speed. She sustained critical head injuries and lost her right eye. De Villota died in October 2013 as a result of the injuries she suffered in the accident.
The MR01 represented the start of the Marussia identity in Formula One, succeeding the Virgin-badged cars that had competed since 2010. Its blend of CFD and wind tunnel work under Pat Symonds's guidance pointed toward the more competitive MR02 that followed, and Glock's 12th-place finish at Singapore remained the finest race result in the Virgin/Marussia lineage at the time of its achievement. The car's season also established the framework for Marussia's ongoing rivalry with Caterham — a fight for Constructors' Championship position that would define the team's competitive horizon for years.