Mercedes F1 Design Director John Owen to Depart

Mercedes Formula One team announced on Tuesday that John Owen, its longtime director of car design, will depart the organization later this year after overseeing the transition to his successor. Owen, who has shaped the team's technical direction for nearly two decades, cited a desire to take a break from the sport following his contributions to multiple championship-winning cars.

Owen joined the Brackley-based team in 2007 as a principal aerodynamicist when it operated under the Honda banner. He remained through its rebranding as Brawn GP, which secured both the drivers' and constructors' championships in 2009. When Mercedes acquired the team in 2010 and returned to Formula One as a works outfit, Owen advanced to chief designer, a position he held until his promotion to director of car design in 2023. That elevation came amid organizational changes to comply with the sport's cost cap regulations and after Mercedes restructured its technical department in response to challenges with its ground-effect era cars from 2022 onward.

During his tenure, Owen played a pivotal role in Mercedes' dominance, particularly in the V6 hybrid era starting in 2014. The team captured eight...