McLaren F1 has been in the media a lot in the past few weeks as various team members leave either due to being unable to find common ground, or for greener pastures and as such there has been concerns over their stability for the upcoming 2017 Formula One World Championship.
Eric Boullier, the team's Racing Director, spoke about all the recent changes and how none of it actually bad for the team as Formula One is all about change….
"Well, first, I think you have to realise that Formula 1 is all about change. Change is what drives our sport – change in drivers, in regulations, in races, in almost everything,” he explained on the team's official website. Second, I think it's worth emphasising that McLaren in particular has always been about change. From our roots in the 1960s, it was change that drove our successes in Can-Am, in Indycar and at Le Mans.”
“It was change that led McLaren to become an automotive constructor. And it was change that transformed McLaren from a race team into an international, multi-faceted technology group. And we'll change again and again and again as we continue to improve our fortunes both on and off the track.”
Boullier also explained that Team Manager David Redding's recent departure was totally amicable when, after working with the Woking based squad for 17 years, the offer 9from Williams) was too good to pass up….
"Dave was offered an opportunity with another team, and we didn't want to stand in his way. Let's not forget, he's been at McLaren for 17 years, and I think we'll always fondly consider him a McLaren man, even when we see him wearing another team's uniform in the paddock later this year. We've been discussing this together for some time; it's not a sudden decision, and we're happy for him.”
"Besides, we had the option of waiting until the middle of the year before replacing him, but we feel that we've got a really strong group of people who are ready to step up and take on new responsibilities – which is exciting. Consequently, Dave will be spending the next few weeks handing over the Team Manager role to his successor, Paul James, before finishing off his McLaren career with a factory-based role ahead of his leaving us in the middle of the year."
