Ross Brawn isn’t the new Bernie Ecclestone – because two titans simply don’t go into one.
Brawn’s appointment, or alleged appointment if we’re to believe James Allen’s assertion, is something of a godsend to Formula One. It proves that new owners Liberty Group are astute enough to make their first move a masterstroke in shaping the sport’s future.
When Bernie Ecclestone brought in Charlie Whiting and Herbie Blash to head up the FIA’s Formula One operation, he did so knowing the pair had access to a vast degree of technical knowledge and – perhaps more importantly – and the keys to the biggest cheat book in Formula One. If someone was going to bend the rules, they’d most likely have seen it done before.
Ross Brawn is no different. Having masterminded winning teams at Benetton, Ferrari, Brawn and Mercedes (yes I include the Silver Arrows in this mix), there is probably no better individual outside of Adrian Newey to navigate Formula One into calmer waters.
Exploiting the double-diffuser loophole to steal a march on the 2009 Championship was one thing, but knowing the turbo regulations would be key to dominating the current engine era in Formula One, Brawn used is technical and political savvy to give Mercedes an advantage. During the rudimentary stages of penning the engine regs in 2013, when other manufacturers were simply digging in the wrong place, Ross always had one eye on the bigger picture.
At Benetton, Brawn new that a car had to be fast, but also realised that to build a fast car required money – and that meant a sponsor. As such, he would make compromises in his design to accommodate the fiscal fuel of Formula One as his 1994 aero designer Willem Toet recalls.
“I didn’t take much notice actually (he laughs). Ross wanted a car that would look nice for the sponsors and I didn’t appreciate how important that was until much later in my career” says Toet.
“Back in the days that I was working at Benetton for me that was complete bull****. The only thing that was important was to have a winning car.”
Therein lies the real value of Ross. It’s a rare commodity to have a technical brain to develop and idea, the political commercial nous to exploit it and the commercial understanding to sell it. In anyone’s language that is gold dust.
The main mechanism that gives Brawn the space to weave his magic is to give him complete control. In Ecclestone this kind of power leads to dictatorship, but Ross has the strength of character and personality to be able to protect the talented people and let them get on with the job.
His sabbatical from the sport in 2007 no doubt gave him a better perspective on Formula One (to use Pat Symonds’ phrase “outside the fishbowl”) and will no doubt stand him in good stead in his new role.
“He also has a ruthless side to his personality but in the end great people do and there are times where you have to be able to step back and look at the picture without any emotional attachment” adds Toet.
“Ross is also able to make a decision at the last second, taking in all the facts he needs. I’d be inclined to make a decision just a fraction too early, where Ross was able to stay completely cold and calm and make the call at exactly the right time.”
It looks as though Liberty have done exactly the same.
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