Richard Saxby, former head of motorsport accounts at McLaren Applied, has been appointed as the company’s new motorsport director. He will replace Matthias Dank who is returning to his native Austria to take on a new industry position.
Saxby brings to the position more than 20 years of experience within Formula 1, having begun his career as a graduate research and development engineer at Stewart Grand Prix before going on to work for Renault F1, Red Bull Racing and Mercedes AMG. In these previous positions Saxby, contributed to 10 constructors’ championships through his work across electronics, systems and testing and development.
Since joining McLaren Applied in 2021, Saxby has worked within the company’s customer-based sectors in addition to helping win the contract to provide the Standard ECU (SECU) to Formula 1 until at least 2030. Saxby has also worked on existing company agreements with NASCAR and IndyCar.
“I’m very happy that McLaren Applied has placed its confidence in me to lead such a talented team,” said Saxby. “The brand’s involvement at the cutting edge of motorsport is even lengthier than my own, and I look forward to continuing its mission to create a competitive advantage for partners through continuous technological innovation and consultancy.”
“I am delighted to announce Richard as our new motorsport director,” added Nick Fry, chairman of McLaren Applied. “Since joining us in 2021, Richard has significantly improved our focus on meeting customer needs and has driven many business enhancement initiatives. He also made a valuable contribution to our successful SECU bid earlier this year. Now at the helm of the Motorsport Business Unit, Richard will continue our mission to become Motorsport’s preferred partner for electronic systems, software and support.”
