 |
Ron at 2016 Japanese GP |
Formula 1 will never quite be the same again.
Across four decades at the helm of McLaren, Ron Dennis
became famous for a sometimes complex turn of phrase which became
affectionately known as 'Ronspeak'.
After being forced to step down from his roles as chief
executive and chairman, we bring you some gems uttered down the years by one of
F1's most legendary and successful figures...
"When I came into
motor racing so many things were a black art. But black art was a cloak for 'we
don't really know'. It was intuitive engineering. I decided to make it a
science. We will develop science to take away uncertainty to make winning a
certainty."
In other words: There's nothing flukey about victory.
In other words: There's nothing flukey about victory.
 |
| Big 'ol Ron at 2016 USA GP
"Focus is thought to be good, obsession is thought to be bad. But
basically they're the same thing. And then there's ego. Ego is a core
ingredient of ambition. Ambition and ego are close bed-fellows. And, like
everybody I suppose, I seek happiness. It's an uncomplicated objective. I don't
see happiness as laughing or clapping your hands. I see it as the opposite of
unhappiness, the opposite of anger, of depression. If you can get into that
state of mind, you're going to be far more productive."
In other words:
I'm only happy when we're winning.
"Surprisingly for us, the psychological blow of it
raining halfway through qualifying in Australia was much greater than we
anticipated."
In other words:
We didn't see the wet stuff coming.
|
 |
| Alonso joking around with Big Ron |
"I wish Lewis really, really well.
He's been nurtured well through his career and I feel none of the emotions that
attribute to me."
In other words: Don't believe everything you read in the press.
In other words: Don't believe everything you read in the press.
"Life isn't about one person
deciding anything. It's never that way. It's about circumstances. Everybody
says: 'Am I bitterly this or bitterly that?' What? I'm a realist."
In other words: Get real.
"I continue to love the sport of
Formula 1 with every fibre of my being."
In other words: I like F1 - a lot.
"First of all our shareholders have
a position, then the board has a position and then Martin has to handle what
that position is. It would be totally inappropriate for me to say anything that
would undermine Martin's position."
In other words: Know your position. |
 |
| Ron doing just fine
"I hate shopping. I don't shop, at all. Fortunately my
creditworthiness allows for a shop to release quantities of product so I can
choose at home."
In other words: They shop, they drop.
"From our perspective, and ours is more qualified because we
are not hiding from our inadequacies, it is statistically not borne out that we
have huge reliability problems.
In other words: Don't mention unreliability.
"Inevitably you have a greater interest in seeing what he
says and how he says it. I am more impressed when it is a pure quote rather
than something he is reputed to have said. He is very well put together in the
mind."
In other words: He thinks well.
"I used to go to bed with the vacuum cleaner going because my
mum wanted the house immaculate when she got up. That's the ethos I grew up
with, everything had to be perfect all the time. That's why I am such a pain to
live with. I don't want chaos; my homes are my tranquillity bases."
In other words: Wipe your feet before entering. 
Ron with Niki Lauda at 2016 Spanish GP
"I am very driven by aesthetics. When I look at our cars, my
own enthusiasms therefore tend to be a little more influenced by aesthetics
than you might expect. On the other hand, I am a firm believer in the adage
that form follows function - or, to put it another way, a fast racing car is
surprisingly often a beautiful racing car."
In other words: A quick car looks fast.
"So, to revert to the specificity of your question, I'm not
going to hypothesise about what might have happened had we done things
differently, because I don't think there's anything specifically wrong with the
way we've done things."
In other words: Don't doubt me |
