IN A BRIEF ANNOUNCEMENT THAT left more questions unanswered than answered, Brabham Group Limited (BGL) and Fusion Capital, the majority shareholder, sole funder, and operator of the Automotive company that bears the famous Brabham name, announced that after six years of collaboration, the arrangement has now come to an end. The decision to end the relationship, said a spokesperson, was made after careful consideration and what was in the best interests of all parties and the brand.
The venture between the two companies enabled the group to design, build and sell high performance Brabham vehicles on a worldwide exclusive licence. The company’s global launch in 2018 at Australia House London introduced the beautiful Brabham BT62 high performance track car to the world’s media, ex-Brabham F1 drivers and VIP guests. The highlights of the BT62 and BT63 consisted of lap records at Bathurst Mount Panorama and Phillip Island, pole positions and race victories in Europe.
“While it is regrettable that our relationship with Fusion Capital has come to an end,” said David Brabham, director or the Brabham Group Limited, “the collaboration helped further evolve ‘Brabham’ to a new and exciting future. With the brand licence for Automotive ended, it opens the doors for future business ventures in the Motorsport, Automotive and Heritage sectors. I would personally like to thank everyone who contributed and supported to this project over the years.”
Meanwhile, in an unenlightening statement from the chairman of Fusion Capital, Mat Fitch said, “Ultimately the strategic direction of both groups did not align – that happens. My family and I have invested in automotive and manufacturing for over 40 years and we will continue to do so with what we have created in the last 6 years. Powertrains are evolving and the opportunity to challenge the mainstream OEMs has never been greater. What we have created provides the perfect platform for the future.”
It is unlikely that we’ll ever learn the full story, but it’s another chapter in the convoluted Brabham history.
As absurd as it sounds, the Brabham family didn’t have the rights to use its own name in the late 2000s. At the time, a German company, run by Michael Trick, was selling modified BMWs under the ‘Brabham Racing’ banner. David Brabham attempted to mediate a settlement but his approach was rejected, leading to a protracted legal battle to win the rights to the Brabham family name.
In 2014, David Brabham launched Project Brabham as a crowdfunded racing team. When he met Dan Marks, a partner in Fusion Capital, an Adelaide-based investment firm with ties to the motoring industry, plans were set in motion to create the Brabham BT62 to be built in Adelaide.
Initially designed as the ultimate track car, this approach side-stepped the expensive and complicated process of starting a motor racing program, and released the BT62 from both road car regulations and racing car rules, allowing greater freedom in design.
The result was a mid-engine supercar, weighing 972kg and powered by a 522kW naturally-aspirated V8 engine, believed to be Ford-based but never confirmed.
The original projection was for the car to be offered to the public at $1.8 million. Unanticipated demand for a road car led to a road-going version with a $270,000 conversion kit to raise the ride height and add some essentials such as air conditioning and door locks.
Since the launch in 2019, little has been heard of the car or the company, and this latest announcement would appear to be the end of the story. But who knows?