Force India changes name on 2019 F1 entry list

Lance Stroll in post-season testing for Force India - 2018 © XPB

It's been on the cards for the last 12 months, but finally it seems that the Force India name is no more with the team opting to enter next year's Formula 1 world championship under a new name.

The FIA's full 2019 entry list was published on Friday, and the team appears as Racing Point F1 Team.

Racing Point is the name of the consortium led by Lawrence Stroll that saved Sahara Force India from administration over the summer. Since then the new full name of the team had been Racing Point Force India.

Team principal Otmar Szafnauer said at the time that they wanted to continue to be referred to as Force India in 2018, preferring continuity and not wanting to confuse fans mid-season.

Surprise! Lance Stroll confirmed at Force India

But now the entry list confirms that the name change will be fully enacted over the winter, although there's not been an official announcement from the team itself.

On Friday, Force India did confirm their driver line-up for next season with Lance Stroll joining Sergio Perez as part of a 'long term deal' for the Canadian.

His old team Williams previously unveiled Robert Kubica and George Russell as their drivers for 2019. The FIA entry list reveals that Kubica has decided to take car number 88 for his return to Formula 1, with rookie racer Russell opting for 63.

Lando Norris has asked for car number 4 on his McLaren, previously used by Max Chilton when he raced with Marussia in 2014. That was the first year that F1 allowed drivers to choose and keep a unique number. Previously-taken numbers are freed up for re-use three years after a driver leaves the championship.

Antonio Giovinazzi will race under the number 99 at Sauber. However there's no word yet on what Alexander Albon will use for his debut at Toro Rosso alongside Daniil Kvyat, who retains his former 26 designation.

Drivers moving between teams over the off-season - such as Daniel Ricciardo, Charles Leclerc, Pierre Gasly, Carlos Sainz, Lance Stroll and Kimi Raikkonen - all keep the car numbers they had at their previous teams.

Official FIA 2019 Formula 1 entry list

Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport
44 - Lewis Hamilton
77 - Valtteri Bottas
Chassis: Mercedes
Engine: Mercedes
Company: Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix Limited

Scuderia Ferrari Mission Winnow
5 - Sebastian Vettel
16 - Charles Leclerc
Chassis: Ferrari
Engine: Ferrari
Company: Ferrari Spa

Aston Martin Red Bull Racing
10 - Pierre Gasly
33 - Max Verstappen
Chassis: Red Bull Racing
Engine: Honda
Company: Red Bull Racing Limited

Renault Sport Racing Limited
3 - Daniel Ricciardo
27 - Nico Hulkenberg
Chassis: Renault
Engine: Renault
Company: Renault Sport Racing Limited

Rich Energy Haas F1 Team
8 - Romain Grosjean
20 - Kevin Magnussen
Chassis: Haas
Engine: Ferrari
Company: Haas Formula LLC

McLaren F1 Team
4 - Lando Norris
55 - Carlos Sainz
Chassis: McLaren
Engine: Renault
Company: McLaren Racing Limited

Racing Point F1 Team
11 - Sergio Perez
18 - Lance Stroll
Chassis: Racing Point
Engine: Mercedes
Company: Racing Point UK Limited

Alfa Romeo Sauber F1 Team
7 - Kimi Raikkonen
99 - Antonio Giovinazzi
Chassis: Sauber
Engine: Ferrari
Company: Sauber Motorsport AG

Red Bull Toro Rosso Honda
26 - Daniil Kvyat
TBA - Alexander Albon
Chassis: Scuderia Toro Rosso (STR14)
Engine: Honda
Company: Scuderia Toro Rosso S.p.a

Williams Racing
63 - George Russell
88 - Robert Kubica
Chassis: Williams
Engine: Mercedes
Company: Williams Grand Prix Engineering Limited

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.