Mercedes acquires Brawn GP
November 16, 2009 by Negative Camber
Filed under Prime & Option, Top Story
The interesting twist of the week has been the inability to sign or re-sign World Champion Jenson Button at Branw GP. As odd as that has sounded for the past few weeks, it seems to become very clear now as Mercedes has announced the acquisition of Brawn GP by purchasing 75.1% of the shares in the World Championship winning team. Mercedes cars, Dr Dieter Zetsche said:
“Mercedes will compete in the F1 world championship next year starting with its own factory team,”
“This is possible by the agreed acquisition of 75.1 per cent of Brawn GP, 45.1 per cent from Daimler and 30 per cent from our partner Aabar Investments. The rest will be with the current share – Ross Brawn, Nick Fry and other members. The interests of Daimler are aligned therefore it will be a true Mercedes-Benz team.
“Ross Brawn will continue to be the team principal and thereby we are maintaining his strength. Just like the engine team at Mercedes Benz High Performance Engines, the new Mercedes Benz grand prix team will be co-ordinated by Mercedes Benz Motorsport which is as everybody knows headed by Norbert Haug.”
While it has been rumored for some time, the move certainly props up the operating capital and overall complete mission of the team which will operate from its current location. A title-winning team headed by the singular Ross Brawn is a enticing package for Mercedes and its investment in Brawn GP is antithetical to the recent moves by Honda, BMW and Toyota who left the series under financial stress.
Ross Brawn said:
“Both I and my fellow directors at Brawn GP are incredibly proud of our staff, drivers and everyone associated with our team and thank them for their commitment, outstanding teamwork and their focus on achieving results in sometimes difficult circumstances,” he said.
“The senior management group will remain in place to lead our team and on behalf of everyone at Brawn GP, we are honoured to be representing such a prestigious brand as Mercedes-Benz in Formula One next year and will be working together to do our best to reward their faith in our team.”
It has been suggested that Nico Rosberg closed a deal with Mercedes a few weeks ago that will see him at the wheel of the new Mercedes while Norbert Haug has been in discussions with former BMW driver Nick Heidfeld about the second seat. A driver lineup that I personally like as both are German and bring a distinct skill and benefit to the team. Jenson Button’s flirtatious position over the last few weeks with McLaren becomes more relevant as Mercedes may not be too keen on the Britains services.
This leaves a large question mark for McLaren. Do they sign Kimi Raikkonen or Jenson Button? They have been down the road with Raikkonen before and may find Button’s salary requirements more palatable than the Fin’s. They may also relish the idea of an entirely English team to start their new future endeavors without Mercedes. Either way, the British team is certainly placed in a new position and while securing the engine supply of Mercedes until 2015 is a help, it can’t be the position they ultimately wanted.
This also offers questions as to the mentoring and continued support of Force India via McLaren’s technical partnership. Will they remain a priority or will the price tag of such support rise significantly? Mercedes is now a full-on constructor in F1 and McLaren’s position has been even more solidified as one of the largest privateers in the sport. What net effect will it have on FOTA, F1, racing and perhaps most immediately, the world champion?
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The biggest loser of all these developments seem to be Kimi. He might end up without a drive next year.
Imagine sitting idle and eating 17 million worth of ice-creams.
I don’t know, if anything I think this makes Brawn a potential home for Kimi. Lewis at McLaren, Alonso at Ferrari, Vettel at Red Bull and Kimi at Mercedes would be an awesome year. Here’s to wishful thinking.
Didnt Brawn already rule out Kimi saying that he is too expensive. I am not sure if Merc coming into picture changes that. For all the big money that they are paying, they should get a very good No 1 driver. Nico might be good driver but yet to prove as a team leader. Kimi and Nico would be a great combination.
If they really insist on Germans, then it should be Vettel + Nico. How about Merc entering into an engine supply agreement with Red Bull and get Vettel.
It would make a bit of a liar out of Ross Brawn to say that they can’t afford Button and then hire Kimi, wouldn’t it? I think he may be on the losing end of the Brawn-Button tug-of-war.
This is F1 and not Sunday Morning school, so won’t be the first time the persons involved will be lying :D .
And if I am not wrong Nico Rosberg’s retainer is definitely more than what Button Camp is asking Brawn Camp. Ultimately now its Mercedes decision on what to pay, if hire another driver at higher retainer than what Button is asking.It will be ultimate slap in face of the current champion and will reaffirm the general impression that it was the car that won the WDC and not the driver.
@ least he was at the right place at the right time in 2007 and can showcase one WDC trophy. There have been better talents who never got the F1 seat or the title. So I don’t feel that bad for the Finn.
How I wish Luca D Mcxx had preferred a driver with character in form of JPM rather than “Looking Good” Finn in 2006. Anyways another of those what-ifs that will not lead anywhere.
finally some good news, rubbing salt in the wounds! that is precisely what Mercedes has done to BMW, now they are the only manufacturer from Germany to be in F1, that would only strengthen their position.
It is ironic that when privateers can afford to come in, the likes of BMW, Toyota are leaving after throwing billions away.
This is fantastic! I now have my new favourite team! I’ve always liked McLaren in the past, but truth be told, it was always because of their affiliation with Mercedes.
I think this is a sad day for independent motorsport… As much as I understand Ross Brawn’s motives and goals, Brawn GP was one of the greatest phenomenon of recent Formula 1 competition – And now, they’re just another bloated major with too much capital and name that it will probably upset the successful dynamic they benefitted from this past season. For what it’s worth, it was awesome to see Brawn leave Ferrari, Red Bull and McLaren in their dust. Let’s see how it goes.
The Brawn achievement of 2009 was fantastic, but let’s not lose sight of the fact that they were set on the path by Honda in 2008. They didn’t come in and build a car from scratch as a completely private venture.
You’re right in part – Honda provided a serious bulk on the 2009 budget but the car was a total piece of industrial improv, considering Brawn was forced to make incredible last minute changes to accommodate a Mercedes engine. Furthermore, Brawn was under real financial strain mid season and was forced to stop development on the 2009 car to shift resources to 2010 (notice all those fancy new sponsor stickers every race?) – Granted Ferrari did the same but their program was really sub par.
Actually, considering the motorsports timeline, it is a good day for independent motorsport. McLaren is a legendary name in F1 with a rich history. As an independent racing team, they also ventured into Indy cars as well as sportscar racing. By buying back its shares from Mercedes, it seems McLaren is going back to its roots.
In contrast Brawn GP has only been in existence for less than 12 months. If there is a sad day to the Brawn GP tale, it is that Brawn didn’t name his team back to the original formation as Tyrrell Racing.
I’m replying to myself, but after taking a moment to think, a very sad day for independent motorsport was when Craig Pollock forced Ken Tyrrell to hire Ricardo Rosset for the 1998 season. Rosset was terrible and ranks right with Sakon Yamamoto and Yuji Ide in the annals of F1.
Kimi-to-McLaren must be dead in the water now. McLaren could not possibly decide to pay a huge retainer to Kimi while also financing the stock repurchase. Although doesn’t the continuing engine supply and sponsorship arrangement between Mercedes and McLaren zero out any cash flow needed for McLaren to repurchase stock? Is this a case of funny math?
All that I can say is that if i were Kimi, wouldn’t it be attractive to drive for the new Mercedes GP? If Mercedes were to offer Kimi a similar deal to what McLaren offered, I wonder if Kimi would reconsider his financial demands?
Its not the question of what they could or could not pay. Its the question of whether they want to pay. Its the same for Kimi and Button. The Paddock insiders have perfect picture of the capability and the worth of the drivers available. A team may consciously make decision to pay less monies and get a lesser known driver but someone who had greater potential, rather than paying big monies to big headed superstars and given that there are more drivers in market then ever in recent history of F1, I don’t blame any parties to be playing the poker game. It just remains to be seen who blinks first. Merc blinked today, every one will follow suit sometime between now and march.
Anyways this is more interesting than what we have to put up with once the lights go green on Sunday afternoons :D
I find it interesting that they go from spirited privateer survivor to mega-German conglomerate over night. Now that is drama folks. No wonder Ross was dragging his feet about Jenson; Merc won’t want the British hero.
I am not suprised that this has occured.
One thing that might come from all of this is getting more and more nationalistic teams. All German Mercedes, all Brittish McLaren, all American USF1… Wait a minute, what? A1GP anyone?
So is Brawn now Mercedes?
Does this make Brawn the most successful team in F1 compared to the amount of time spent in the series?
Scary is the word when I think how the cash rich investors from the Middle East are buying out stake in every damn thing. By the time we are out of this recession, they will own half the worlds brands.
Even Ross cannot build a car tough enough to survive Kimi. Quite happy with Rosberg and hopefully they spring a surprise with the other driver. All hail the real silver arrows!
I like the Rosberg Merc line-up, problem is they are talking about adding Nick to the mix now, sorry NC, I know he’s your guy but signing Heidfeld would turn an otherwise exciting turn of events into a snooze-fest. Brawn, Mercedes, Rosberg and Raikkonen would make that team a powerhouse in performance and in popularity. Kimi might not be worth what he’s asking in this particular driver’s market but he’s definitely worth a premium and should be strongly considered by this new factory team.