Renault formalizes the arrival of Budkowski

Shortly before the start of the second phase of free practice for the Japanese Grand Prix, Renault Sport F1 confirmed the recruitment of Marcin Budkowski into their ranks. He will serve as executive director of the team, overseeing chassis development and production.

As we explain to you in issue 2134 of AUTOhebdo, currently on newsstands, Budkowski has been at the center of a controversy for several weeks. The six teams making up the Formula 1 Strategic Group (Ferrari, Mercedes, Williams, Red Bull, McLaren and Force India), brought together urgently during the last Malaysian Grand Prix, take a dim view of the engineer's arrival at Renault. Budkowski was until recently head of the FIA ​​technical department, a key position since it allows all technical innovations on the grid to be known and approved. By joining the French team, Budkowski will take with him a lot of knowledge about single-seaters; competing teams fear sharing knowledge with his new employer.

Cyril Abiteboul, the general director of Renault, welcomed the recruitment of the former aero engineer at Cheers GP, Ferrari and McLaren. “In a context where the seasons are becoming longer and more intense, it was obvious that we had to strengthen the management structure in the team. Marcin will aim to continue the reconstruction ofenstone in order to allow Renault to reach the top of the table by 2020. This is excellent news and further proof of our determination to achieve our objectives”, concludes the Frenchman.

The start date has not been communicated. However, Budkowski must serve a three-month notice period following his resignation from the FIA, effective last week.