There have been five Formula One drivers from the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 Counties of Ireland, counties of the island of Ireland, with a population of about 5.4 million. ...

Former drivers

Joe Kelly was Ireland's first F1 driver, racing in the first two World Championship British Grands Prix. His privately entered

Alta Alta or ALTA may refer to: Acronyms * Alt-A, short for Alternative A-paper, is a type of US mortgage * American Land Title Association, a national trade association representing the land title industry * American Literary Translators Association, ...

failed to be classified in either race. Having taken the 1977 British F3 title,

Derek Daly Derek Patrick Daly (born 11 March 1953) is an Irish former racing driver, businessman and broadcaster, who competed in Formula One from to . Born and raised in Dublin, Daly won the British Formula Three Championship in 1977, before partici ...

was promoted to

Hesketh Racing Hesketh Racing was a Formula One constructor from the United Kingdom, which competed from 1973 to 1978. The team competed in 52 World Championship Grands Prix, winning one and achieving eight further podium finishes. Its best placing in the ...

for what would be their final three Grands Prix, failing to qualify for any race. He was quickly hired by

Ensign Ensign most often refers to: * Ensign (flag), a flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality * Ensign (rank), a navy (and former army) officer rank Ensign or The Ensign may also refer to: Places * Ensign, Alberta, Alberta, Canada * Ensign, Ka ...

for the rest of the season and took points in the final race of 1978. The next four seasons saw sporadic stints with Ensign, Tyrrell,

March March is the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Its length is 31 days. In the Northern Hemisphere, the meteorological beginning of spring occurs on the first day of March. The March equinox on the 20 or 2 ...

Theodore Theodore may refer to: Places * Theodore, Australian Capital Territory, Australia * Theodore, Queensland, Australia * Theodore, Saskatchewan, Canada * Theodore, Alabama, United States * Theodore Reservoir, in Saskatchewan People * Theodore (gi ...

and Williams, with a best finish of 4th in the

Argentine Argentines, Argentinians or Argentineans are people from Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical, or cultural. For most Argentines, several (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their ...

and

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

Grands Prix of the 1980 season. As runner-up of the 1979 British Formula One season, David Kennedy's prize was promotion to a World Championship

Shadow A shadow is a dark area on a surface where light from a light source is blocked by an object. In contrast, shade occupies the three-dimensional volume behind an object with light in front of it. The cross-section of a shadow is a two-dimensio ...

seat for

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...

. However, the team was chronically underfunded and had a poorly engineered chassis and despite Theodore's intervention mid-season Kennedy only qualified for one of the eight Grands Prix he was entered in – the

Spanish Grand Prix The Spanish Grand Prix (, ) is a Formula One motor racing event currently held at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. The race is one of the oldest in the world still contested, celebrating its centenary in 2013. The race had modest beginnings ...

, an event subsequently stripped of its World Championship status due to the

FISA–FOCA war The FISA–FOCA war was a political battle contested throughout the early 1980s by two now-defunct representative organizations in Formula One motor racing, the Fédération Internationale du Sport Automobile (FISA) and the Formula One Construct ...

. Following

Jan Lammers Johannes Antonius "Jan" Lammers (born 2 June 1956) is a Dutch racecar driver, most notable for winning the 1988 24 Hours of Le Mans FIA World Endurance Championship, world endurance race, for Silk Cut Jaguar Cars, Jaguar/Tom Walkinshaw Racing, TW ...

' quitting of the Theodore team in 1982, Tommy Byrne made his debut at the

Austrian Grand Prix The Austrian Grand Prix () is a Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile sanctioned motor racing event that was held in , –, and –. It returned to the Formula One calendar in , where it has remained since then. It was first held at ...

. He entered the final five races of the season, qualifying twice but failing to finish either of the races he qualified for.

Eddie Jordan Edmund Patrick Jordan (30 March 1948 – 20 March 2025) was an Irish motorsport executive, broadcaster, racing driver and businessman. From to , Jordan served as founder and team principal of Jordan in Formula One. Born in Dublin, Jordan in ...

, keen to promote an Irish driver, settled on

2002 Formula Nippon season The 2002 Formula Nippon Championship was contested over 10 rounds. 11 different teams, 22 different drivers completed in the series. All teams had to use Reynard chassis and Mugen Honda ( Mugen MF308) engines. Teams and drivers Race calendar a ...

champion

Ralph Firman Ralph David Firman Jr. (born 20 May 1975) is a British and Irish former racing driver who last raced under an Irish licence. His father, Ralph Firman Sr., co-founded the Van Diemen racecar constructor with Ross Ambrose, father of V8 Supercars ...

for his eponymous team's

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

championship assault. He raced in all but two Grands Prix that year, having injured himself in a practice crash in

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

. He scored a single point in

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

however his efforts were not enough to keep him a place on the grid for

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

Timeline

References

{{Formula One nationalities *