Whitmarsh denies Honda factor in Lowe release
Briton Lowe, 51, will start work at Brackley in two weeks.
May 21 (GMM) McLaren on Tuesday played down reports linking its new Honda engine deal with Paddy Lowe's early release to Mercedes.
On his F1 blog, Allen said Mercedes is "very unhappy" about the turbo V6 data that could flow to Honda next year, "so it appears they have leveraged this situation to trigger the early release of Lowe".
But McLaren boss Martin Whitmarsh on Tuesday told reporters releasing Lowe six months early simply "seemed like the right thing to do".
Briton Lowe, 51, will start work at Brackley in two weeks.
"It's not related to the Honda deal," Whitmarsh insisted. "The Honda deal and the Mercedes deals had been done, so there was no pressure brought to bear.
"It was entirely our decision and we hope that it creates some goodwill. Paddy's a good guy."
Share Or Save This Story
Jules Bianchi's father speaks of family's continued hopes
Sauber under no illusions about constructors' position
Pirelli chief calls for radical F1 overhaul
Who belongs on F1's Mount Rushmore? Pick your four greatest drivers
Niki Lauda's championship-winning Ferrari 312T returns in Austria as son takes wheel
Mercedes welcome Niki Lauda's family at F1 Austrian GP: "A legacy that lives on"
George Russell shares childhood Silverstone connection and why he rejected bigger grandstand
David Coulthard says Kimi Antonelli proved he is an F1 "phenomenon" at Monza
Why Kimi Antonelli's Italian GP triumph over George Russell felt like a title-defining moment
Max Verstappen reveals laid-back approach to 100-driver Silverstone challenge
George Russell shares childhood Silverstone connection and why he rejected bigger grandstand
WRC Chile: Oliver Solberg extends rally lead as Evans pays road-order price
David Coulthard says Kimi Antonelli proved he is an F1 "phenomenon" at Monza
What we learned from Friday practice at the 2026 F1 Spanish GP
What F1's risky Madrid bet needs to get right in order to pay off
The deeper meaning of Vettel’s emotional Schumacher demo run at Monza
Why new Madrid F1 circuit will be a "challenging" test of cars and engines
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
Top Comments