Downton

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23px-Flag of the United Kingdom.svg-1-.png Downton
Downton Logo 2020.png
Full name Downton FV Team
Base Amesbury, Wiltshire, United
Kingdom
Team
principal
Bradley Downton
Technical
director
Declan Johnson
Founder Bradley Downton
Website www.downtonfvteam.com
2024 Formula Virtual World Championship
Race drivers 1. 23px-Flag of the Netherlands.svg-1-.png Klaas van Snelheid
2. 23px-Flag of the United Kingdom.svg-1-.png Nathaniel Powers
Reserve driver(s) 94. 23px-Flag of Jamaica.svg-1-.png Spencer James
Chassis BD12
Engine Downton MCL-2024
Tyres Goodyear
Formula Virtual World Championship career
First entry 2013 Australian V-Prix
Latest entry 2023 Brazilian V-Prix
Races Entered 184 (368 starts)
Constructors'
Championships
5 (2017, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2023)
Drivers'
Championships
5 (2017, 2018, 2020, 2021, 2023)
Race Victories 60
Podiums 151
Career points 3709
Pole positions 59
Fastest laps 47
2023 position 1st (538 points)

Downton are a British Formula Virtual team based in Amesbury, England. The team was founded by, and is owned and managed by Bradley Downton.

The team were the first in the series to build their own engines in 2014, originally with support from DS Automobiles, though the team switched to McLaren support from 2020. In 2013 the team ran under the name "Orange Downton Pagani" but switched simply to Downton FV Team from 2014 onward.

Downton have won the Constructors' Championship a record five times. Firstly in 2017 following a dominant season in which they broke a number a records, before repeating the triumph in 2019 following a season long battle with former triple champions Franklin. In 2020, they not only equalled Franklin's record but became the first team since them in 2015 to successfully defend their Constructors' title after overcoming Mathershaw, before taking the record outright with another victory in 2021, also tying the record for most consecutive titles with three. They then took a fifth title in 2023 after a dominant season which saw the team take 11 race victories throughout the year.

Origins

Ownership

Team logo and identity

Racing history - Formula Virtual

The deal for Downton to enter the Virtual Grand Prix Championship came about after the initial registration process. The team entered under the name Orange Downton Pagani after confirming title sponsorship from Orange Telecommunications and an engine deal with Italian super car manufacturer Pagani. Downton confirmed he would take on the role of team principal while appointed good friend Declan Johnson as technical director.

The team set up base in Amesbury - Downton's home town - in a disused factory and immediately began development on the team's first car, the BD01. Downton also confirmed the team intended to set up a young driver academy to assist young talents on their career path. This included partnering with teams in junior categories, most notably Formation Competition.

Formula Virtual

Pagani engines (2013)

2013 season

Downton's first car was christened the BD01 and was unveiled on the team owner's birthday on the 17 July 2013. The car featured a striking orange, blue and black livery and featured prominent sponsorship from Orange Telecommunications and Monster Energy. Kip Maxwell and Scott Parsons were unveiled at the launch of the car as the teams drivers, however a test driver wasn't confirmed. At the 2013 Malaysian Grand Prix the team confirmed Marcus Thunder - a product of the teams young driver academy - would join the team as test driver.

The car seemed quick straight out of the box and Parsons took it to a debut podium in the first race of the season, the 2013 Australian Grand Prix. That would prove to be their best result however and also just over half of their total points all year. As the season progressed the team struggled to keep up with development and slipped further and further back, eventually finishing tenth in the constructors championship.

The team also ran a total of six different drivers throughout the season. Parsons was involved in a rallying accident in the lead-up to the 2013 United States Grand Prix and he was subsequently replaced by test and reserve driver Thunder. Felix Beyer was then brought in from the defunct BMW Zyla team to replace Maxwell - who had been granted paternity leave - for two races before Parsons returned for Austria and took over from Beyer. Parsons subsequently announced he would withdraw from the remainder of the season after suffering from his injuries during the race and the team brought in Team 23 test driver Jacinto van Slooten after announcing the engine deal for the following season. At the 2013 Chinese Grand Prix, Mathershaw driver Karl Beckenbauer was handed a race ban and Downton and Mathershaw agreed a deal for Thunder to switch teams for the final three races. As a result Maxwell returned as replacement before the team announced that 2014 signing Nathaniel Powers would instead join the team as of the final race in Mexico after clinching the championship in the preceding race in Brazil.

Downton engines (2014-present)

For their first season in Formula Virtual Downton used engines supplied by Italian Supercar manufacturer Pagani. They soon announced however they would build their own engines from 2014 onwards. Shortly afterwards it was confirmed they would also supply Team 23 with engines for 2014. This deal was set to be continued in 2015 until Team 23 withdrew from the series, however their replacement Ocelot announced their intentions to run Downton engines and a deal was struck.

Downton also be supplied Liverpool with engines for the first time too in 2015, although they were tuned by VXR rather than DS Automobiles, who tuned Downton's and Ocelot's.

2014 season

Kip Maxwell and Marcus Thunder remained with team for 2014 but Maxwell was demoted to the role of test driver after the team signed reigning Champion Nathaniel Powers as of the 2013 Mexican Grand Prix. On 25 January 2014 Downton announced that their test driver Maxwell would be shared between themselves and Liverpool Grand Prix while Felix Beyer would move to new team Force Australia, Jacinto van Slooten returned to Team 23 and Scott Parsons took a sabbatical to fully recover from his rallying injuries.

Thunder finished fifth in the opening race while Powers retired following an incident with Romano Agostino and Adrien Simon. Powers recovered in Malaysia to finish sixth, one place ahead of teammate Thunder, scoring the team's first ever double points finish. In Bahrain the team picked up their second podium and best ever result courtesy of Powers, who finished second, while Thunder retired with suspension failure. Powers scored more points with seventh in Britain but Thunder struggled in the race on a strategy the team confirmed wasn't optimum and came home seventeenth. The teams worst qualifying performance of the season to date followed in Canada but the drivers recovered for a double points finish, with Powers in eighth and Thunder tenth.

In the following race in the United States, Powers looked on course for the teams first ever win after some drama amongst the front runners, but was caught out when Karl Beckenbauer slowed suddenly while overtaking the damaged car of Will Hoskins, resulting in Powers running into Beckenbauer and breaking his own front wing, eventually finishing eighth with teammate Thunder in tenth again but taking the fastest lap. The Spanish race was a disaster for the team, taking home no points for the first time in 2014.

At the first ever Portuguese race the team returned to the points and the podium, with Powers third and Thunder eighth. This also marked the teams biggest points haul in one race to date. Powers followed that up with another podium in France finishing second but Thunder retired after partial brake failure and partially missing his braking point for the hairpin on lap one, also eliminating Jean Mattson of Downton's customer team Team 23 and narrowly avoiding his own team mate Powers.

In the following German Grand Prix Powers finished fifth while Thunder retired with an engine failure but in Austria the team secured their highest combined finish, with Powers fifth and Thunder sixth. The team achieved another strong double points finish in Belgium with fifth and seventh - Thunder ahead of his champion team mate - but suffered dismal weekends in the following races in Italy and China, failing to score any points.

The team returned to form in Japan with two cars in the top ten in Qualifying, and went on to secure their biggest points haul in the race, with Thunder third - taking his first ever podium for the team - and Powers right behind in fourth. Brazil was another double points finish with sixth and seventh, and this result secured Downton third in the Constructors Championship. In the final race in Mexico, Thunder finished sixth to secure his top nine place in the Drivers' Championship but Powers endured a difficult weekend, finishing fourteenth.

2015 season

The team retained both Powers and Thunder for 2015, with Maxwell once more in reserve role duties, although this time shared with Westwood, however they wrote the season off before it had even begun. Pre-season testing seemed to confirm their fears, and they struggled in Australia. An upgraded engine followed in Malaysia and the team found themselves solidly in the top half, yet a disappointing race yielding just one point. In Brazil however the team benefited from strategy and mistakes from others to secure their first ever win in the series with Thunder, while Powers followed him home to secure a 1-2 result. This came just the day after the team announced both Powers and Thunder would remain with the team until at least the end of 2017.

2016 season

2017 season

2018 season

2019 season

2020 season

2021 season

2022 season

2023 season

2024 season

Sponsorship

Downton featured title sponsorship from Orange Telecommunications in 2013 and main sponsorship from Monster Energy, but for 2014 the two companies sponsored the team equally as Downton decided to shed itself of a title sponsor. This looked set to continue in 2015, but on 25th January rumours surfaced that Downton and Orange were on the verge of a split. This was confirmed by Downton on 26th March with an announcement that two new sponsors would take the place of Orange coming on 7th April. These were later revealed to be Orange's parent company EE, and insurance group Aviva.

Downton are also sponsored by Adidas, Android, Asus, Atom Publishers, BP, Casio, Firestone, HTC, Oakley, Osiris, Symantec and TNT.

Other Virtual Motorsport

Downton Young Driver Academy

As soon as the team were set up they announced the introduction of the Downton Young Driver Academy (DYDA). The initial aim was to find a test driver and Marcus Thunder was the successful product of this.

Complete Formula Virtual results

(results in bold indicate pole position; results in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Chassis Engine Tyres No. Drivers 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Points WCC
2013 BD01 Pagani
PF12013
B AUS MAL BHR GBR ESP CAN USA FRA GER AUT BEL ITA CHN JPN BRA MEX 29 10th
20 23px-Flag of the United Kingdom.svg-1-.png Kip Maxwell Ret 13 Ret 20 22 11 13
23px-Flag of the Netherlands.svg-1-.png Felix Beyer Ret 21
23px-Flag of the Netherlands.svg-1-.png Jacinto van Slooten 15 17 11 10 12 14
23px-Flag of the United Kingdom.svg-1-.png Scott Parsons 21
21 3 15 5 Ret 14 Ret
23px-Flag of the United Kingdom.svg-1-.png Marcus Thunder 18 14 9 12 12 10 Ret
23px-Flag of the United Kingdom.svg-1-.png Kip Maxwell 11 Ret
23px-Flag of the United Kingdom.svg-1-.png Nathaniel Powers 21
2014 BD02 Downton
DS-2014
B AUS MAL BHR GBR CAN USA ESP POR FRA GER AUT BEL ITA CHN JPN BRA MEX 188 3rd
1 23px-Flag of the United Kingdom.svg-1-.png Nathaniel Powers Ret 6 2 7 8 8 15 3 2 5 5 7 16 11 4 6 14
2 23px-Flag of the United Kingdom.svg-1-.png Marcus Thunder 5 7 Ret 17 10 10 12 8 Ret Ret 6 5 21 Ret 3 7 6
2015 BD03 Downton
DS-2015
F AUS MAL BRA RSA ESP POR FRA GBR CAN USA GER BEL ITA MEX CHN JPN 163 5th
13 23px-Flag of the United Kingdom.svg-1-.png Marcus Thunder 11 10 1 6 6 9 6 5 7 4 Ret 6 7 9 Ret 8
14 23px-Flag of the United Kingdom.svg-1-.png Nathaniel Powers 12 Ret 2 Ret 14 5 8 8 10 6 4 8 Ret 10
23px-Flag of the United Kingdom.svg-1-.png Will Hoskins 10 15
2016 BD04 Downton
DS-2016
M AUS MAL CHN JPN FRA ESP GBR GER NED BEL ITA TUR BHR CAN USA MEX POR BRA 7 9th
13 23px-Flag of the United Kingdom.svg-1-.png Marcus Thunder 18 17 20 21 20 Ret Ret Ret 14 9 16 15 13 24 14 18 17 13
14 23px-Flag of the United Kingdom.svg-1-.png Nathaniel Powers 23 20 Ret 24 12 13 12 17 8 11 13 14 10 13 18 11 Ret 14
2017 BD05 Downton
DS-2017
G AUS MAL JPN CHN FRA ESP GER AUT GBR BEL ITA POR TUR BHR CAN USA MEX BRA 570 1st
13 23px-Flag of the Netherlands.svg-1-.png Klaas van Snelheid 5 Ret 1 2 1 2 4 1 2 1 1 3 Ret 6 6 4 1 3
14 23px-Flag of the United Kingdom.svg-1-.png Nathaniel Powers 4 Ret 4 1 2 1 1 Ret 1 2 Ret 1 2 1 2 21 3 1
2018 BD06 Downton
DS-2018
G AUS JPN CHN MAL GBR FRA ESP AUT GER SVK CAN USA BHR TUR BEL ITA MEX BRA 454 2nd
1 23px-Flag of the United Kingdom.svg-1-.png Nathaniel Powers 3 4 3 1 2 3 6 3 16 3 2 Ret 3 3 8 3 2 2
2 23px-Flag of the Netherlands.svg-1-.png Klaas van Snelheid Ret 1 2 11 1 2 5 5 Ret 6 4 8 Ret 7 1 4 3 1
2019 BD07 Downton
DS-2019
G AUS JPN CHN MAL GBR FRA ESP CAN USA AUT GER BHR TUR ITA BEL MEX BRA 452 1st
1 23px-Flag of the United Kingdom.svg-1-.png Nathaniel Powers 3 6 Ret 3 1 1 1 2 Ret 4 3 1 3 Ret 16 2 13
2 23px-Flag of the Netherlands.svg-1-.png Klaas van Snelheid 2 Ret 1 1 5 2 13 3 1 3 14 3 1 Ret 2 3 4
2020 BD08 Downton
MCL-2020
G JPN MAL AUS RSA GBR FRA ESP GER USA CAN BHR TUR BEL ITA MEX BRA 475 1st
13 23px-Flag of the Netherlands.svg-1-.png Klaas van Snelheid 3 4 5 5 3 3 3 4 10 1 2 1 Ret 1 3 10
14 23px-Flag of the United Kingdom.svg-1-.png Nathaniel Powers 6 3 3 3 5 1 8 1 7 3 1 2 2 4 1 1
2021 BD09 Downton
MCL-2021
G JPN MAL AUS RSA GBR FRA ESP GER UAE TUR BEL ITA CAN USA MEX BRA 411 1st
1 23px-Flag of the United Kingdom.svg-1-.png Nathaniel Powers 1 2 Ret 1 1 1 1 18 1 11 1 20 11 3 9 10
2 23px-Flag of the Netherlands.svg-1-.png Klaas van Snelheid 2 1 Ret 8 7 3 3 17 2 2 2 Ret 2 6 1 4
2022 BD10 Downton
MCL-2022
G JPN AUS MAL RSA FRA GBR GER CZE TUR UAE BEL ITA CAN USA BRA MEX 422 2nd
13 23px-Flag of the Netherlands.svg-1-.png Klaas van Snelheid 2 1 3 2 2 2 2 Ret 4 2 Ret 2 1 1 4 3
14 23px-Flag of Italy.svg-1-.png Matteo Zetticci 1 7 21 3 3 9 6 19 6 1 3 Ret Ret 2 2 4
2023 BD11 Downton
MCL-2023
G AUS MAL JPN RSA UAE FRA GBR GER BEL ITA TUR CAN USA MEX ARG BRA 538 1st
13 23px-Flag of the Netherlands.svg-1-.png Klaas van Snelheid 1 2 1 2 14 2 1 1 1 Ret 1 2 5 1 2 3
14 23px-Flag of Italy.svg-1-.png Matteo Zetticci 3 3 3 1 2 1 2 5 2 1 9 3 1 4 Ret 5
2024 BD12 Downton
MCL-2024
G AUS MAL SIN FRA JPN GBR GER NED BEL ITA KWT CAN USA MEX ARG BRA 0* 1st*
1 23px-Flag of the Netherlands.svg-1-.png Klaas van Snelheid
2 23px-Flag of the United Kingdom.svg-1-.png Nathaniel Powers

* Season in progress.

See also