Ross Brawn retires after 46-year career in Formula 1
The man who led Michael Schumacher and Ferrari through one of the most dominant period in Formula 1's history has announced his retirement from the sport.
Ross Brawn was technical director at Maranello between 1996-2006, during which time the Scuderia won five straight Drivers and Constructors Championships, while working under team principal Jean Todt.
He also famously bought the remnants of the Honda F1 team after its abrupt exit from the sport at the end of 2008, rebranding it as Brawn GP, and winning the 2009 Drivers and Constructors double.
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Michael Schumacher and Ross Brawn celebrate winning the 2002 Brazilian Grand Prix in Sao Paulo. Bongarts/Getty Images
Brawn confirmed the news in his column for F1.com.
"My time with Formula 1 is now coming to an end. I've loved everything I've done in the last few years," he wrote.
"Now is the right time for me to retire. There's a new car coming in 2026, but that's four years away, quite distant for me, so it's better the next group of people take on that mantle. I believe I'm leaving F1 in a great place."
Brawn made his start in the sport in 1978 when he was hired by Frank Williams to work at his now eponymous team as a machinist. He moved up through the team's ranks before brief stints at Lola and Arrows in the late-1980s.
He was poached by Jaguar to work on their sports car squad, which won the 1991 World Sportscar Championship.
Jenson Button driving for the new Brawn GP at the 2009 Australian Grand Prix. Getty
But it was upon his return to F1 with Benetton for the 1992 season Brawn would unite with Michael Schumacher to form one of the most formidable pairings the sport had ever seen.
With Benetton, they won the Drivers Championship in 1994 and both in 1995. When Schumacher left for Ferrari for 1996, Brawn followed him for 1997. They then spent the next three seasons building Ferrari into a powerhouse, before their dominant era began in 2000.
He took a year off after leaving Maranello at the end of the 2006 season, before moving to Honda for 2008.
He purchased the squad for 2009 after believing engineers had designed a race-winning car for the massive regulations overhaul ahead of the 2009 season. He stayed on for another four seasons after the squad was bought out by Mercedes, and was instrumental in luring Schumacher out of retirement to drive for the team.
Brawn at this year's Dutch Grant Prix at Zandvoort. NurPhoto via Getty Images
He retired at the end of the 2013 season, and since 2017 has been working for F1's owners Liberty Media as motorsports managing director.
Brawn said he now looked forward to watching the sport from the comfort of his couch.
"I've loved almost every minute of my 46-year career and I've been fortunate to have worked with many great teams, great drivers and great people. I wouldn't have changed a thing.
"I will now watch F1 from my sofa, cheering and cursing as an F1 fan, pleased that the sport is in a fantastic place and has such a fantastic future."
The 2023 season kicks off in Bahrain on March 5.
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