Ross Brawn (68) confirmed on Monday that he was retiring. The Englishman, who started out as technical director for Michael Schumacher, had served as F1’s technical director since 2017.
End clap for Ross Brawn. The 68-year-old Englishman, who has held the position of technical and sporting director of F1 since 2017, confirmed on Monday that he was retiring. Brawn had held the position since the takeover of F1 by the Americans of Liberty Media. A true figure of the paddocks, he started in the premier category in 1992, as technical director of Michael Schumacher at Benetton. Having stayed four years alongside the “Red Baron”, Brawn continued his career under the colors of Ferrari, where he remained for even longer (nine years, between 1997 and 2006).
This engineer by training then bought the BAR-Honda team to make a team in his name, the Brawn Grand Prix team. Brawn, who also worked for Jaguar and Arrows, joined Honda in 2007, first as director before buying the team and then selling it to Mercedes (for the German manufacturer’s big return to F1), of which he was also director. technical. Leaving Mercedes at the end of 2013, Brawn, after several sabbatical years, returned to F1 in 2017. Liberty Media had just bought the discipline in its entirety.
Brawn: “It’s the right time”
Appointed then technical and sporting director of F1, the native of Ashton-under-Lyne, in Greater Manchester, was notably responsible for working on the preparation of the new engine regulations, scheduled for 2026, with the arrival of new single-seaters. He also introduced the format of sprint races. On Monday, Brawn officially announced his retirement, saying the time has come for him to take a step back. “It’s the right time (…) We have done the heavy lifting and we are now in a period of consolidation. A new technical regulation arrives in 2026, in four years, so it is better that another group of people take over, ”explains the person concerned on the official F1 website.
Initially, Brawn, who notably wishes to indulge again in his second passion, angling (as he had already done during his break in 2014), had chosen his former colleague at the time Benetton Pat Symonds, but the latter also decided to stop there. The two men, on the other hand, will continue to not miss any F1 news, but from a distance now. “I will now watch F1 on my sofa, like a fan. I leave F1 in an excellent situation. I have loved almost every minute of my 46 year career, I have had the chance to work with great teams, great drivers and great people. »
