Gil de Ferran: “The team has a lot of talent”

Winner of the 500 Indianapolis 2003, former member of the BAR-Honda management team in the mid-2000s, Gil de Ferran found a new challenge by replacing Eric Boullier as sporting director of Woking at a time when McLaren is going through a new delicate season F1.

The Brazilian born in France must now find the right formula to relaunch a structure which has been chasing success in F1 since Brazil 2012 and a victory for Jenson Button. de Ferran remains convinced that McLaren can count on its current strengths.

“It is clear to me that the team has a lot of talent. No matter where I look, I see smart guys. I think the key is really communication. We need clarity in our way of transmitting. This is what will help us move forward. »

Gil de Ferran also wishes to draw inspiration from his own history in motorsport to take up his new position. “The successes I had behind the wheel and in business later came because I always thought a lot about my weaknesses and how to combat them,” he says.

I have never been afraid to look at myself in the mirror, to engage in uncompromising self-criticism. I always asked myself a lot of questions: could I have done things differently? What can I do to improve them? I also realized very early on that, in life, success never happens alone, is never the work of just one person.

People who manage to achieve great things on their own are very rare. The others are part of a team, a team. Make connections form, bring forces together, make people fight for the same thing, feel people focused and motivated, understand where we are going...

This is how I will operate. That's my way of seeing things. As Zak's advisor, that was my philosophy and I'm not going to change it. Today, I just have more responsibilities. »