McLaren have announced the appointment of Red Bull’s Head of Strategy Will Courtenay as their new Sporting Director.
Courtenay will depart Red Bull after two decades with the team, having joined them when they raced as Jaguar before the organization was bought by the energy drinks firm.
His hiring is part of McLaren’s strengthening of their senior leadership team, with Courtenay scheduled to report into Racing Director Randeep Singh.
“We are delighted to welcome Will to McLaren,” stated Team Principal Andrea Stella. “His experience, professionalism and passion for motorsport make him the ideal candidate to lead our F1 sporting function.
“As we move forward to pursue wins and championships, we are certain that he will be a fantastic addition to our strong leadership team. We are now entering a critical phase in our journey as a team.”
Courtenay’s arrival at McLaren will have to wait less than two years, as Red Bull has stated that he “continues to be part of their team seeing out his contract until mid-2026.”
In a statement to F1.com, they also said, “Will has been extended an offer to become Sporting Director. We are sorry to see him retire after a long and fruitful tenure, having been a part of the team since the Jaguar era. We wish him well in his next endeavor.
In the past six months, Courtenay is the third top employee to decide to depart Red Bull.
Adrian Newey, the design expert, is expected to depart to take a position as Managing Technical Partner at Aston Martin, while Jonathan Wheatley, the Sporting Director, will join Audi as Team Principal for the upcoming season.
After Wheatley left the team, Red Bull reorganized it, with Verstappen’s race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase taking the helm as Head of Racing among other notable changes.