McLaren has announced a multi-year contract extension for Formula One team principal Andrea Stella.
Stella, who joined McLaren in 2015, initially served as head of race operations and performance director before being promoted to executive director of racing in 2019.
“It’s a privilege to be part of the McLaren F1 team, and I am honored to continue in my role as team principal,” Stella said. “We’ve made great strides forward in the past year-and-a-half and we still have a lot more work to do to consistently fight at the front of the grid, which poses an exciting challenge.
“Success comes through the team working in synergy, and I am enjoying my role, which has allowed me to help unlock individual talent and empower people to work together towards our team’s objectives.”
Before joining McLaren, Stella, 53, spent 15 years at Ferrari, where he began his career as a performance engineer for Michael Schumacher and Kimi Raikkonen. He later served as race engineer for Raikkonen and Fernando Alonso.
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Since taking over as team principal in 2022, Stella has overseen a period of rapid progress at McLaren, highlighted by two Grand Prix victories, 18 podium finishes, and a Sprint race win.
Stella’s extension will come as a boost to the Woking-based team, who have in the past year also handed multi-year deals to drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.
“His excellent leadership, expertise and the respect he holds within the team and F1 means we could not have a better person in place to continue the pursuit of consistently fighting at the front of the grid,” said Zak Brown, chief executive of McLaren Racing.
“His impact on McLaren F1 in his role as team principal has been profound, not only through our results on track and the trajectory of the team but also in his development of our culture and mindset.
“With multi-year extensions already agreed with Lando, Oscar, and now Andrea, we can confidently continue on our quest to become world champions. We’re all looking forward to the years to come under Andrea’s leadership.”
McLaren are currently on a run of 10 consecutive podiums, positioning them just 42 points behind championship leaders Red Bull in the constructor standings.
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(Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images)
