A mix of surprise and a hint of disbelief, but the news is true. Luca Cordero di Montezemolo has been appointed director of McLaren Group Holdings Limited, the company that controls McLaren Automotive and holds a minority stake in the British Formula 1 team. Yesterday, McLaren Group Holdings filed Montezemolo’s appointment with the UK’s Companies House, where he will join eight other board members.
Last December, McLaren Automotive was sold to Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund (CYVN) and is now separate from McLaren Racing. The only link between the two companies is a minority share of the Racing division still held by the Automotive group. The majority stake in McLaren Racing is owned by Bahrain’s sovereign wealth fund, the Bahrain Mumtalakat Holding Company.
Although his role is far from the racing operations, the news of Luca di Montezemolo joining the McLaren galaxy has caused major surprise. His figure has been associated with Ferrari for decades—first as sporting director from 1973 to 1977, then as president from 1991 to 2014, twenty-three years during which the Scuderia returned to the top of the world, rewriting many records. Luca di Montezemolo’s record includes 118 GP wins, 14 world titles (Drivers and Constructors), of which eleven were consecutive from 1999 to 2004.
During his time at the helm of Ferrari, clashes with McLaren were not uncommon, on and off the track. In 2007, the ‘Spy Story’ scandal broke out—a controversy in which the Maranello team was the victim of industrial espionage that benefitted McLaren. After a lengthy legal dispute, the FIA ruled against the British team, wiping out their Constructors’ Championship points and awarding the 2007 title to Ferrari, while also fining McLaren $100 million. “Let’s say we at Ferrari did a very good job,” commented Luca di Montezemolo at the end of the affair. “We built a car for ourselves… and more than half for the others. But in the end, the original won, so much for counterfeits.”
Eighteen years later, Montezemolo—now seventy-eight years old—will play an active role in the Automotive division of the historic British brand, sitting on the board of directors alongside Nick Collins, recently appointed CEO. Earlier this week, McLaren Group Chairman Paul Walsh was also added to the same board.
Two months on, Luca di Montezemolo’s presence at the Bahrain Grand Prix last April seems less coincidental—he was a guest of the Crown Prince of Bahrain, Salman bin Hamad Al-Khalifa, who controls McLaren Racing through the sovereign fund. That visit brought the former Ferrari president back to a Formula 1 paddock after 10 years of absence. Who knows—maybe Luca di Montezemolo’s next appearance in F1 will be in the papaya hospitality area…
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