McLaren “impressed even more” than expected by former Red Bull stalwart Marshall

McLaren crew principal Andrea Stella revealed the System 1 constructors’ champions had been “impressed much more” than anticipated by former Purple Bull engineer Rob Marshall.

Marshall joined the Woking-based outfit as technical director, engineering & design in January after 17 years with Purple Bull, together with his arrival coinciding with plenty of key hires previously 18 months which have helped see McLaren step as much as a race-winning squad as soon as extra, clinching a primary constructors’ title since 1998 courtesy of the factors collected by Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.

Whereas his status was sufficient for McLaren to get enthusiastic about, his hands-on method and willingness to get caught into work relatively than merely watch from above left Stella and the remainder of the hierarchy impressed.

“Rob got here with a wealth of expertise, data from a technical perspective, with a status from this perspective,” stated Stella.

“I’ve to say that, working with him, myself, the opposite technical administrators, your entire technical crew…if something, we now have been impressed much more than what we anticipated.

“Due to these qualities, just like the data of the way you design a automobile, particularly from a automobile format perspective. And this is essential for 2025, and this might be essential for 2026 like, I am sitting subsequent to Rob right here, and whereas I sit subsequent to him, and I see him engaged on the display.

“I stated like, ‘It was actually a good suggestion to get Rob,’ as a result of he is doing all of the work when it comes to format for ’25, ’26 and we did miss this sort of function at McLaren earlier than. Along with that, Rob brings improbable human qualities, a really constructive particular person. Everybody enjoys working with him. He is stuffed with vitality.

Rob Marshall, Chief Designer, McLaren F1 Workforce, Zak Brown, CEO, McLaren Racing

Picture by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Photographs

“You may see him within the storage, and fairly often he is simply laying underneath the automobile on the bottom.

“Everybody appreciates his unimaginable data and expertise, however on the similar time, his arms, and generally even his head are soiled as a result of he was together with his arms on the elements. In order that’s one thing that we did miss earlier than, and we’re glad that now we now have it within the function.”

McLaren break up its technical administration construction into three with Marshall in place alongside Peter Prodromou – overseeing aerodynamics – and efficiency TD Mark Temple.

Neil Houldey took on deputy duties to work with Marshall with Stella stating pre-season that he aimed to unleash the potential of the prevailing crew members.

Confirming to Autosport that the plan “positively” labored, Houldey defined: “Clearly, Pete Prodromou was already there and we had Rob Marshall are available in from Purple Bull. Mark Temple got here in from a car efficiency perspective, and each him and I had been at McLaren for plenty of years.

“We might already labored with Pete properly, and Rob got here in and he is such a collaborative man to work with and simply desires the perfect for the crew and for everybody. Truly, the best way it is labored has been actually constructive and I feel it is proven your entire technical crew how we will all work collectively, totally different personalities, totally different specialities, however truly it is introduced everybody collectively.

Zak Brown, McLaren Racing CEO, David Sanchez, Rob Marshall, Andrea Stella, McLaren Workforce Principal

Picture by: McLaren

“I feel the best way that you would be able to divide up the work, you have obtained Andrea as a information, you have obtained us assembly collectively as a gaggle. It simply allows you to focus in your space that rather more and be sure that the efficiency is coming in your space.

“So now I feel from… if you are going to credit score, I feel it is one thing you’ll be able to positively give Andrea credit score for, realising that that really was a greater solution to construction the McLaren racing technical crew.”

Further reporting by Jonathan Noble and Filip Cleeren