End of an era: McLaren boss Dennis forced to step down

Ron Dennis has officially stepped down as chairman and CEO of McLaren Technology Group, but still owns a large number of shares in the group and retains a seat on the board. The British accused the other two major shareholders of forcing him out of the company for "untenable" reasons.

During the Brazilian Grand Prix last Saturday, McLaren F1 team racing director Eric Boullier said Dennis was still McLaren chairman and CEO "today". However, at the time, rumors that the boss would be ousted by the board were already very real.

Last Friday, local time in the UK, Dennis appeared in the Supreme Court in London and tried to apply for an injunction against the McLaren board for forcing him to enter "gardening leave", but failed. The reason for trying to take this measure was that he presented a £1.65 billion acquisition intention to the board on behalf of a joint Chinese consortium, but the other two major shareholders - TAG owner Mansour Ojjeh, who holds 25% of the shares, and Mumtalakat Investment Company, which is controlled by the Bahraini royal family and holds 50% of the shares - regarded it as an "unwelcome" acquisition and decided to immediately remove the British.

When Dennis came to McLaren in 1980, it was just the racing operation company left by Bruce McLaren. After he took over, he not only won the world championship, but also built a huge group. Today, in addition to the F1 team, McLaren Technology Group also has large-scale automobile production, high-tech and catering services.

Under Dennis's stewardship, McLaren won seven constructors' titles in F1 and ten drivers' championships with drivers including James Hunt , Alain Prost, Ayrton Senna, Mika Hakkinen and Lewis Hamilton.

However, after 2012, McLaren's performance in both track and commercial development declined, and the alliance between Dennis and Ojjeh no longer existed.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.