McLaren Poaches Red Bull’s Strategist to Become Sporting Director

Another long-term member of Red Bull Racing will be leaving the Formula 1 team, with its head of race strategy Will Courtenay agreeing to join McLaren—though potentially not for another two years.

Courtenay has worked for Red Bull Racing throughout the squad’s history in Formula 1, joining under its previous Jaguar Racing guise at the end of 2003. He will take up a revised role of sporting director at McLaren though a start date has not yet been determined.

A spokesperson for Red Bull Racing outlined that Courtenay will remain part of the team until his contract expires in mid-2026.

“We are sad to see him go but wish him all the best in this step up,” Red Bull Racing said.

Courtenay will report to McLaren’s racing director Randy Singh.

“We are delighted to welcome Will to McLaren,” McLaren team principal Andrea Stella said. “His experience, professionalism and passion for motorsport make him the ideal candidate to lead our F1 sporting function.

“We are now entering a key phase in our journey as a team, and we are confident that he will be a great addition to our strong leadership team as we strive to continue challenging for wins and championships.”

McLaren currently leads the Constructors’ Championship by 41 points and has taken back-to-back victories in Azerbaijan and Singapore to bring its 2024 win tally to five. McLaren has not won the Constructors’ Championship since 1998 but has made leaps under Stella, who was promoted to team principal at the end of 2022.

It is also the latest departure from Red Bull Racing amid the squad’s slump in form through 2024.

Having lost chief engineering officer Rob Marshall to McLaren in 2023, a season in which Red Bull won 19 of the 22 races, design guru Adrian Newey and sporting director Jonathan Wheatley have both decided to leave this year.

Newey will join Aston Martin in March to front its 2026 design project while Wheatley will become the team principal of the Audi-owned Sauber outfit in mid-2025.

Red Bull won seven of the opening 10 rounds of 2024 but is now win-less in eight events, having relinquished the lead of the Constructors’ standings to McLaren, though Max Verstappen still heads Lando Norris by 52 points in the Drivers’ championship.