Jordan: McLaren must 'wish they had Ron Dennis back'

Dennis transformed McLaren into an F1 powerhouse of the 1980s, 1990s and early 2000s, leading the Woking-based outfit to win seven constructors’ championships and 10 drivers’ titles. 

He also famously handed Lewis Hamilton his F1 debut in 2007. Hamilton won his first world title with McLaren in his second season in 2008 and remains the team’s most recent world champion. 

After 36 years at the helm, Dennis stepped down as chairman and chief executive of the McLaren Technology Group in late 2016. 

McLaren have been unable to return to their former heights and are enduring a challenging start to the 2023 season. 

“Ron was a perfectionist wasn’t he? He just had everything planned. He wanted the [Ayrton] Sennas, he wanted the [Alain] Prosts,” Jordan said on the Formula for Success podcast. 

“To be fair, we all laughed and joked, we took the mickey out of Ron a little bit because of how clinical he is, both in cleanliness and the way he prepares the car and the people, but I bet they wish they had him back.

“Because McLaren now are nowhere near where they were. You can say what you like, Ron Dennis was just fantastically dedicated and committed to his team and [he was] the unsung hero to the staff members and people [who worked there.]”

Jordan’s comments could be viewed as a dig towards current McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown. 

Ex-F1 driver David Coulthard, who raced with McLaren for nine seasons, thinks his former boss was often “misunderstood”. 

“Ron Dennis was, I think, misunderstood to the outside world,” Coulthard said. “Because he was an incredibly caring individual to the team and took care of his team personnel if they had medical issues or their family had issues.

“He took care of them quietly, but in a great way because he understood the importance of the team.”