Ron Dennis facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Ron Dennis
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Dennis in 2016
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| British Business Ambassador for Manufacturing / Advanced Engineering | |
| In office 2010 – 3 January 2019 Serving with Richard Olver and Robin Southwell
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| Prime Minister | |
| Preceded by | Office established |
| Succeeded by | Office abolished |
| Non-Executive Director for Science, Innovation and Technology | |
| In office 22 April 2023 – 21 April 2024 Serving with Alison Wolf, Tim Peake and Melissa Di Donato
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| Prime Minister | |
| Preceded by | Office established |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Ronald Dennis
1 June 1947 Woking, Surrey, England |
| Political party | Conservative |
| Spouse |
Lisa
(m. 1986; div. 2008) |
| Children | 3 |
| Education | Guildford Technical College |
| Occupation |
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| Employer | |
| Title | Team Principal |
| Known for |
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Sir Ronald Dennis (born 1 June 1947) is a British businessman and a top leader in motorsport. From 1981 to 2009, Ron Dennis was the team boss, CEO, and co-owner of McLaren in Formula One. During this time, McLaren won seven World Constructors' Championship titles between 1984 and 1998. He also founded, chaired, and owned McLaren Group from 1985 to 2017. He started McLaren Automotive in 2010, which makes amazing supercars.
Ron Dennis began his career as a mechanic. He then created successful junior racing teams like Rondel Racing and Project Four Racing. In 1980, his Project Four team took over the management of the famous McLaren team. From 1981 to 2009, Dennis was the team principal of the McLaren Formula One team. He helped turn the team into a regular winner of world championships. Great drivers like Niki Lauda, Alain Prost, Ayrton Senna, Mika Häkkinen, and Lewis Hamilton won championships with McLaren under his leadership.
Contents
Ron Dennis: A Racing Legend
Early Days in Racing
Ron Dennis was born and grew up in Woking, England. He studied motor vehicle engineering at Guildford Technical College. At 18, in 1966, he started working as a mechanic for the Cooper Formula One team. He worked with lead driver Jochen Rindt. When Rindt moved to Brabham in 1968, Dennis went with him. For the 1969 season, Rindt moved to Team Lotus, but Dennis stayed to work for Sir Jack Brabham.
In 1971, when Brabham retired, Dennis and his friend Neil Trundle decided to start their own team. They founded Rondel Racing in Woking. Money was tight, so Dennis looked for sponsors. He found support from Tony Vlassopulos, a lawyer, and Ken Grob, an insurance broker.
By the mid-1970s, Rondel Racing was doing very well in Formula Two. Dennis wanted to move into Formula One, but the 1973 oil crisis made it hard to get enough money. So, Dennis had to regroup.
Building Project Four Racing
In 1975, Dennis formed the Project Three team, and his cars started winning races again. In 1976, he founded Project Four Racing. This team became very successful in Formula 2 and Formula 3. They won championships in 1979 and 1980 with support from Philip Morris (Marlboro).
As his businesses grew, Dennis wanted to return to Formula One. He hired a talented designer named John Barnard to create a new, innovative F1 car.
Taking Over McLaren
Ron Dennis's return to Formula One came at the right time. The McLaren team, which had won championships before, was not doing well. Philip Morris executive John Hogan decided that Dennis's Project Four team should take over McLaren. The team was renamed McLaren International, with Dennis in charge.
Dennis hired Barnard to design a new car with a revolutionary carbon fibre composite body, the MP4/1. He also convinced Porsche to build engines for the cars from 1984 to 1987. The 'MP4' in the car's name originally stood for Marlboro Project Four. After 1997, when the main sponsor changed, 'M' stood for McLaren.
McLaren's Golden Era
The 1980s: Rise to Dominance
When Ron Dennis arrived at McLaren in September 1980, the team was struggling. They had not won a Grand Prix since 1977. In 1981, Dennis and his partners bought out the other McLaren shareholders. In 1983, Dennis convinced Williams supporter Mansour Ojjeh to become a partner in McLaren International. Ojjeh invested in Porsche-built turbocharged engines, which were named after his company, Techniques d'Avant Garde (TAG).
Dennis then persuaded the famous driver Niki Lauda to come out of retirement for the 1982 season. By the end of 1982, both Lauda and his teammate John Watson had won two races each. In 1983, McLaren switched to TAG-Porsche engines. Ojjeh became the main investor, owning 60 percent of the shares. Dennis also signed Alain Prost, a top driver, to join the team.
In just four years, Dennis had transformed McLaren from a struggling team into a top contender. In 1984, with Barnard's amazing MP4/2 car, McLaren won 12 out of 16 races. They won both the drivers' and constructors' titles. Lauda won the drivers' championship by a tiny half-point over his teammate Prost. The McLaren-TAG cars were incredibly reliable.
In 1985, Prost won his first World Championship. In 1986, McLaren lost the constructors' title to Williams, but Prost still won the drivers' title.
Dennis then signed Ayrton Senna, a very talented Brazilian driver, to partner Prost for 1988. This was a huge move. In 1988, McLaren was incredibly dominant. They won 15 of the 16 races and took 15 of the 16 pole positions. They won both the drivers' and constructors' titles easily. Senna won his first World Championship.
However, the relationship between Senna and Prost became difficult. By mid-1989, it was impossible to keep the two drivers happy. They had a famous collision at the 1989 Japanese Grand Prix, which led to Prost winning his third World Championship.
The 1990s: New Challenges and Success
At the start of the 1990s, McLaren continued to be a top team. Ayrton Senna won two more titles in 1990 and 1991. McLaren signed the promising young driver Mika Häkkinen as a test driver in 1992. But by 1992, the Williams team was becoming stronger. McLaren did not win another title for seven years.
After losing Honda engines in 1993, Dennis had to find new engine partners. A partnership with Peugeot in 1994 did not work out well. So, in October 1994, Dennis made a deal with Mercedes-Benz to supply engines from 1995 onwards. This partnership lasted until 2014.
The first few seasons with McLaren-Mercedes were tough. There were issues with the engine and car design. But by the mid-1990s, Dennis was guiding his team back to the top. In 1996, he brought in Adrian Newey, a brilliant designer from Williams, to be McLaren's technical director. In 1998, McLaren won both the drivers' and constructors' titles with Mika Häkkinen. Häkkinen won a second drivers' title in 1999.
The 2000s: Continued Competition
In 2000, Ron Dennis was honored with the title of Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire for his contributions to motorsport.
In 2001, Adrian Newey was almost lured away by another team, but Dennis convinced him to stay. In the same year, Mika Häkkinen decided to leave the sport. Dennis then signed Kimi Räikkönen to join the team.
In 2005, McLaren had a strong year, winning more races than their rivals. However, they were just beaten by the Renault F1 team for both championships. Another challenge came when Adrian Newey decided to join Red Bull Racing from 2006.
In December 2005, McLaren announced a big sponsorship deal with Vodafone and signed World Champion Fernando Alonso to start in 2007. The 2006 Formula One season was difficult for McLaren, as they did not win a single race for the first time since 1996.
The 2007 season saw McLaren become strong contenders again, with both Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton fighting for the drivers' championship. Ron Dennis always believed in treating his two drivers equally. This season was also known for a controversy where the team was fined a large amount and lost all their constructor championship points.
Final Years at McLaren
Ron Dennis initially owned all of McLaren. In 1983, he sold 50% of the team to Mansour Ojjeh. In 2000, Mercedes, who supplied engines, bought 40% of the TAG McLaren Group. Dennis and Ojjeh each kept 30%.
In 2007, the Mumtalakat Holding Company (from Bahrain) bought 15% from both Dennis and Ojjeh. In 2009, Mercedes bought another team, and McLaren bought back Mercedes' 40% share. The shares were then split, with Mumtalakat owning 50% and Dennis and Ojjeh each owning 25%.
Dennis stepped down as CEO of McLaren in 2009 but returned in 2014. His goal was to find investors to take control of the company, but this did not happen. His relationship with Ojjeh became difficult, and in November 2016, Dennis was suspended from his role as chairman. His contract ended in January 2017. In June 2017, he sold his remaining shares in McLaren.
Other Businesses and Interests
Ron Dennis has been involved in many other businesses. In 1998, he co-founded Absolute Taste, a catering company.
He was also a business ambassador for the UK Government until 2019, working for the Department of International Trade. Dennis is also a Global Adviser for a Chinese investment group, Minsheng Investment.
He was a major shareholder in the luxury watchmaker TAG Heuer before it merged with LVMH in 1999.
In 2007, Dennis started a charity called Dreamchasing. This charity aims to help young people achieve their dreams and become inspiring role models. One of its first projects helped over 40 families in Ethiopia escape poverty and supported their education.
Communication Style
"Ronspeak" is a term used to describe Ron Dennis's unique way of speaking. He is known for giving very detailed, careful, and sometimes complex answers to questions from Formula One journalists.
Even though some people use the term to tease him, many, like former F1 Racing editor Matt Bishop, say "Ronspeak" is actually very informative and accurate. It shows how carefully he thinks about his words.
Personal Life
Ron Dennis was married to Lisa from 1986 to 2008, and they have three children.
He is a supporter of the Conservative Party and has donated to them. In May 2019, Ron Dennis was listed as one of the richest people in the UK, with an estimated wealth of £450 million.
Awards and Honours
- 1996 De Montfort University Honorary Doctorate
- 1997 City University London Honorary Doctorate
- 2000 Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire for services to motorsport.
- 2000 University of Surrey Honorary Doctorate
- 2001 British Racing Drivers' Club Gold Medal
- 2007 British Racing Drivers' Club Colin Chapman Trophy.
- 2008 British Racing Drivers' Club Gold Medal
- 2008 Royal Academy of Engineering Prince Philip Medal
- 2009 Guild of Motoring Writers's President's Trophy
- 2013 University of Bath Honorary Doctorate
- 2017 American Academy of Achievement's Golden Plate Award
In the 2024 New Year Honours, Ron Dennis was made a Knight Bachelor for his services to industry and to charity.
See also
In Spanish: Ron Dennis para niños
