A1 Team Great Britain was one of the first six-seat holders in the series announced, with chairman
John Surtees hosting the event. The car was unveiled to the public in September 2005, displaying a distinctive blue, red and white livery to reflect the colours of the
flag of the United Kingdom, rather than Britain's traditional
racing green colour. British financier
Tony Clements was the national seat holder, and ran the corporate arm of the team until Round 5 of Season 4. Former
Formula One and
500cc Motorcycle World Champion
John Surtees was the team principal for the first 2 seasons of A1GP, working with the organisational structure, technical development, recruitment and race operations for the team. He quit his role before season 3 and was replaced by
Katie Clements. The
Arden International racing organisation was responsible for race operations of the team for the first season. However, for season 2 Surtees assembled a bespoke race team to handle the race operations of A1 Team Great Britain. That team stayed in place for the 3rd season of A1GP, and the first 5 rounds of Season 4. However, between Rounds 5 and 6 of Season 4, A1 Team Great Britain entered administration. From Round 6 onwards, the car was run by mechanics and engineers employed by the series itself, with pit-stops carried out by the German team. == History ==