Gil de Ferran Quits
Discussion
Honda's sporting director Gil de Ferran is to leave the team with immediate effect.
The former Indianapolis 500 winner had joined Honda in early 2005, but was not happy with how his position had developed.
"I am obviously very disappointed to be leaving the Honda F1 team," de Ferran said.
"I have a huge amount of respect and admiration for Honda, with whom I have been successfully associated for more than years.
"Consequently, my decision to leave has not been an easy one.
"I simply feel that I came to this team to fulfil a particular role and it has not materialised as I had hoped.
"I would like to thank everyone at the team for the support I have been given and I wish them luck in the future."
Team boss Nick Fry admitted that de Ferran had become unhappy with his role at Honda.
"I am disappointed that Gil is leaving our team," Fry said.
"Since he joined us in 2005 we have enjoyed a very positive relationship.
"However, a Formula 1 team is rather like a jigsaw puzzle in that every piece has to fit precisely in its place.
"Gil has become increasingly uncomfortable in his role and feels the time has now come to seek fresh opportunities.
"We are very much hoping that Gil will choose to maintain close links with the Honda family."
De Ferran was a contemporary of David Coulthard and Rubens Barrichello in the junior formulae before switching to American racing.
He first worked with Honda in Champ Cars in 1996, and took two titles with its engines before switching to the rival IRL Indycar Series.
He retired from racing at the end of 2003 and took up his position with Honda's F1 squad a year later.
Honda has had a difficult season, having only managed to score one point in the opening nine races.
The former Indianapolis 500 winner had joined Honda in early 2005, but was not happy with how his position had developed.
"I am obviously very disappointed to be leaving the Honda F1 team," de Ferran said.
"I have a huge amount of respect and admiration for Honda, with whom I have been successfully associated for more than years.
"Consequently, my decision to leave has not been an easy one.
"I simply feel that I came to this team to fulfil a particular role and it has not materialised as I had hoped.
"I would like to thank everyone at the team for the support I have been given and I wish them luck in the future."
Team boss Nick Fry admitted that de Ferran had become unhappy with his role at Honda.
"I am disappointed that Gil is leaving our team," Fry said.
"Since he joined us in 2005 we have enjoyed a very positive relationship.
"However, a Formula 1 team is rather like a jigsaw puzzle in that every piece has to fit precisely in its place.
"Gil has become increasingly uncomfortable in his role and feels the time has now come to seek fresh opportunities.
"We are very much hoping that Gil will choose to maintain close links with the Honda family."
De Ferran was a contemporary of David Coulthard and Rubens Barrichello in the junior formulae before switching to American racing.
He first worked with Honda in Champ Cars in 1996, and took two titles with its engines before switching to the rival IRL Indycar Series.
He retired from racing at the end of 2003 and took up his position with Honda's F1 squad a year later.
Honda has had a difficult season, having only managed to score one point in the opening nine races.
Nick Fry said:
Team boss Nick Fry admitted that de Ferran had become unhappy with his role at Honda.
"A Formula 1 team is rather like a jigsaw puzzle in that every piece has to fit precisely in its place.
Ironic that he should be saying that, when it's Nick Fry who should be getting his P45. He seems to be letting the Honda management take all the decisions, despite them being 000's of miles away."A Formula 1 team is rather like a jigsaw puzzle in that every piece has to fit precisely in its place.
When McLaren had Honda engines Ron Dennis told them what he expected of them, and after that they bloody well kept their noses out of it. That team needs somebody with cojones at the helm, as does Toyota. Both of these teams are just haemorraging money at an astonishing rate, they both must be close to a $1billion spend and have *nothing* to show for it...
Nick Fry is a good manager of people supposedly and he is a former marketting man so he can put as much spin into things as possible. Geoff Willis and Gil de Ferran are racing men and were not seen as people who could make the brand go forward, but they would have sorted the problems out!
If Nick Fry is so good why have most of his sponsorship team left, he has farmed out sales and sponsorship / events to 19 Entertainment who are hopeless beyond the Beckhams and having worked myself with Gil De Ferran feel that he offered the team some hope with Honda management. Obviously being paid in US $ and living in the UK is not the way to go and he wants to go back to Florida.....we know who has made the better decision. Ta ta Honda in F1.
But was Gil de Ferran ever going to be anything more than a figurehead? Fair enough the guy has won races but has he ever done team management?
Maybe he was not up to whatever job it was that they were suggesting for him.
I know very little about Nick Fry but he was MD of prodrive and Dave Richards knows talent.....(or so I'm led to beleive).
D
Maybe he was not up to whatever job it was that they were suggesting for him.
I know very little about Nick Fry but he was MD of prodrive and Dave Richards knows talent.....(or so I'm led to beleive).
D
GdF - really nice bloke, but what did he actualy do?
Nick Fry - gurning fool
I can't work out the Prodrive thing....DR comes on board BAR, sets them on the straight and narrow, picks Button up, gets fired by Honda but Fry retains a role there....I guess Fry wasn't that happy at Prodrive?....
Nick Fry - gurning fool
I can't work out the Prodrive thing....DR comes on board BAR, sets them on the straight and narrow, picks Button up, gets fired by Honda but Fry retains a role there....I guess Fry wasn't that happy at Prodrive?....
GdeF I believe was in there to help Honda deal with the UK / BAR issues. Possibly too nice a guy, what they need is a hatchet man who will tell the Japanese how it works in F1 and also tell the Brits to get on and work together, not bicker. Lack of talent at Honda at the moment....drivers included.
Paul671 said:
belleair302 said:
Lack of talent at Honda at the moment....drivers included.
How are Button and Rubens lacking in talent? It's fair to say Honda are having trouble at the moment, but the drivers can only do the best with what they have, and that really isn't much at the moment.FourWheelDrift said:
Paul671 said:
belleair302 said:
Lack of talent at Honda at the moment....drivers included.
How are Button and Rubens lacking in talent? It's fair to say Honda are having trouble at the moment, but the drivers can only do the best with what they have, and that really isn't much at the moment.davidd said:
rubystone said:
I can't work out the Prodrive thing....DR comes on board BAR, sets them on the straight and narrow, picks Button up, gets fired by Honda but Fry retains a role there....I guess Fry wasn't that happy at Prodrive?....
Or maybe the whole thing is a plot by DR......Subsequent results would seem to suggest that was not the case.
irs said:
FourWheelDrift said:
Paul671 said:
belleair302 said:
Lack of talent at Honda at the moment....drivers included.
How are Button and Rubens lacking in talent? It's fair to say Honda are having trouble at the moment, but the drivers can only do the best with what they have, and that really isn't much at the moment.Gassing Station | General Motorsport | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff