RACING UP THE MOUNTAIN
When GP Racing first learned of Racing Point’s plans to photograph its new car livery at an Austrian mountain lake location, our thoughts naturally turned to the film Fitzcarraldo, the plot of which revolves around a man’s doomed attempt to physically haul a paddle-steamer over a steep and forested hill from one Peruvian river to another. In a case of life imitating art, stories abound of this troubled production: several extras died during filming, a labourer is claimed to have amputated his own foot with a chainsaw after being bitten by a poisonous snake, angry locals burned down the set, and director Werner Herzog later confessed to plotting to murder lead actor Klaus Kinski.
“ FINISHING SEVENTH LAST YEAR, WE DO HAVE A MOUNTAIN TO CLIMB – BUT WE’RE UP FOR THE CHALLENGE ”
OTMAR SZAFNAUER
Similarly, Racing Point’s journey has not been without pain since founder Eddie Jordan sold the outfit to a Russian steel magnate – the first of several eccentric owners – in 2004. Investment has been sporadic at best
