Team story
Origins
Günter Schmid returned to Formula 1 in 1988 with the Rial name, another wheel manufacturer following his earlier ATS venture. He called on Gustav Brunner to design the ARC1 and Andrea de Cesaris to drive it. The approaching end of the turbo era made a small project based on the naturally aspirated Cosworth V8 viable again.
The Formula 1 journey
De Cesaris took fourth in Detroit, giving the first season a tangible result. In 1989 the team expanded to two cars with Christian Danner and Volker Weidler. Danner repeated that placing at Phoenix, coping with a broken exhaust; it was the last points-scoring result, followed by a season of increasingly difficult qualifying attempts.
Historical timeline
Three chapters in the story of Rial
Three episodes to revisit the people, cars and races that shaped this journey.
First appearance · Brazilian Grand Prix
Andrea de Cesaris · Brazilian Grand Prix 1988. The recorded outcome is DNF. This is the first recorded race start, or the first entry if the team never started a race.
Sporting landmark · Detroit Grand Prix
Andrea de Cesaris · Detroit Grand Prix 1988. The recorded position is P4; this number alone does not show whether the driver completed the race distance. This marks the first win or podium where one exists, otherwise the highest recorded placing for this constructor.
Latest recorded appearance · Canadian Grand Prix
Christian Danner · Canadian Grand Prix 1989. The recorded position is P8; this number alone does not show whether the driver completed the race distance. This is the last race start attributed to this constructor in the archive, not necessarily the end of the organisation behind it.
A distinctive way of racing
The ARC2, associated with Stefan Fober’s work, continued the first car’s approach after Brunner’s departure. Expanding the line-up did not mean a comparable increase in resources. For Weidler, even getting through pre-qualifying remained an obstacle, while several changes brought Gachot, Raphanel and Foitek into the cockpit without restoring competitiveness.
What remains
At the end of 1989 Schmid closed his second Formula 1 project. Rial took no podiums, but its fourth places on the Detroit and Phoenix street circuits distinguish two seasons often remembered only for failures to qualify. The connection to ATS concerns the owner and the commercial business: it does not involve the Italian ATS, founded in 1962 by former Ferrari engineers and making its World Championship debut in 1963.