Without a technical director, until Toro Rosso release James Key sometime next year, McLaren have contracted Pat Fry as Engineering Director with immediate effect to kick-start the team's 2019 Formula 1 project.
Zak Brown confirmed to reporters, “Pat Fry is joining us.
"From a technical standpoint, Andrea Stella is leading the way and will work very closely with Pat Fry. Andrea will set direction, targets and performance criteria and Pat ultimately will work with him to execute that. When I told the team this morning that was extremely welcomed,” said Brown.
Fry is vastly experienced having started with Benetton in 1987 where he remained until 1993, whereupon he joined McLaren where he remained with them in various roles which culminated in Chief Engineer of Race Development.
In 2010 Fry departed Woking for Maranello where he started as assistant technical director and stayed with Ferrari until 2014. He surfaced again as a consultant for Manor Racing in 2016.
McLaren are in the throes of a major upheaval that has seen the Zak Brown led team sink to their lowest level in F1. Last year the blame was put squarely on their engine supplier Honda.
They claimed, with backing from their star driver Fernando Alonso, that their MCL32 chassis was the best on the grid and with a decent power unit they could win.
They ditched Honda and the massive perks that came with the works deal and instead dished out cash to be a Renault customer while erroneously believing the MCL33 was simply going to be a 'rocket' like the MCL32. They got it horribly wrong.
Instead, it is arguably the worst car on the grid and without a doubt the worst in the team's history. Who to blame? Out the door went Eric Boullier, Tim Goss and Matt Morris.
Soon thereafter, Brown got out the chequebook and Toro Rosso's ace designer James Key was now a McLaren man.
Problem is no one told Red Bull management about the scoop on their technical guru. Obviously upset they are holding the Englishman to his contract which could mean he will only be able to move into his office at Woking during the course of next year.
Meanwhile, McLaren have an F1 race car to build for 2019, already they are behind their rival's with most teams already having done the groundwork.
Hence with no technical leadership, the team have brought in Fry to sort out the mess and kick-start the MCL34 project.
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