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F1 2025: Who Are The Formula 1 Team Principals?

Originally posted on F1 on SI | By Lydia Mee | Last updated Jan 10, 2025 12:00 PM ET

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The 2025 Formula 1 season brings with it a fresh lineup of team principals. The latest change was announced by Aston Martin earlier today. The Silverstone-based squad confirmed that Mike Krack would step away from the role and Andy Cowell would take up the position for the 2025 season.

McLaren: Andrea Stella

McLaren Press Image

Andrea Stella heads the team at McLaren, where he has been team principal since December 13, 2022, when he replaced Andreas Seidl.

Born in Orvieto, Italy on February 22, 1971, Stella began his Formula 1 journey with Ferrari, rising from a performance engineer to a key race team member.

Stella joined McLaren in 2015, evolving from head of race operations to executive director of racing before taking the top spot. Under his leadership, McLaren achieved its first constructors' championship since 1998 in 2024.

Ferrari: Fred Vasseur

Ferrari Press Image

Ferrari's Frederic Vasseur, born in Draveil, France, on May 28, 1968, is another experienced leader who assumed the role of team principal on December 13, 2022.

Vasseur replaced Mattia Binotto at Ferrari after a stint at Renault and Sauber. His vision helped the Maranello-based squad spoil Red Bull's perfect season in 2023 and brought the team to a strong point in 2024, although McLaren ultimately seized the championship with a margin of just 14 points.

The Frenchman was also behind the signing of seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton from Mercedes, who has joined the team for 2025.

Red Bull: Christian Horner

Erich Schlegel-Imagn Images

At Red Bull, Christian Horner continues his long tenure that started on January 7, 2005. Horner transitioned from racing to team management with Arden before being selected by Dietrich Mateschitz to lead Red Bull Racing.

His leadership is marked by 122 wins and 14 world titles, though it hasn't been without its controversies, as illustrated by a recent investigation by Red Bull GmbH into allegations of inappropriate conduct, from which he was cleared.

Horner is currently the longest-standing F1 team principal.

Mercedes: Toto Wolff

Toto Wolff, who joined Mercedes in 2013 after starting his motorsport career at Williams, leads the Brackley-based squad as they begin the year without seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton.

Born in Vienna, Austria, Wolff has guided Mercedes to significant dominance, capturing nearly every championship title between 2014 and 2021.

Aston Martin: Andy Cowell

BREAKING: Andy Cowell assumes the role of CEO and Team Principal of Aston Martin, with Mike Krack moving to Chief Trackside Officer#F1 pic.twitter.com/NG85vxnT5O
— Formula 1 (@F1) January 10, 2025

Andy Cowell has recently taken the helm at Aston Martin, starting as team principal on January 10, 2025.

With a diverse engineering background from Cosworth, BMW, and Mercedes, where he oversaw high-performance powertrains, Cowell's knowledge is expected to elevate Aston Martin's performance.

Although his tenure is just beginning, his appointment as group CEO in 2024 set the stage for his current leadership role.

Alpine: Oliver Oakes

Alpine Press Imag

Oliver Oakes joined Alpine in 2024. Oakes, who has had incredible success as the director of Hitech GP which competes in the likes of Formula 2 and 3, replaced Bruno Famin in the role in the summer of 2024.

Haas: Ayao Komatsu

Haas F1 Press Image

After Haas confirmed the exit of former team principal Guenther Steiner ahead of the 2024 season, Ayao Komatsu stepped up from his role of trackside engineering chief to team principal.

Komatsu joined the American team in 2016 and although Steiner had become a fan-favorite through Netflix's Drive to Survive series, he quickly showed an impressive jump in performance in the team.

VCARB: Laurent Mekies

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Laurent Mekies replaced Franz Tost's as team principal of VCARB in 2024. Mekies started his Formula 1 career with Arrows in 2000 before he moved to Toro Rosso, which transitioned to AlphaTauri before the rebrand to VCARB in 2024.

In 2014, he moved to the FIA to become the safety director before making a move to Ferrari in 2018 where he eventually became deputy team principal. He stayed at the Maranello-based squad until his move to VCARB in 2024.

Williams: James Vowles

Williams Racing Press Image

James Vowles stepped in as team principal at Williams on January 13, 2023, after a successful stint as Mercedes' strategy director.

His efforts are focused on modernizing the team. He has also signed former Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz for the 2025 season when he will race alongside Alex Albon. Although the team is still going through a transitional phase, it is expected that with Vowles, Sainz, and Albon, the team could see a big jump in performance from 2026.

Sauber: Alessandro Alunni Bravi

Sauber F1 Press Image

At Sauber, Alessandro Alunni Bravi acts more as a team representative than a traditional principal. Born in Umbertide, Italy, Bravi's legal expertise and board membership at Sauber make him an integral part of the team's management, tasked with aligning operations with F1's regulatory framework.

2026 will see more change for the Sauber team as it transitions to the Audi F1 team.

2025 Formula One Season Schedule

Pre-Season Testing

Dates: 26-28 Feb
Location: Bahrain, Sakhir
Event Name: FORMULA 1 ARAMCO PRE-SEASON TESTING 2025
Circuit: Pre-Season Testing

Australia

Dates: 14-16 Mar
Location: Australia, Melbourne
Event Name: FORMULA 1 AUSTRALIAN GRAND PRIX 2025
Circuit: Melbourne circuit

China

Dates: 21-23 Mar
Location: China, Shanghai
Event Name: FORMULA 1 HEINEKEN CHINESE GRAND PRIX 2025
Circuit: Shanghai circuit

Japan

Dates: 04-06 Apr
Location: Japan, Suzuka
Event Name: FORMULA 1 LENOVO JAPANESE GRAND PRIX 2025
Circuit: Suzuka circuit

Bahrain

Dates: 11-13 Apr
Location: Bahrain, Sakhir
Event Name: FORMULA 1 BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX 2025
Circuit: Sakhir circuit

Saudi Arabia

Dates: 18-20 Apr
Location: Saudi Arabia, Jeddah
Event Name: FORMULA 1 STC SAUDI ARABIAN GRAND PRIX 2025
Circuit: Jeddah circuit

Miami

Dates: 02-04 May
Location: Miami, Miami
Event Name: FORMULA 1 CRYPTO.COM MIAMI GRAND PRIX 2025
Circuit: Miami circuit

Emilia-Romagna

Dates: 16-18 May
Location: Emilia-Romagna, Imola
Event Name: FORMULA 1 AWS GRAN PREMIO DEL MADE IN ITALY E DELL'EMILIA-ROMAGNA 2025
Circuit: Imola circuit