McLaren’s new sporting director Gil de Ferran has outlined where he intends to focus as he looks to turn around the fortunes of the British team.
Last week, the former Indianapolis 500 winner and ChampCar champion, who initially joined as an advisor ahead of what was thought to be a 2019 IndyCar project, replaced Eric Boullier who resigned from his post as part of an overhaul by CEO Zak Brown.
At Silverstone, the American was seen on the pitwall for the first time and he would speak to Motorsport.com after the race about what is his second role in F1, having worked for Honda between 2005 and 2007.
“The success I had behind the wheel and any success I have as a businessman, I think came from really trying to understand what my weaknesses were,” de Ferran said.
“This is really the philosophy I’m bringing to my job. Originally as an advisor to Zak, that’s how I was looking at things and I’ll continue to do this – but with more responsibility.”
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One thing that De Ferran is sure of, even after his short stint with the team, is the potential within McLaren is there to return back to the heights the team once had and somewhat nonchalantly thought they would just stroll back to.
“It’s clear to me that the team has a lot of talent,” he continued. “Wherever I look, you see smart guys … There’s certainly a lot of talent and a lot of brainpower.
“[It’s about] knowing how to get a team together, working together and getting people to feel focused and motivated, really understand where they are going, and truly engage.
“This is how I personally operate, and this is really the philosophy I’m bringing to my job,” he added. “The key area here is communicating, having clarity in certain things. I think that will help going forward.”
