Battle of the Brains: the scrap for Formula 1's top tech personnel

                                                                                                                                                       Source: motorsport.com

If the past five seasons in Formula One have taught us anything, it’s that major rule changes afford immense opportunity. The briefest of glances at the most recent front covers of Autocourse would provide more than enough evidence to confirm this, seeing as they have been dominated entirely by the portrait of one man and his Red Bull racer for the past four years.

One cannot help but marvel at the enormity of Red Bull Racing’s 
achievement, making the jump from innocuous also-rans in 2008 to genuine championship contenders by the middle of the 2009 with their star driver Sebastian Vettel. Seeing as F1 experienced one of the most comprehensive rule changes in its history at the beginning of that season, it does not take a genius to work out the reason for the team’s miraculous turnaround. However, it did take a genius to take maximum advantage of these new regulations: Red Bull’s acquisition of technical guru Adrian Newey marked the beginning of a new era for the team, allowing them to reproduce the level of dominance achieved by the immensely strong combination of Ross Brawn, Michael Schumacher and Ferrari in the early noughties.

The story of Red Bull Racing’s rise to prominence is nothing short of astounding. Naturally, such an awesome story has had a profound effect on the rest of the paddock, causing the demand for engineering demi-gods like Newey—the main driving force behind the success of Williams in the early-to-mid nineties and McLaren in the late nineties—to reach stratospheric levels. Formula 1 is becoming increasingly technical, no doubt about it, but this scramble for intellectual superiority has been escalating for a while now; even in this period of relative stability (technically speaking), the pursuit of the sport’s finest minds has never been more fierce. Rather unsurprisingly, the teams’ preparations for next year’s wholesale regulation changes have been dominated by a monumental scrap for technical personnel. In terms of complexity and chaos, the only thing I can think of that comes anywhere close is the final stage of the Premier League’s transfer window.

Amid the abounding chaos, it can be deduced that, despite their recent poor form, Ferrari are looking fairly handy for a strong campaign in 2014. Not only have the Maranello outfit managed to secure the services of the highly-rated engineer James Allison and expert aerodynamicist Dirk de Beer, both moving across from Lotus, they are also planning to put their wind tunnel back into service later this year following a sizeable upgrade. By employing Allison as chassis technical director and de Beer as chief aero man, Ferrari have given director of engineering Pat Fry the freedom to concentrate more on what matters the most next year: the powertrain. As acknowledged by many engineers up and down the paddock, fuel economy and engine performance will be two of the most influential factors in determining the outcome of next year’s championship. Let’s not forget also that Allison and de Beer, both highly rated in their respective fields, are certain to push for intensive chassis development throughout the season. All in all then, it looks like Ferrari have managed to lock off a solid development department all round for next year.

                                                                                         Source: motorsport.com

If one was to look at the calibre of the top brass running Mercedes, one might think that their future looks rosy; after all, having Ross Brawn, Paddy Lowe, Toto Wolff and Niki Lauda under one roof can hardly be detrimental, can it?  If you think about the precarious battle over leadership of the team however, it actually can. Brawn appears to be at the centre of a power struggle that has engulfed the Mercedes management, with his role as team principal next year hanging in the balance. The man himself seems determined to hold onto his position, emphasising the need for a senior reference at the very top and adopting a keep-me-or-ditch-me philosophy. To add to the threat posed by Brawn’s ultimatum, Austrian heavyweights Lauda and Wolff have clashed over Paddy Lowe’s role within the team, the former acting as Brawn’s champion with the latter wanting Lowe to be groomed as Brawn’s successor. There is no doubt that Brawn’s departure would detriment Mercedes’ pursuit for championship glory, especially as Honda, who are set to return as engine suppliers to McLaren in 2015, are thought to be lusting after the Englishman’s services. That said, Mercedes are looking strong for 2014, the team having developed its 2014 challenger from a very early stage. Furthermore, Mercedes is rumoured to have developed an engine that is produces up to 100 horsepower more than either Renault or Ferrari’s offerings.

If Ferrari and Mercedes look fairly handy for a successful 2014 campaign, Lotus look comparatively vulnerable. The Enstone-based team have undoubtedly lost out the most in the fight for personnel, having lost Allison, de Beer, and of course their lead driver Kimi Raikkonen to Ferrari. They may be on the verge of securing a bigger budget for next year as a result of an investment deal with the Abu Dhabi-based consortium Quantum Motorsports, but the loss of key members of their engineering staff will undoubtedly affect their 2014 campaign. Red Bull hardly look infallible either, particularly as they are set to lose expert aerodynamicist Peter Prodromou to McLaren in 2015. They will still have Newey overseeing the design of next year’s RB10, but the rule changes for next year focus primarily on the powertrain—an area over which Newey has relatively little control. As Renault’s most prolific customers, Red Bull will be able to influence the new turbocharged V6 units’ development to a degree, but it is ultimately up to Renault themselves to deliver a competitive package in the face of stiff competition from Ferrari and Mercedes.

So, in the face of F1′s next technical era, the tables seem to have turned; Red Bull has inspired its competitors and they looked to have armed themselves well for the coming revolution. Red Bull seized the opportunity to steal a march on its rivals back in 2009, but there’s every chance a rival team could do likewise next year.