Osella

Osella was an Italian racing car constructor and former Formula One team that competed in 132 Grands Prix between 1980 and 1990, scoring just two points finishes and a total of five championship points.

Founded in Volpiano in 1965 by ex-rally driver Enzo Osella, the team began racing Abarth sports cars in local and national events before stepping up to bigger things. By 1974, Osella had taken over Abarth’s factory sports car programme and soon expanded into single-seaters.

In 1975, Osella entered Formula Two with their own BMW-powered FA2, fielding drivers like Giorgio Francia and Duilio Truffo. Although there were flashes of promise, the following season was cut short due to financial troubles. The FA2 occasionally resurfaced with privateers, including Swiss touring car racer Charly Kiser, prompting Osella to pivot toward building cars for other teams. The FA3 Formula Three car followed in 1976, but it struggled to make an impact. After a quiet spell focused on local sports car racing in 1977 and 1978, Osella was gearing up for its boldest move yet — a leap into Formula One.

Formula One Team

Osella entered Formula One in 1980 with the FA1, designed by Giorgio Stirano and powered by the Ford Cosworth DFV. The car debuted in a striking black-and-white livery with prominent Denim branding but proved underdeveloped. Despite Eddie Cheever managing to qualify regularly, he only finished one race all season due to chronic reliability issues and poor aerodynamics. With many parts built in-house to save money, the car often suffered from design flaws that held back performance.

The following years were marked by struggle and occasional promise. In 1982, with Jean-Pierre Jarier and Riccardo Paletti driving, Osella introduced the FA1C with design input from Giorgio Valentini, Tony Southgate and Enzo Osella himself. Jarier scored the team’s first points with a fourth-place finish at a depleted Imola grid, but the season was overshadowed by tragedy when Paletti was killed in a start-line crash at the Canadian Grand Prix. In 1983 and 1984, the team signed talents like Piercarlo Ghinzani, Corrado Fabi and Jo Gartner, picking up the odd point but plagued by underfunding and technical setbacks. By 1986, Osella was relying on pay drivers to survive. While future F1 regulars like Alex Caffi and Gabriele Tarquini passed through, others faded quickly — and despite moments of promise, the team never gained a competitive foothold.

Alfa Romeo

In the mid-1980s, Osella entered a technical partnership with Alfa Romeo, gaining access to factory engines — first the naturally aspirated V8s in 1983–84, then the 890T turbo units from 1984 to 1988. While the deal kept Osella afloat during F1’s turbo era, it did little to boost their performance. The 890T engine was notoriously unreliable, with frequent turbo failures forcing the team to run it at reduced power — sometimes no better than non-turbo rivals — just to make it to the finish. Alfa’s technical chief, Carlo Chiti, offered some input, and from 1984 onwards Osella’s cars were essentially evolutions of Alfa’s own 183T, starting with the FA1F and continuing through to the FA1L.

By 1988, with turbo engines due to be banned the following year, Osella rebranded the 890T as the “Osella V8” after Fiat, Alfa Romeo’s parent company, refused to let its name be associated with the underperforming project. Hopes were briefly raised when Nicola Larini posted promising times in pre-season testing at Monza, but the outdated FA1L chassis and engine combo couldn’t compete. Larini frequently failed to qualify — or even pre-qualify — and was disqualified from the San Marino Grand Prix before turning a wheel due to illegal modifications to the chassis. At the end of a tough season, Enzo Osella ended the partnership with Alfa for good.

Cosworth and Fondmetal

The 1989 season brought a flicker of hope for Osella. With a fresh design and Cosworth DFR power, the new FA1M was notably quicker in qualifying — Nicola Larini even lined up 10th at the Japanese Grand Prix. However, reliability issues plagued the team, and strong grid positions rarely translated into race results. The low point came in Canada, where Larini climbed to third before an electrical failure caused by water ingress forced him to retire. The season ended with a crash in Australia that left Piercarlo Ghinzani with an injured ankle — he announced his retirement soon after.

In 1990, Enzo Osella sold a stake in the team to Italian industrialist Gabriele Rumi as part of a sponsorship deal with Rumi’s company, Fondmetal. That year, the team ran a single car for French driver Olivier Grouillard, but it marked the end of the road for Osella in Formula One. At the close of the season, Rumi took full control and rebranded the outfit as Fondmetal, officially ending Osella’s decade-long run in the sport.

Osella Squadra Corse Formula One World Championship Records

First entry	1980 Argentine Grand Prix
Races entered	172 (132 starts)
Engines	Ford-Cosworth, Alfa Romeo, Osella
Constructors’ Championships	0 (best finish: 12th, 1984)
Drivers’ Championships	0 (best finish: 19th, Piercarlo Ghinzani, 1984)
Race victories	0 (best finish: 4th, 1982 San Marino Grand Prix)
Pole positions	0 (best grid position: 8th, 1990 United States Grand Prix)
Fastest laps	0
Final entry	1990 Australian Grand Prix

Osella Squadra Corse Constructor Championship Results

Year	Chassis	Engines	Tyres	Drivers	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	WCC	Points
1980	FA1	Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	G		ARG	BRA	RSA	USW	BEL	MON	FRA	GBR	GER	AUT	NED	ITA	CAN	USA			NC	0
				Eddie Cheever	DNQ	DNQ	Ret	Ret	DNQ	DNQ	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	12	Ret	Ret
1981	FA1B FA1C	Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	M		USW	BRA	ARG	SMR	BEL	MON	ESP	FRA	GBR	GER	AUT	NED	ITA	CAN	CPL		NC	0
			M	Miguel Ángel Guerra	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	Ret
			M	Piercarlo Ghinzani					13	DNQ
			M	Giorgio Francia							DNQ
			M	Jean-Pierre Jarier									8	8	10	Ret	9	Ret	Ret
			M	Beppe Gabbiani	Ret	DNQ	DNQ	Ret	Ret	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ
1982	FA1C	Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	P		RSA	BRA	USW	SMR	BEL	MON	DET	CAN	NED	GBR	FRA	GER	AUT	SUI	ITA	CPL	12th	3
			P	Jean-Pierre Jarier	Ret	9	Ret	4	Ret	DNQ	Ret	Ret	14	Ret	Ret	Ret	DNQ	Ret	Ret	DNS
			P	Riccardo Paletti	DNQ	DNPQ	DNQ	Ret	DNPQ	DNPQ	DNS	Ret
1983	FA1D	Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	M		BRA	USW	FRA	SMR	MON	BEL	DET	CAN	GBR	GER	AUT	NED	ITA	EUR	RSA		NC	0
			M	Corrado Fabi	Ret	DNQ	Ret	Ret	DNQ	Ret	DNQ	Ret
			M	Piercarlo Ghinzani	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ
	FA1E	Alfa Romeo 1260 3.0 V12	M	Corrado Fabi									DNQ	DNQ	10	11	Ret	DNQ	Ret
			M	Piercarlo Ghinzani				DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	Ret	DNQ	Ret	Ret	11	DNQ	Ret	Ret	Ret
1984	FA1F	Alfa Romeo 890T 1.5 V8 t	P		BRA	RSA	BEL	SMR	FRA	MON	CAN	DET	DAL	GBR	GER	AUT	NED	ITA	EUR	POR	12th	2
			P	Piercarlo Ghinzani	Ret	DNS	Ret	DNQ	12	7	Ret	Ret	5	9	Ret	Ret	Ret	7	Ret	Ret
			P	Jo Gartner										Ret	Ret	Ret	12	5 ‡	Ret	16
	FA1E	Alfa Romeo 1260 3.0 V12	P	Jo Gartner				Ret
1985	FA1F FA1G	Alfa Romeo 890T 1.5 V8 t	P		BRA	POR	SMR	MON	CAN	DET	FRA	GBR	GER	AUT	NED	ITA	BEL	EUR	RSA	AUS	NC	0
			P	Piercarlo Ghinzani	12	9	NC	DNQ	Ret	Ret	15	Ret
			P	Huub Rothengatter									Ret	9	NC	Ret	NC	DNQ	Ret	7
1986	FA1G FA1F FA1H	Alfa Romeo 890T 1.5 V8 t	P		BRA	ESP	SMR	MON	BEL	CAN	DET	FRA	GBR	GER	HUN	AUT	ITA	POR	MEX	AUS	NC	0
			P	Piercarlo Ghinzani	Ret	Ret	Ret	DNQ	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	11	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret
			P	Christian Danner	Ret	Ret	Ret	DNQ	Ret	Ret
			P	Allen Berg							Ret	Ret	Ret	12	Ret	Ret		13	16	NC
			P	Alex Caffi													NC
1987	FA1I FA1G	Alfa Romeo 890T 1.5 V8 t	G		BRA	SMR	BEL	MON	DET	FRA	GBR	GER	HUN	AUT	ITA	POR	ESP	MEX	JPN	AUS	NC	0
			G	Alex Caffi	Ret	12	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	DNQ	Ret	Ret	DNQ
			G	Gabriele Tarquini		Ret
			G	Franco Forini											Ret	Ret	DNQ
1988	FA1I FA1L	Osella 890T 1.5 V8 t	G		BRA	SMR	MON	MEX	CAN	DET	FRA	GBR	GER	HUN	BEL	ITA	POR	ESP	JPN	AUS	NC	0
			G	Nicola Larini	DNQ	EX	9	DNQ	DNQ	Ret	Ret	19	Ret	DNPQ	Ret	Ret	12	Ret	Ret	DNPQ
1989	FA1M	Cosworth DFR 3.5 V8	P		BRA	SMR	MON	MEX	USA	CAN	FRA	GBR	GER	HUN	BEL	ITA	POR	ESP	JPN	AUS	NC	0
			P	Nicola Larini	DSQ	12	DNPQ	DNPQ	DNPQ	Ret	DNPQ	Ret	DNPQ	DNPQ	DNPQ	Ret	DNPQ	Ret	Ret	Ret
			P	Piercarlo Ghinzani	DNPQ	DNPQ	DNPQ	DNPQ	DNPQ	DNPQ	DNPQ	DNPQ	DNPQ	Ret	DNPQ	DNPQ	DNPQ	Ret	DNPQ	Ret
1990	FA1M-E	Cosworth DFR 3.5 V8	P	Olivier Grouillard	USA Ret	BRA Ret	SMR Ret	MON DNQ	CAN 13	MEX 19	FRA DNPQ	GBR DNQ	GER DNQ	HUN DNPQ	BEL 16	ITA Ret	POR DNQ	ESP Ret	JPN DNQ	AUS 13	NC	0