After a disappointing start to the season for the Mercedes W14, which took over from a porpoising-ridden W13, rumor has it that James Allison has returned to a more active role at Brackley.
A former technical director at Enstone and Maranello, Allison joined Mercedes in 2017 and led the design department for four years before stepping back from day-to-day operations to take on the more global role of Chief Technical Officer. This allowed him to share his time with other projects such as INEOS, the team’s co-owner, in the America’s Cup.
Asked by Motorsport.com In an exclusive interview about Allison’s potential role in the development of the W14, Wolff says the organization hasn’t changed: “No, he’s not really involved. He’s involved in the long-term strategy of the team, but he’s more into things like the America’s Cup.”
And when we suggest the team might have been tempted to parachute Allison in to help his successor Mike Elliott, Wolff replies: “In a team, there is never just one person. But you have to find the right people for the right roles. Sometimes that can mean that you are super competent in one area, but not necessarily in the other. together. James having been technical director before, he has a great track record, and he likes the contact with people. He is someone who remains very important for the team.”
There have been a lot of changes at the head of the Mercedes technical team over the years. Allison’s predecessor, Paddy Lowe, left for Williams in 2017, while chief aerodynamicist Eric Blandin joined Aston Martin in 2021. As for Aldo Costa, director of engineering and then adviser, he left Mercedes in profit from Dallara in 2020.
“People like Aldo, we can never replace them”says Wolff. “But you have to find within the structure, distribute this work among several other people. Aldo has structured his succession very well, it is not something that happened overnight. We have been warned for two years and a half early that he was going to leave. He shaped the department in his own way.”
