Bojan Vrbnjak
The McLaren team sent former chief engineer Pat Fry on leave after the start of work of technical chief James Kay, who came from the Toro Rosso team. There has been speculation that the latter could lead the way to the Williams team.
McLaren team boss Andreas Seidel confirmed as part of a race weekend at Silverstone that Pat Fry had been sent on leave. An expert in F1 engineering, he joined the Woking team only at the end of last year, but it was known in advance that this was only a temporary solution until James Key started working. And that is what has happened now. “With James, who will now serve as technical director, we decided to move forward,” explains Seidl, explaining why Pat Fry, who developed the current MCL34 race car, was sent on leave. Exact details of the reason for the paid leave, however, were not released by the team boss. Maybe it's whether there is an offer from any other team.
Despite the fact that Seidl did not want to give out any reason, it is most likely the interest of the other team. “Given the importance that Pat had in our team, I then had to simply make the decision to send him on leave to protect the team’s intellectual property as well,” Seidl added.
Lastly, there was speculation that Pat Fry might land on another British traditional team. After Williams completely separated from his technical client Paddy Lowe, this position in the Williams team is available. But team boss Claire Williams points out that there is no meat in these rumors. Already at the race in Austria, she explained that she is very satisfied with the technical staff of the team. This team consists of Dave Robson (Chief Engineer), Adam Carter (Chief Designer) and Doug McKiernan (Head of Aerodynamics). “Of course, we look at the available options. And what best suits our structures of course. As soon as we make a decision, we will announce it, ”added Williams.
Pat Fry has been active in F1 since 1987. The 55-year-old began his career today with the Benetton team, and in 1993 he joined the McLaren team. In 2010, the route led him to Maranello to Ferrari. Disappointment in the 2014 season was followed by a divorce. Before returning to McLaren in 2018, Fry was also active in the Manor Racing team for a short time.
