In 2016 McLaren was at a low competitive and commercial ebb, locked in a toxic cycle of mutual recrimination with its engine partner, Honda, and struggling to attract high-value sponsors – and retain existing ones. Behind-the-scenes boardroom intrigue would soon result in the ousting of Ron Dennis, whose drive and punctilious attention to detail had defined the team since the 1980s. Chief executive Jost Capito, a recent high-profile recruit from Volkswagen Motorsport, barely had time to warm his seat before he was out, too.
Zak Brown, a former racer, was Formula 1’s pre-eminent sponsor-wrangler: his company Just Marketing International, which he later sold to Sebastian Coe’s CSM, was responsible for landing some of the biggest deals in motor racing – from Martini’s return to F1 as Williams title sponsor to…
