Status, uncertainty and performance in Formula One racing

Purpose – This study examines how the relationship between uncertainty and performance varies across levels of organizational status. Specifically, it analyzes how status conditions the relationship between two distinct sources of uncertainty – firm-specific uncertainty arising from a firm’s own production processes and partner-specific uncertainty originating from key external partners – and organizational performance. Design/methodology/approach – The study draws on an unbalanced panel of Formula One constructors competing between 1993 and 1999. Using detailed race-level data, the analysis employs high-dimensional fixed-effects regression models to examine how status interacts with firm- and partner-specific uncertainty. Additional event-history analyses provide suggestive evidence regarding the underlying mechanisms of search behavior and access to resource quality. Findings – The results indicate that status plays a dual role in the relationship between uncertainty and performance. High-status firms exhibit lower performance than low-status firms under conditions of firm-specific uncertainty, consistent with reduced problemistic search and weaker development of integration capabilities. In contrast, high-status firms exhibit higher performance under conditions of partner-specific uncertainty, consistent with exchange partners being more selective in their favor during such periods. Originality/value – This study contributes to the literature by distinguishing between firm- and partner-specific uncertainty and demonstrating that organizational status differentially moderates their relationship with performance. By integrating behavioral theory of the firm with status-based theories of markets, the paper offers a more nuanced understanding of how organizations respond to uncertainty in competitive environments.