# ByKolles Racing

ByKolles Racing, formerly known as Kodewa, is an Austrian-German auto racing team based in Greding, Germany. The team most recently fielded the No. 4 Vanwall Vandervell 680 in the FIA World Endurance Championship in 2023. It was founded in 2000 by Romulus Kolles and his son Colin Kolles as Kolles Racing, but has undergone several rebrands over the years. These include a sponsorship deal with Lotus Cars from 2012 to 2014, a failed takeover of Tyrrell's naming rights, and a subsequent switch to Vanwall that went to court in 2023.

## History

The company initially participated in German Formula 3 before moving to the F3 Euro Series from 2003 to 2005. Colin Kolles left the team to become director of the Jordan Grand Prix Formula One team at the start of the 2005 season, a position he held until 2009. With his son away, Romulus moved the team to the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters series with Audi under the sponsorship title Futurecom TME. The Kolles team shifted their interest to sports car racing by participating in the Le Mans Series and later the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup, again with customer Audi prototypes. Kolles returned to Formula One to helm the HRT F1 team in 2010, with Kodewa's workshop in Greding serving as a base of operations for the new team before HRT's new owners chose to release Kolles from the team and move their operations to Spain in 2012.
Kodewa participated in the 2013 FIA World Endurance Championship with the backing of Lotus Cars under the title Lotus LMP2. In 2014 they lost their Lotus backing and rebranded as ByKolles Racing with a new LMP1 prototype, the CLM P1/01.
In 2017 Robert Kubica was set to return to active racing again in the ByKolles car for the WEC season. In April 2018 he withdrew from the team before the first race of the 2018-2019 season.
Former Caterham F1 boss Manfredi Ravetto joined the ByKolles team in 2018.
In 2019 Kolles announced his team would not compete in the full 2019-2020 FIA World Endurance championship, but would still compete in the 2019 24 hours of Le Mans. This was announced to allow the team to contest in the then forthcoming Le Mans Hypercar class.
On March 25, 2022, Kolles announced his intention to enter the car in the 2023 FIA World Endurance Championship, stating that "If we receive a welcome, we will be ready to race."
On 2 April 2022 the team revealed the new Vanwall Le Mans Hypercar following a photoshoot held at a German airport some days earlier with Christophe Bouchut driving the car. The team officially rebranded to become the Vanwall Racing Team with the chassis named after 1950s Vanwall team owner Tony Vandervell.
On 11 January 2023, the entry was accepted by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO) and the team would enter the 2023 FIA World Endurance Championship in the Hypercar class with the Vanwall Vandervell 680, built to LMH specifications. The team's lineup would consist of Tom Dillmann, Jacques Villeneuve and Esteban Guerrieri, with the car being sponsored by German travel bag and luggage company Floyd GmbH.
The Vanwall name was registered as a marque by Kolles' agents PMC, in Germany, before the launch of the car. However, the use of the Vanwall marque is in question after ByKolles lost a EUIPO case brought by the continuity project Vanwall 1958 based in the UK, who also plan to build cars for competition using the Vanwall marque and history.
After a string of uncompetitive results and retirements, Villeneuve was dropped by the team for the 2023 24 Hours of Le Mans and replaced with Tristan Vautier. Villeneuve subsequently withdrew from the remainder of the season, releasing a statement questioning the team's actions and expressing his disappointment at the situation. Dillmann would leave the team following the 2023 24 Hours of Le Mans, stating that his leave was on "good terms"; he was replaced by João Paulo de Oliveira for future rounds. Ryan Briscoe would end up replacing de Oliveira for the final round of the season. In November 2023 the 2024 FIA World Endurance Championship entry list was announced and did not include the team. It was later revealed that Kolles had struck an engine deal with Pipo Moteurs, who had previously powered Glickenhaus, before the entry request was declined.

## Results
### German Formula Three Championship results

| Year | Teamname | Car | Engine | Driver | Races | Points | Pos. |
| 2000 | AIL Team Kolles Racing | Dallara F300 | Mugen-Honda | Elran Nijenhuis | 14 | 18 | 18th |
| 2000 | AIL Team Kolles Racing | Dallara F300 | Mugen-Honda | Andreas Feichtner | 4 | 4 | 24th |
| 2000 | AIL Team Kolles Racing | Dallara F300 | Mugen-Honda | Peter Sundberg | 10 | 4 | 25th |
| 2000 | AIL Team Kolles Racing | Dallara F300 | Mugen-Honda | Marc Hynes | 2 | 0 | NC |
| 2001 | Team Kolles Racing | Dallara F300 | Mugen-Honda | Pierre Kaffer | 20 | 156 | 4th |
| 2001 | Team Kolles Racing | Dallara F300 | Mugen-Honda | Kimmo Liimatainen | 20 | 25 | 16th |
| 2002 | Team Kolles Racing | Dallara F302 | Mugen-Honda | João Paulo de Oliveira | 14 | 16 | 12th |
| 2002 | Team Kolles Racing | Dallara F302 | Mugen-Honda | Charles Zwolsman Jr. | 10 | 8 | 15th |
| 2002 | Team Kolles Racing | Dallara F302 | Mugen-Honda | Ross Zwolsman | 10 | 0 | 21st |
| 2002 | Team Kolles Racing | Dallara F302 | Mugen-Honda | Sakon Yamamoto | 6 | 0 | 22nd |
| 2002 | Team Kolles Racing | Dallara F399 | Mugen-Honda | Stefano Proetto | 14 | 0 | 30th |

### Formula 3 Euro Series results

| Year | Teamname | Car | Engine | Driver | Races | Points | Pos. |
| 2003 | Kolles | Dallara F303 | Mercedes | Charles Zwolsman Jr. | 20 | 7 | 19th |
| 2003 | Kolles | Dallara F302 | Mercedes | Jamie Green | 6 | 6 | 20th |
| 2003 | Kolles | Dallara F302 | Mercedes | Jan Heylen | 14 | 0 | 28th |
| 2004 | Team Kolles | Dallara F303 | Mercedes | Adrian Sutil | 18 | 9 | 17th |
| 2004 | Team Kolles | Dallara F303 | Mercedes | Maximilian Götz | 2 | 3 | 19th |
| 2004 | Team Kolles | Dallara F302 | Mercedes | Tom Kimber-Smith | 20 | 2 | 20th |
| 2009 | Kolles & Heinz Union | Dallara F309 | Volkswagen | Robert Wickens | 4 | 0 | 22nd |
| 2009 | Kolles & Heinz Union | Dallara F309 | Volkswagen | Johan Jokinen | 18 | 0 | 24th |
| 2009 | Kolles & Heinz Union | Dallara F309 | Volkswagen | Nick Tandy | 16 | 0 | 28th |
| 2009 | Kolles & Heinz Union | Dallara F309 | Volkswagen | Carlo van Dam | 4 | 0 | 31st |
| 2009 | Kolles & Heinz Union | Dallara F309 | Volkswagen | Edoardo Mortara | 2 | 0 | NC |

### Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters results

| Year | Teamname | Car | Driver | Races | Points | Pos. |
| 2006 | Futurecom TME | Audi A4 DTM 2004 | Vanina Ickx | 10 | 0 | 19th |
| 2006 | Futurecom TME | Audi A4 DTM 2004 | Jeroen Bleekemolen | 2 | 0 | 20th |
| 2006 | Futurecom TME | Audi A4 DTM 2004 | Olivier Tielemans | 3 | 0 | 21st |
| 2006 | Futurecom TME | Audi A4 DTM 2004 | Thed Björk | 2 | 0 | 22nd |
| 2006 | Futurecom TME | Audi A4 DTM 2004 | Nicolas Kiesa | 3 | 0 | 23rd |
| 2007 | Futurecom TME | Audi A4 DTM 2005 | Adam Carroll | 5 | 0 | 18th |
| 2007 | Futurecom TME | Audi A4 DTM 2005 | Markus Winkelhock | 5 | 0 | 19th |
| 2007 | Futurecom TME | Audi A4 DTM 2005 | Vanina Ickx | 10 | 0 | 21st |
| 2008 | Futurecom TME | Audi A4 DTM 2006 | Christijan Albers | 11 | 0 | 19th |
| 2008 | Futurecom TME | Audi A4 DTM 2006 | Katherine Legge | 11 | 0 | 21st |
| 2009 | Kolles Futurecom | Audi A4 DTM 2007 | Tomáš Kostka | 10 | 0 | 17th |
| 2009 | Kolles Futurecom | Audi A4 DTM 2007 | Christian Bakkerud | 9 | 0 | 19th |
| 2009 | Kolles Futurecom | Audi A4 DTM 2007 | Johannes Seidlitz | 8 | 0 | 20th |

### Le Mans Series results

| Year | Teamname | Car | Engine | Driver | Races | Points | Pos. |
| 2009 | Kolles | Audi R10 TDI | Audi TDI 5.5 L Turbo V12 (Diesel) | Charles Zwolsman Jr. | 5 | 12 | 7th |
| 2009 | Kolles | Audi R10 TDI | Audi TDI 5.5 L Turbo V12 (Diesel) | Andrew Meyrick | 5 | 12 | 7th |
| 2009 | Kolles | Audi R10 TDI | Audi TDI 5.5 L Turbo V12 (Diesel) | Narain Karthikeyan | 4 | 12 | 7th |
| 2009 | Kolles | Audi R10 TDI | Audi TDI 5.5 L Turbo V12 (Diesel) | Michael Krumm | 1 | 12 | 7th |
| 2009 | Kolles | Audi R10 TDI | Audi TDI 5.5 L Turbo V12 (Diesel) | Christijan Albers | 5 | 6 | 10th |
| 2009 | Kolles | Audi R10 TDI | Audi TDI 5.5 L Turbo V12 (Diesel) | Christian Bakkerud | 5 | 6 | 10th |
| 2009 | Kolles | Audi R10 TDI | Audi TDI 5.5 L Turbo V12 (Diesel) | Giorgio Mondini | 3 | 6 | 10th |

### FIA World Endurance Championship results

| Year | Teamname | Car | Engine | Class | Tyre | Driver | Races | Points | Pos. |
| 2012 | Lotus | Lola B12/80 | Lotus (Judd) 3.6 L V8 | LMP2 | D | Thomas Holzer | 8 | 32 | 8th |
| 2012 | Lotus | Lola B12/80 | Lotus (Judd) 3.6 L V8 | LMP2 | D | Mirco Schultis | 7 | 32 | 8th |
| 2012 | Lotus | Lola B12/80 | Lotus (Judd) 3.6 L V8 | LMP2 | D | Luca Moro | 4 | 32 | 8th |
| 2012 | Lotus | Lola B12/80 | Lotus (Judd) 3.6 L V8 | LMP2 | D | Renger van der Zande | 1 | 32 | 8th |
| 2012 | Lotus | Lola B12/80 | Lotus (Judd) 3.6 L V8 | LMP2 | D | Christijan Albers | 1 | 32 | 8th |
| 2012 | Lotus | Lola B12/80 | Lotus (Judd) 3.6 L V8 | LMP2 | D | Luca Moro | 1 | N/A | NC |
| 2012 | Lotus | Lola B12/80 | Lotus (Judd) 3.6 L V8 | LMP2 | D | Kevin Weeda | 6 | N/A | NC |
| 2012 | Lotus | Lola B12/80 | Lotus (Judd) 3.6 L V8 | LMP2 | D | James Rossiter | 6 | N/A | NC |
| 2012 | Lotus | Lola B12/80 | Lotus (Judd) 3.6 L V8 | LMP2 | D | Vitantonio Liuzzi | 4 | N/A | NC |
| 2012 | Lotus | Lola B12/80 | Lotus (Judd) 3.6 L V8 | LMP2 | D | Jan Charouz | 1 | N/A | NC |
| 2013 | Lotus | Lotus T128 | Praga (Judd) | LMP2 | D | Kevin Weeda | 8 | 11 | 8th |
| 2013 | Lotus | Lotus T128 | Praga (Judd) | LMP2 | D | Vitantonio Liuzzi | 6 | 11 | 8th |
| 2013 | Lotus | Lotus T128 | Praga (Judd) | LMP2 | D | Christophe Bouchut | 4 | 11 | 8th |
| 2013 | Lotus | Lotus T128 | Praga (Judd) | LMP2 | D | James Rossiter | 4 | 11 | 8th |
| 2013 | Lotus | Lotus T128 | Praga (Judd) | LMP2 | D | Lucas Auer | 8 | 11 | 8th |
| 2013 | Lotus | Lotus T128 | Praga (Judd) | LMP2 | D | Thomas Holzer | 8 | 37 | 7th |
| 2013 | Lotus | Lotus T128 | Praga (Judd) | LMP2 | D | Dominik Kraihamer | 8 | 37 | 7th |
| 2013 | Lotus | Lotus T128 | Praga (Judd) | LMP2 | D | Jan Charouz | 8 | 37 | 7th |
| 2014 | Lotus | CLM P1/01 | AER P60 Turbo V6 | LMP1-L | M | James Rossiter | 2 | 33 | 3rd |
| 2014 | Lotus | CLM P1/01 | AER P60 Turbo V6 | LMP1-L | M | Christophe Bouchut | 2 | 33 | 3rd |
| 2014 | Lotus | CLM P1/01 | AER P60 Turbo V6 | LMP1-L | M | Lucas Auer | 3 | 33 | 3rd |
| 2014 | Lotus | CLM P1/01 | AER P60 Turbo V6 | LMP1-L | M | Pierre Kaffer | 4 | 33 | 3rd |
| 2014 | Lotus | CLM P1/01 | AER P60 Turbo V6 | LMP1-L | M | Simon Trummer | 1 | 33 | 3rd |
| 2014 | Lotus | CLM P1/01 | AER P60 Turbo V6 | LMP1-L | M | Nathanaël Berthon | 1 | 33 | 3rd |
| 2015 | Team ByKolles | CLM P1/01 | AER P60 2.4 L Turbo V6 | LMP1 | M | Simon Trummer | 8 | 104 | 3rd |
| 2015 | Team ByKolles | CLM P1/01 | AER P60 2.4 L Turbo V6 | LMP1 | M | Vitantonio Liuzzi | 2 | 104 | 3rd |
| 2015 | Team ByKolles | CLM P1/01 | AER P60 2.4 L Turbo V6 | LMP1 | M | Christian Klien | 2 | 104 | 3rd |
| 2015 | Team ByKolles | CLM P1/01 | AER P60 2.4 L Turbo V6 | LMP1 | M | Tiago Monteiro | 1 | 104 | 3rd |
| 2015 | Team ByKolles | CLM P1/01 | AER P60 2.4 L Turbo V6 | LMP1 | M | Pierre Kaffer | 6 | 104 | 3rd |
| 2016 | ByKolles Racing Team | CLM P1/01 | AER P60 2.4 L Turbo V6 | LMP1 | D | Simon Trummer | 9 | 109 | 2nd |
| 2016 | ByKolles Racing Team | CLM P1/01 | AER P60 2.4 L Turbo V6 | LMP1 | D | Oliver Webb | 9 | 109 | 2nd |
| 2016 | ByKolles Racing Team | CLM P1/01 | AER P60 2.4 L Turbo V6 | LMP1 | D | James Rossiter | 2 | 109 | 2nd |
| 2016 | ByKolles Racing Team | CLM P1/01 | AER P60 2.4 L Turbo V6 | LMP1 | D | Pierre Kaffer | 6 | 109 | 2nd |
| 2017 | ByKolles Racing Team | ENSO CLM P1/01 | Nismo VRX30A 3.0 L Turbo V6 | LMP1 | M | Oliver Webb | 4 | N/A | NC |
| 2017 | ByKolles Racing Team | ENSO CLM P1/01 | Nismo VRX30A 3.0 L Turbo V6 | LMP1 | M | Dominik Kraihamer | 4 | N/A | NC |
| 2017 | ByKolles Racing Team | ENSO CLM P1/01 | Nismo VRX30A 3.0 L Turbo V6 | LMP1 | M | James Rossiter | 2 | N/A | NC |
| 2017 | ByKolles Racing Team | ENSO CLM P1/01 | Nismo VRX30A 3.0 L Turbo V6 | LMP1 | M | Marco Bonanomi | 4 | N/A | NC |
| 2018-2019 | ByKolles Racing Team | ENSO CLM P1/01 | Nismo VRX30A 3.0 L Turbo V6 Gibson GL458 4.5 L V8 | LMP1 | M | Oliver Webb | 5 | 22 | 4th |
| 2018-2019 | ByKolles Racing Team | ENSO CLM P1/01 | Nismo VRX30A 3.0 L Turbo V6 Gibson GL458 4.5 L V8 | LMP1 | M | Tom Dillmann | 4 | 22 | 4th |
| 2018-2019 | ByKolles Racing Team | ENSO CLM P1/01 | Nismo VRX30A 3.0 L Turbo V6 Gibson GL458 4.5 L V8 | LMP1 | M | Dominik Kraihamer | 2 | 22 | 4th |
| 2018-2019 | ByKolles Racing Team | ENSO CLM P1/01 | Nismo VRX30A 3.0 L Turbo V6 Gibson GL458 4.5 L V8 | LMP1 | M | René Binder | 1 | 22 | 4th |
| 2018-2019 | ByKolles Racing Team | ENSO CLM P1/01 | Nismo VRX30A 3.0 L Turbo V6 Gibson GL458 4.5 L V8 | LMP1 | M | James Rossiter | 2 | 22 | 4th |
| 2019-2020 | ByKolles Racing Team | ENSO CLM P1/01 | Gibson GL458 4.5 L V8 | LMP1 | M | Tom Dillmann | 2 | N/A | NC |
| 2019-2020 | ByKolles Racing Team | ENSO CLM P1/01 | Gibson GL458 4.5 L V8 | LMP1 | M | Bruno Spengler | 2 | N/A | NC |
| 2019-2020 | ByKolles Racing Team | ENSO CLM P1/01 | Gibson GL458 4.5 L V8 | LMP1 | M | Oliver Webb | 2 | N/A | NC |
| 2023 | Vanwall Racing Team | Vanwall Vandervell 680 | Gibson GL458 4.5 L V8 | LMH | M | Tom Dillmann | 4 | 10 | 7th |
| 2023 | Vanwall Racing Team | Vanwall Vandervell 680 | Gibson GL458 4.5 L V8 | LMH | M | Esteban Guerrieri | 7 | 10 | 7th |
| 2023 | Vanwall Racing Team | Vanwall Vandervell 680 | Gibson GL458 4.5 L V8 | LMH | M | Jacques Villeneuve | 3 | 10 | 7th |
| 2023 | Vanwall Racing Team | Vanwall Vandervell 680 | Gibson GL458 4.5 L V8 | LMH | M | Tristan Vautier | 4 | 10 | 7th |
| 2023 | Vanwall Racing Team | Vanwall Vandervell 680 | Gibson GL458 4.5 L V8 | LMH | M | João Paulo de Oliveira | 2 | 10 | 7th |
| 2023 | Vanwall Racing Team | Vanwall Vandervell 680 | Gibson GL458 4.5 L V8 | LMH | M | Ryan Briscoe | 1 | 10 | 7th |

### 24 Hours of Le Mans results

| Year | Entrant | No. | Car | Drivers | Class | Laps | Pos. | Class Pos. |
| 2009 | Kolles | 14 | Audi R10 TDI | Narain Karthikeyan André Lotterer Charles Zwolsman Jr. | LMP1 | 369 | 7th | 7th |
| 2009 | Kolles | 15 | Audi R10 TDI | Christijan Albers Christian Bakkerud Giorgio Mondini | LMP1 | 360 | 9th | 9th |
| 2010 | Kolles | 14 | Audi R10 TDI | Christophe Bouchut Manuel Rodrigues Scott Tucker | LMP1 | 182 | DNF | DNF |
| 2010 | Kolles | 15 | Audi R10 TDI | Christijan Albers Christian Bakkerud Oliver Jarvis | LMP1 | 331 | DNF | DNF |
| 2012 | Lotus | 31 | Lola B12/80-Lotus (Judd) | Thomas Holzer Luca Moro Mirco Schultis | LMP2 | 155 | DNF | DNF |
| 2013 | Lotus | 31 | Lotus T128-Praga (Judd) | Christophe Bouchut James Rossiter Kevin Weeda | LMP2 | 17 | DNF | DNF |
| 2013 | Lotus | 32 | Lotus T128-Praga (Judd) | Jan Charouz Thomas Holzer Dominik Kraihamer | LMP2 | 219 | DNF | DNF |
| 2015 | Team ByKolles | 4 | CLM P1/01-AER | Pierre Kaffer Tiago Monteiro Simon Trummer | LMP1 | 260 | EX | EX |
| 2016 | ByKolles Racing Team | 4 | CLM P1/01-AER | Pierre Kaffer Simon Trummer Oliver Webb | LMP1 | 206 | DNF | DNF |
| 2017 | ByKolles Racing Team | 4 | ENSO CLM P1/01-Nismo | Marco Bonanomi Dominik Kraihamer Oliver Webb | LMP1 | 7 | DNF | DNF |
| 2018 | ByKolles Racing Team | 4 | ENSO CLM P1/01-Nismo | Tom Dillmann Dominik Kraihamer Oliver Webb | LMP1 | 65 | DNF | DNF |
| 2019 | ByKolles Racing Team | 4 | ENSO CLM P1/01-Gibson | Tom Dillmann Paolo Ruberti Oliver Webb | LMP1 | 163 | DNF | DNF |
| 2020 | ByKolles Racing Team | 4 | ENSO CLM P1/01-Gibson | Tom Dillmann Bruno Spengler Oliver Webb | LMP1 | 97 | DNF | DNF |
| 2023 | Floyd Vanwall Racing Team | 4 | Vanwall Vandervell 680-Gibson | Tom Dillmann Esteban Guerrieri Tristan Vautier | Hypercar | 165 | DNF | DNF |

## Timeline

The series in which the team competed are listed:
Current series :
| FIA World Endurance Championship | 2012–2020, 2023 |
| Former series ||
| German Formula Three Championship | 2000–2002 |
| Formula 3 Euro Series | 2003–2004, 2009 |
| Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters | 2006–2009 |
| Le Mans Series | 2009 |