STOP PRESS: Nichols splits with Jaguar

[Mark F1]

From AUTOSPORT.COM


STOP PRESS: Tech boss Nichols splits with Jaguar

Steve Nichols has parted company with F1 team after just 14 months

Steve Nichols has resigned from Jaguar

Jaguar technical director Steve Nichols has resigned from the team with immediate effect. The move follows the disappointing form of the new R3 challenger, which was discovered to have a fundamental design flaw with its front wing in its first tests last month.

Nichols will be replaced by managing director Gunther Steiner who joined the team late last year from the Ford rally programme.


Just the latest in a line of Jaguar cock ups to me. They got rid of Rahal who hadn't been in the job long, The R3 has been slower than the R2 because of the front wing problem & they have had two disappointing seasons since entering F1. Not a good start to the year and frankly I don't think it will get any better for them.

[Super Tourer]

What can you say? The team is a shambles and will soon have wasted money BAR style.....

This will be another nail in the Jag F1 program - why does NL keep supplying Ford with all the ammo they need to pull the plug on this?

[Adam43]

That brings to an end the longest spell at Jaguar Racing without a major staff change (about a fortnight?).

Why do they bother? Do they ever learn?

The Jaguar name has just scored a GTS class win (and 5th overall) at the Daytona 24hours. Well done Rocketsports Racing for bringing some glory to the Jaguar name.

[Nicholas]

This is really surprising news

[Bononi]

Surprise ?

Not really Nicolas... since the Rahal issue, nothing surprises about Jaguar anymore !

[Super Tourer]

Lauda appears to be doing a 'Prost', the only difference being, he is using somebody else's cash as opposed to his own.

This certaintly smacks of the hire and fire management style of Lauda. One has to wonder why Ford put Lauda, who has no team management experience, in charge at Jag.

I think that team owners should look at football as an example of how to use ex-sportsman skills. Ex-footballers, merely select and coach the teams, they don't run the club. They are generally successful because they know the skills required to play the game and how to identify and develop it in others.

Prost & Lauda would probably make good driver coaches and be able to put over their experience as drivers and know what abilities to look for in others. Unfortunately they have also proved that they aren't in fact any good at anything else, except driving. Lauda's airline went broke and Prost has single handedly spent millions of dollars to no effect. I think it will be along time before we see another ex-driver in a team managemnt role.

[BBKing]

Lauda and Irvine should go if Jaguar is there to stay.

[Nicholas]

Originally posted by Bononi
Not really Nicholas... since the Rahal issue, nothing surprises about Jaguar anymore !

I meant that it was quite likely that someone would have to leave after that problem with the front wing.

[Rimrider]

Nichols will be replaced by managing director Gunther Steiner who joined the team late last year from the Ford rally programme.

The saga continues. This appointment is more staggering than Rahal and Lauda's. Who is responsible for wasting all this money. Lauda or Whittaker? It's one of them who should be collecting their P45. Since Whittaker's elevation to head of Ford Racing they have done nothing but waste massive amounts of money in F1 and rallying and won nothing. Still, should be quick through then gravel traps.

Spotted Jag? More like white elephant.

[Coach44]

Lauda and Irvine should go if Jaguar is there to stay.

That's what Rahal wanted and he was fired for it!!

[senna12]

The politics and acrimony surrounding the firing of Rahal was the match that lit the fuse at Jag. During his short tenure, Bobby had gained the respect of everyone there. Then Niki was parachuted in over the top by that European Ford fellow, his name escapes me at the moment,sorry, and he immediately starts scheming with Eddie, who didn't like Bobby either, to get rid of him. They were able to use the fact that Bobby split his time up between the U.S. and Britain to connect it with on track performance. Since Bobby's changes had not had time to bear fruit, only a year, I guess it worked.

But now the chickens are coming home to roost, as it were.
It is always a bad thing to put in a position of authority someone who has not earned that position, and has demonstrated questionable administrative skills at his previous occupation, namely running an airline.

If you hate your boss, chances are good that you don't go that extra mile or stay that extra hour if you don't have to.


The atmosphere at Jag won't change until Niki is gone at least, I think, and this is really too bad. I wonder what the highest levels of Ford management in America think of Mr. Lauda at the moment.

[Martin de Miguel]

I see this is a very pro Rahal´s forum, personally I d rather have Niki than 7 Rahals together and I believe Nichols out is the most reasonable business decission. He screw its responsability, so bye bye bambino. This is nothing else than most basic Business Paradigm.

Ciao my friends

Let´s hope they can sort something out before the end of this season.

[Kid Prozac]

ford seem to put in the top names to get the press. they need someone like Paul Stoddart. How many casual observers had heard of him before Oz last year. He is in the same mould as Dennis/Williams/Head/Todt/Jordan/Sauber etc, he knew about the managerial side before hand, and he quietly did the job in hand and has got minardi into a strong positionheading into this year. how many people could have done that? i hope jaguar do not perform very well this year, nothing against the team, just i hate it when people just throw money at things, just look at Blackburn in the preiership a few years ago. it would be a shame as i really rate De La Rosa as a driver

[Speed Demon]

Reassuring to see that some things never change, with Jaguar lurching from one crisis to another.

Seriously, one year they'll manage to produce a decent car and retain key staff members for longer than a few months. Or am I just dreaming?

[Valve Bounce]

Morale must be hitting rock bottom - does Jaguar still have a "TEAM"? F1 must be a team effort, and the management style at Jaguar so far has been abysmal to the extent that there is no team spirit. Under the current situation, I can forsee many strange breakdowns, foul ups, and driver mistakes that will put Jaguar down the ladder towards the bottom.

[EERO]

Its completely depressing. Nichols knows his craft. Lauda, despite his claims of being the best man for the job, has exhibited tyranical and ruthless behavior.

Bouncey, to answer your question, "THere is no Team left. Ford will through in the towel and a team that had so much potential as the nascent Stewart Equipe, will go the way of Prost.