McLaren boss Andrea Stella hailed the impact that Rob Marshall has had on the Woking-based Formula 1 outfit after joining from Red Bull.
Marshall joined McLaren at the start of 2024 as Technical Director, Engineering and Design but shortly assumed the role of Chief Designer after David Sanchez parted ways with the team.
Marshall brought with him championship-winning expertise under the design influence of Adrian Newey at Red Bull, where he worked as Chief Engineering Officer until May 2023, ending an association that began 2006.
With Marshall contributing, McLaren achieved its first Constructors’ title in 26 years at the end of the 2024 campaign and arguably had the best all-around package for the majority of the season.
Speaking with select media, Stella expressed that Marshall’s impact had been bigger than initially expected.
“Rob came with a wealth of experience and knowledge from a technical point of view and with a reputation,” Stella said.
“I have to say that working with him, myself, the other technical directors, the entire technical team if anything, we have been impressed even more than what we expected.
“It is because of these qualities, like the knowledge of how you design a car, especially from a car layout point of view, this is very important for 2025 and for 2026, and we missed this role at McLaren before.”
Stella hails Marshall’s ‘human qualities’
As is the case in any business environment, sporting or otherwise, skills are only part of what makes a great collaborator.
Not only did Marshall bring a wealth of knowledge to McLaren, but Stella hailed his personal qualities as well.
“Rob brings fantastic human qualities, he is a very positive person, and everyone enjoys working with him. He is full of energy,” Stella said.
“You can see him in the garage, and very often he’s just playing under the car, on the ground, like everyone appreciates his incredible knowledge and experience.
“But at the same time, he’s hands-on, and sometimes even his head is dirty because it was hands-on with the parts, so that’s something that we missed before, and we are glad that now we have it.”
Neil Houldey credits Stella for revising McLaren F1 technical team
Marshall works in a multi-pronged technical team at McLaren with Peter Prodromu (Technical Director, Aerodynamics), Mark Temple (Technical Director, Performance) and Neil Houldey (Technical Director, Engineering).
The technical team is overseen by Stella, who is largely responsible for coming up with the structure in the first place.
Speaking to Motorsport.com, Houldey said “The way [the technical team] worked has been really positive and I think it’s shown the entire technical team how we can all work together, different personalities, different specialities, but actually it’s brought everyone together.
“I think the way that you can divide up the work, you’ve got Andrea as a guide, you’ve got us meeting together as a group. It just enables you to focus on your area that much more and ensure that the performance is coming in your area.
“So now I think from… if you’re going to credit, I think it’s something you can definitely give Andrea credit for, realising that that actually was a better way to structure the McLaren racing technical team.”
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