McLaren has announced the appointment of Will Courtenay, Red Bull’s Head of Strategy, as their new Sporting Director. Courtenay will leave Red Bull after two decades, having joined the team during its time as Jaguar before the acquisition by the energy drinks company.
Red Bull's core fading away
The move is part of McLaren’s effort to bolster its senior leadership, with Courtenay set to report to Racing Director Randeep Singh. He is the third senior figure to depart Red Bull in the past six months. Design chief Adrian Newey is transitioning to a role as Managing Technical Partner at Aston Martin, while Sporting Director Jonathan Wheatley will take on the position of Team Principal at Audi next season.
In light of these departures, Red Bull has restructured its team, appointing Gianpiero Lambiase, Verstappen's race engineer, as Head of Racing. At McLaren, Courtenay will work alongside former Red Bull colleague Rob Marshall, who became the British team's chief designer earlier this year.
They added in a statement to F1.com: “Will has been offered the position of Sporting Director. After a long and successful service with the team since the Jaguar days, we are sad to see him go but wish him all the best in this step up.”
Although Courtenay is set to join McLaren, it is unclear when this transition will occur, as reports indicate his contract with Red Bull runs until mid-2026. Meanwhile, Red Bull is currently 41 points behind McLaren in the constructors' standings, with six races left, including the upcoming United States Grand Prix. The champions are 41 points behind McLaren in the constructors’ standings with six rounds remaining, including next month’s United States Grand Prix.
“We are delighted to welcome Will to McLaren. His experience, professionalism and passion for motorsport make him the ideal candidate to lead our F1 sporting function,” McLaren Team Principal Andrea Stella said in a statement.
Mclaren's consecutive wins
Mclaren's Lando Norris creates history as he wins at the Singapore Grand Prix 2024. He was dominant from the first lap and didn't give others a chance to overtake him. Norris who was currently in the second position in the overall standings boosted his World Championship hopes by winning the Singapore Grand Prix. He also achieved the pole position in Singapore. Oscar Piastri won the Azerbaijan Grand Prix 2024. This is the first time since McLaren achieved back-to-back victories since 2012. Max Verstappen was second and Oscar took third in Singapore.
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