James Allison (motorsport)

Last updated

James Allison
James Allison in 2014 (cropped).jpg
Allison in 2014
Born (1968-02-21) 21 February 1968 (age 56)
Louth, Lincolnshire, England [1]
Nationality Flag of the United Kingdom.svg British
Education Aerospace engineer
Alma mater University of Cambridge
Occupation(s) Formula One chief technical officer, engineer, aerodynamicist
Years active1991–present
Employer Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team
Known forFormula One aerodynamicist
PredecessorPaddy Lowe
Spouse
Rebecca
​
​
(m. 1992;died 2016)​
Children3

James Allison (born 21 February 1968) [2] is a British motorsport designer and engineer, best known for his accomplishments in Formula One, where he is the technical director of the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team.

Contents

Early life

Born in Louth, Lincolnshire, [2] the son of former Royal Air Force officer, Air Chief Marshal Sir John Allison, and Jill Allison, James was educated at Abingdon School and Cambridge. [3]

Career

Benetton, Larrousse, and Ferrari (1991–2005)

After graduating from Cambridge in 1991, Allison joined the aerodynamics department of Benetton Formula. [4] After a couple of years at Benetton, he moved to Larrousse as head of aerodynamics, [4] before returning to Benetton as head of aerodynamics in the mid-1990s. [4] In 2000, he moved to Ferrari for five years.

Renault/Lotus (2005–2013)

Allison returned to Benetton (by then known as Renault F1) in the role of deputy technical director in 2005. [3] In 2009 Allison became technical director. [4] In 2011, Renault F1 became Lotus Renault GP, before becoming Lotus F1 in 2012.

Return to Ferrari (2013–2016)

On 8 May 2013, Allison quit as Lotus F1 Team technical director to be replaced by Nick Chester. [5] On 29 July 2013, Allison rejoined Ferrari as chassis technical director and then technical director until July 2016. [1] [6] On 27 July 2016, Allison quit as Scuderia Ferrari technical director following the death of his wife. [7]

Mercedes-AMG (2017–present)

On 16 February 2017, Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport announced that Allison was to join the team in the newly created role of technical director, following the departure of Paddy Lowe to Williams Grand Prix Engineering. [8]

In April 2021, Allison became Chief Technical Officer at Mercedes-AMG. [9] He also became the Chief Technical Officer at Ineos Team UK Britannia's America's Cup team. This role positioned Allison as technical lead of Ben Ainslie's campaign for the 37th America's Cup, with Mercedes-AMG F1 Applied Science partnering with their existing sailing and design teams, which include Ainslie, Giles Scott, and prominent naval architect and yacht designer Martin Fischer. [10] On 21 April 2023, Allison returned to his previous position as Technical Director of Mercedes-AMG F1, swapping jobs with Mike Elliott, who had taken his place earlier. [11]

Formula One Championships

Allison was part of the design team for the cars that won the following Formula One World Constructors' Championships and World Drivers' Championships:

No.SeasonConstructors' ChampionDrivers' ChampionCarEngine
1 2000 Ferrari Michael Schumacher F1-2000 Ferrari
2 2001 Ferrari Michael Schumacher F2001
3 2002 Ferrari Michael Schumacher F2002
4 2003 Ferrari Michael Schumacher F2003-GA
5 2004 Ferrari Michael Schumacher Ferrari F2004
6 2005 Renault Fernando Alonso R25 Renault
7 2006 Renault Fernando Alonso R26
8 2018 Mercedes Lewis Hamilton W09 Mercedes
9 2019 Mercedes Lewis Hamilton W10
10 2020 Mercedes Lewis Hamilton W11
11 2021 Mercedes — W12

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Renault in Formula One</span> Formula One activities of Renault

Renault, a French automobile manufacturer, has been associated with Formula One as both team owner and engine manufacturer for various periods since 1977. In 1977, the company entered Formula One as a constructor, introducing the turbo engine to Formula One with its EF1 engine. In 1983, Renault began supplying engines to other teams. Although the Renault team had won races, it withdrew at the end of 1985. Renault engines continued to be raced until 1986.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pat Symonds</span> British motorsport engineer (born 1953)

Patrick Bruce Reith Symonds is a British motor racing engineer, who is currently the executive engineering consultant for the Andretti Cadillac F1 program. He was the Chief Technical Officer at Williams Grand Prix Engineering from 2013 until 2016, having previously worked at the Benetton, Renault and Virgin Formula One teams. Until May 2024 he was the Chief Technical Officer of Formula One. In September 2009, Symonds was forced to resign from the ING Renault F1 team due to his involvement in race fixing at the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix. After the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) conducted its own investigation, Symonds and Renault's Managing Director Flavio Briatore were banned indefinitely from any events sanctioned by the FIA, although this ban was later overturned by a French Tribunal de Grande Instance.

Aldo Costa is an Italian engineer and the Chief Technical Officer at Dallara. With 14 constructors' championships and 12 drivers' titles working for Ferrari and Mercedes, Costa is one of the most successful engineers and designers in F1 history.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bob Bell (motorsport)</span> British Formula One technical director (born 1958)

Robert Charles Bell is a Formula One engineer and technical director, best known for his work with the Renault Formula One team. He is currently the Executive Director - Technical for the Aston Martin F1 Team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lotus F1</span> Former Formula 1 team

Lotus F1 Team was a British Formula One racing team. The team competed under the Lotus name from 2012 until 2015, following the renaming of the former Renault team based at Enstone in Oxfordshire. The Lotus F1 Team was majority owned by Genii Capital. Lotus F1 was named after its branding partner Group Lotus. The team achieved a race victory and fourth position in the Formula One Constructors' World Championship in their first season under the Lotus title. Lotus F1 achieved 2 race victories in their time on the grid, both courtesy of Kimi Räikkönen. The team was sold back to Renault on 18 December 2015. The Lotus F1 Team name was officially dropped on 3 February 2016, as Renault announced that the team would compete as Renault Sport Formula One Team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jérôme d'Ambrosio</span> Belgian racing driver (born 1985)

Jérôme d'Ambrosio is a Belgian former professional racing driver, motorsport executive and Driver Development Director at Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team. He was formerly the Team Principal of Venturi Racing in Formula E.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pat Fry</span> British motorsports engineer (born 1964)

Pat Fry is a British motorsports engineer. Primarily working in Formula One, he has previously held positions with the Benetton, McLaren, Ferrari, Manor Racing, and Renault/Alpine teams. As of 2023, Fry is the chief technical officer for Williams Grand Prix Engineering.

Dino Vittorio Marcellinus Toso was an Italian-Dutch engineer who worked as the Renault Formula One team's Director of Aerodynamics from 2003 until June 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toto Wolff</span> Austrian racing driver and F1 team principal (born 1972)

Torger Christian "Toto" Wolff is an Austrian billionaire motorsport executive, investor and former racing driver. He holds a 33% stake in the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team and is Team Principal and CEO of the team.

Mercedes-Benz, a German luxury automotive brand of the Mercedes-Benz Group, has been involved in Formula One as both team owner and engine manufacturer for various periods since 1954. The current Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team is based in Brackley, England, and possesses a German licence. An announcement was made in December 2020 that Ineos planned to take a one third equal ownership stake alongside the Mercedes-Benz Group and Toto Wolff; this came into effect on 25 January 2022. Mercedes-branded teams are often referred to by the nickname, the "Silver Arrows".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mercedes F1 W04</span> Formula One racing car

The Mercedes F1 W04 is a Formula One racing car designed and built by the Mercedes team for use in the 2013 season. It was driven by 2008 World Champion Lewis Hamilton, who joined the team after Michael Schumacher's retirement, and Nico Rosberg, who remained with the team for a fourth season. This was the first Mercedes car to feature sponsorship from BlackBerry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">INEOS Britannia</span> British sailing team

INEOS Britannia is a British sailing team that is the challenger of record for the 37th America's Cup.

Dirk Laurie de Beer is a South African Formula One aerodynamicist. He was most recently the head of aerodynamics at the Alpine team until March 2024.

Nick Chester is a motorsport engineer.

Simone Resta is an Italian engineer who currently works as the strategic development director for Mercedes-AMG F1 Team. He previously worked at Scuderia Ferrari from 2001 to 2018, and from 2019 to 2020, as a senior design engineer, head of the R&D department, deputy chief design director and from 2014 to 2018, as Chief Designer, and later for Haas F1 Team as the technical director from 2021 to 2024.

Mike Elliott is a British Formula One aerodynamicist. He was the chief technical officer at the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team. He left Mercedes in October 2023.

Jarrod Murphy is a British Formula One aerodynamicist. He is currently the aerodynamics director at the Mercedes AMG Petronas Motorsport Formula One team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alpine F1 Team</span> French-owned Formula One racing team

Alpine F1 Team, currently racing as BWT Alpine F1 Team for sponsorship reasons, is the name under which the Enstone-based Formula One team has been competing since the start of the 2021 Formula One World Championship. Formerly named Renault F1 Team and owned by the French automotive company Groupe Renault as well as Renault–Nissan–Mitsubishi Alliance, the team was rebranded for 2021 to promote Renault's sports car brand, Alpine, and continues to serve as Renault's works team, a position the team will keep until Renault pulls out of Formula One after 2025. The chassis and managerial side of the team is based in Enstone, Oxfordshire, England, and the Renault-branded engine side of the team is based in Viry-Châtillon, a suburb of Paris, France. The team competes with a French licence.

Mark Ellis is a British Formula One engineer. He was most recently the performance director at the Mercedes AMG Petronas Motorsport Formula One team.

Marcin Budkowski is a Polish Formula One engineer. He was notably the executive director of Alpine Formula One team.

References

  1. 1 2 "James Allison". Mercedes AMG. Mercedes-Benz. Retrieved 5 August 2021.
  2. 1 2 Hughes, Mark (16 February 2017). "How Allison differs from Lowe". Motor Sport . Retrieved 4 March 2018.
  3. 1 2 "People: James Allison". GrandPrix.com. Retrieved 7 December 2012.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Lotus F1 Team::James Allison". Lotus F1 Team. Archived from the original on 28 January 2013. Retrieved 7 December 2012.
  5. ↑ "Allison quits Lotus". EatSleepSport. 8 May 2013. Archived from the original on 29 June 2013. Retrieved 9 May 2013.
  6. ↑ "Ferrari: James Allison leaves role as technical director". BBC Sport.
  7. ↑ "James Allison leaves Ferrari". Sky Sports.
  8. ↑ "Allison to join Mercedes as technical chief".
  9. ↑ "Mercedes announce new Technical Director as James Allison steps back from day-to-day role". www.formula1.com. 9 April 2021. Retrieved 12 April 2021.
  10. ↑ "INEOS Britannia launch world-class team to challenge for 37th America's Cup". www.ineosbritannia.com. 4 October 2021. Retrieved 4 October 2021.
  11. ↑ "Mercedes confirm leadership reshuffle as James Allison returns to Technical Director role". Formula 1. 21 April 2023. Retrieved 27 April 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.