Erstwhile technical director James Key has departed McLaren, leaving a three-pronged new arrangement headed by three technical directors, namely Peter Prodromou (aerodynamics), Davide Sanchez (car concept and performance) and Neil Houldey (engineering and design).
Stella suggested that under the previous structure the contribution of Prodromou in particular had been restricted.
“I think there were some limitations somehow associated with the model,” said Stella. “In aerodynamics, we wanted to have a technical director that leads aerodynamics. Full empowerment to this technical director.
“And we wanted to unleash a very strong resource that we had internally, and that, for some reasons was under-utilised, like Peter Prodromou, one of the most competent experts in F1 in relation to aerodynamics.
“And this wasn’t happening as efficiently as it should have happened, let’s say, so this is something we wanted to fix.
“And it perfectly fits the model at the same time by giving aerodynamics clear leadership, clear guidance as to the concepts that we wanted to develop and lead to the car.”
Stella stressed that the focus was on combining science and common sense in order to to make the car faster.
“Part of the model as well was the approach to performance,” he said. “We wanted to improve in terms of definitely being strongly scientifically based, but at the same time, F1 is a quick game, and fast. You need to be pragmatic sometimes, to utilise calm common sense. And I don’t think we were very good at doing that previously.
“And another thing we wanted to improve is empowerment. We have senior members in aerodynamics, the senior members in the technical department, these guys, they need to unleash their expertise, they need to be able to make decisions.
“This makes the whole team move faster. And this is also something that we needed to address from a model point of view and, if you want, in particular through the restructure and the appointment of leaders.”
Lando Norris, McLaren MCL60, Oscar Piastri, McLaren MCL60
Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images
Stella hinted that under Key’s technical leadership there was a cap on ideas.
“I think there’s a misunderstanding when it comes to decision-making in F1,” he said. “I think people think that you are there all the time with somebody making a decision. But in reality, it’s much more about creating competitive ideas, because this is what leads to natural…
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