05/04/2005
NEWS STORY
According to reports, former racer Gil de Ferran is about to be officially names as the new Sporting director at BAR, replacing Nick Fry (pictured).
Although de Ferran has no experience as a team manager, his record as a driver is impressive, certainly on the other side of the Atlantic.
The Brazilian, winner of the 1992 British F3 Championship, went on to win the 2000 and 2001 CART titles in addition to the 2003 Indy 500.
His F3 title was won with Paul Stewart Racing which was to later become Stewart Grand Prix, which was subsequently bought by Ford. One of his prizes for securing the F3 title was a test with the Williams team. He also contested two seasons of F3000 with the Stewart team.
Many of his CART wins were with Honda, and this would suggest that the Japanese manufacturer is behind the move to bring him into F1.
The news has yet to be officially confirmed, however the Autosport website ran a story earlier this evening which was almost instantly deleted, suggesting that someone had 'jumped the gun'.
It's unclear whether Nick Fry, who in turn replaced David Richards who was ousted at the end of the 2004 season, has been moved sideways or whether he will be leaving the team.
However, the Brackley outfit has had appalling start to its 2005 campaign and Fry could well be the first casualty.
de Ferran retired from racing at the end of the 2003 season and since then has spent much of his time as a TV pundit covering the IRL series. He has spent several years racing in the UK, and married a British woman, therefore the move to Brackley shouldn't be too difficult.
The initial reaction to the appointment is de Ferran's lack of experience in running a team, any team, and indeed his lack of involvement in Formula One.
Sceptics might even see a connection with Bobby Rahal's appointment at Jaguar and wonder whether the Brackley team risks emulating its Milton Keynes’ rival.