Young Ron Dennis was just like hundreds of
other formula one mechanics. He had big dreams, big ideas and he big-noted
himself. My good mate Stirling Moss told me that Ron was opinionated, brash and
ambitious from Day One.
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| (Photo: Mike Sims) |
Fast forward to this week, and Ron Dennis
now leaves the Formula One scene £275 million pounds (USD$356 million) richer,
and can now devote himself, full time, to his 750 bottle wine cellar – and the
pursuit of ‘other opportunities’.
It’s been an amazing career. He started
with the Cooper racing team, aged 18, as a mechanic working with Jochen Rindt
in 1966. In 1968 Rindt moved to Brabham’s team, taking Dennis with him. In 1971
Brabham retired, so Dennis and race car designer Neil Trundle moved on to
design an F2 car, and start their own team. This was the beginning of Dennis’s
career as a team owner. In 1975 Ron started Project Four Racing and enjoyed
success in both F2 and F3.
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| Rival team owners, and sometimes, friends. Ron Dennis and Sir Frank Williams |
In 1980 he moved to McLaren, and that’s
when he began building the fortune he realizes this week. It wasn’t all sweet
dreams however. Last November he was removed from his role as CEO by the major
owners of the McLaren Group. Now he has sold all his remaining shares.
Well known for his abrasive nature and
autocratic style, it’s no surprise to me he was forced out of his own
company. Stirling Moss introduced me to Ron at the inaugural Australian
F1 Grand Prix in Adelaide in 1985, and for many years he kindly invited me to
the famous McLaren post-GP parties. However, despite the pleasant nature of our
relationship, he could turn off the charm instantly.
In 2011 I was interviewing Lewis Hamilton
in the paddock at Albert Park, and Ron appeared on the scene, rudely telling me the
interview was over, and told Lewis that he was needed elsewhere.
I said hello to
Ron, and he looked right through me. I guessed that was the end of the
relationship.
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