I knew someone who worked at the Technology Centre (in a lowly role) Despite the immense difference in their positions, Ron never forgot her name and was always polite, enquiring and interested. Sure, he is a very tough bloke but the fact that, despite his considerable wealth,, he chooses to live in the UK and pay his taxes etc, speaks volumes about his integrity and loyalty to his country. We could do with many more like him right now !
I once worked on a UK construction project where some of the internal fit-out contractors had come straight from completing the then new McLaren Technology Centre building. They all told a similar tale of Ron, who they all came to dislike with a passion. These guys were all time-served tradesmen & spoke of Ron's infamous Sunday morning site inspections, where any & everything would catch his eye on the huge building site, & he became increasingly more & more frustrated & obsessed with the works & detail, & at times would attempt to deal with these himself in his own aloof & arrogant way...
I can actually understand Ron, and the way he thinks. People would say they can’t work for Ron because he is so demanding, but if you are good at your job, working for Ron would be rewarding.
Dennis shared many qualities with legendary Bruce Mclaren. Same wish to build reliable, SAFE, innovative cars, same attention to details, same smart business side. Similar low background, similar start at young age. Sure, Bruce was a way more familiar, friendly, socially active guy who had tons of friends around.
Great footage, great editing and a great presentation of a very interesting Denis whom I have followed for over 30 years. Nice soundtrack as well. Happy new subscriber. Here
I heard a story about Ron when he was Jack Brabham's mechanic. Jack ran out of fuel in the closing stages of the British GP whilst leading the race. After the race finished Ron went over the fence and put a can of fuel in the car. Maybe, to hide his error of under filling the car?
@@paulconnelly4050 No it's not. Murray has the documentation which clearly establishes the design was significantly more his than anyone else's, Nichols does not. You're repeating a myth.
@@Eat-MyGoalThe whole team of mechanics actually signed a document (including the chief mechanic and full technical team) denying Murray designed the car in virtually all aspects when someone wrote a book about the 1988 McLaren with the assistance of Murray. I'm sure a whole team cannot be sticking up for Nichols.
Nice job. My suggestion for a topic- Both Gordan Murray and Steve Nichols take credit for the design of the MP4/4. Murray claims it is an update of his disastrous lowline Brabham. Steve Nichols begs to differ. A McLaren mechanic of the time told me Nichols was more responsible for the car. I think you could make a compelling video of this.
It was Steve Nichols who had previously worked at Hercules, the company they got as a partner. And actually, Gordon Murray didn't design the winning cars. The MP4/4 was designed by Nichols, and MP4/5 by Neil Oatley respectively
@@Eat-MyGoalhow many times you going to spew this falsehood? Gordon has many amazing designs... The mp4/4 isn't one of em. According to literally the entire design team.
This was a great documentary, if a tad short. If you'd seen a F1 paddock in the mid 90's at what appeared to be the start of the race for the best trucks and hospitality units, you would be aware just how much Mclaren had invested. Their carbon fibre products were second to none in appearance.
It's amazing what kind of crap you can find on the internet today. Mr. Ross, I don't know how and where you got your information to make this video, but perhaps you should have done more research. When you say by 1981 "Ron was in full control" is absolute BS. His partner, which you mention later: Mansour Ojjeh (pronounced "O-Jay", for the English speaking) had purchased 60% of McLaren in the early 80's and was Ron's *majority* partner in the company. His funds AND joint forward vision with Ron is what propelled McLaren to its heights. Without Mansour, there is no McLaren legacy as we know it today. This majority partnership lasted until they both sold 40% (10% Ron, 30% Mansour) to Mercedes. And since then, the share structure has changed many times but always with Mansour as an owner. The last biggest BS about this documentary is claiming Mansour only wanted to be involved with F1 and not the automotive sector. Please provide any source for this claim as it's the furthest thing from the truth. Also, a minor correction is that McLaren did in fact "manufacture" another car in between the F1 road car and the 12C: The McLaren Mercedes SLR. Yes, it was sold by Mercedes, but it was manufactured by McLaren at Woking.
Ron Dennis and Mansour Ojjeh had make a promise that neither would sell their shares without the agreement of the other, Mansour broke that promise and Ron was sidelined. He never forgave Mansour because he had broken Ron's trust. Ron was so obsessive that he employed a man to change the flourescent light tubes and light globe before their use by date epired. He hated imperfection.
Thank you for a great video. I have always admired Ron Dennis and his accomplishments. Your comparison to Steve Jobs seems correct. Formula One has SO many interesting personalities. I would love to see a similar video about Bernie Ecclestone, Adrian Newey, and Christian Horner. I had the opportunity to work in Formula One, IndyCar, and other racing series in the 1980s and 1990s. For me, the most interesting and admirable people were not the drivers...it was all of the team owners, managers, and staffers. During that time I got to work with (but not FOR) Roger Penske, a man with many of Ron Dennis' demands for detail and perfection. I realized that I would never enjoy working FOR a Penske or a Ron Dennis. But working WITH them allows you to see how these charismatic, successful men operate, without worrying that you will get fired at any moment for the smallest mistake.
It's not only the top single seater competition. It's the Tier 1 regardless of what motorsport you are looking at, including 2 wheels. Nothing comes close to it.
"Compete with Ferraris and Porsches", What? You don't really know F1 do you? The only success Porsche had in F1 was with McLaren supplying TAG engines in the 80s.
He got a lot wrong in this video. He was using McLaren CanAm car in the footage while he was talking about the first F1 McLaren car. Also it was not papaya coloured. It was the M2B and it was white with a green stripe and the reason was that it was in the movie Grand Prix and it was a deal with film makers to represent the Yamuza Japanese team. So they used those colours for the season.
Interesting program. Might have been better had you not had footage of cars at Monte Carlo while Ron discussed the beauty of Brands Hatch. Also, what did the crash of the F2 car have to do with anything?
Great video! But why on Earth do the cut scenes need to be twice as loud as the rest? This is super annoying, I almost had a heart attack at 23:15 for example.
Good show! just found you and i am happy to say, I just subscribed... A show on John Bernard would be good . if you can collect the info of course. I met him in 99 in Montreal... met isn't the appropriate term... i was stepping over bounds and taking pictures in the McLaren Garage which it turns out he did not like . He told me to fuck off lol Of note, I was in the pit area well into the evening. The McLaren, Williams, and Ferrari mechanics were working long hours... other teams,, all long since gone. That's the difference between the winners and the loosing team, those extra hours.
At 63 years old and having lived my life in Motorsports I still believe you don’t have to be a prick or a perfectionist to be successful but then again it depends on your definition of success? I’m successful but not at all like many of my peers however I’m still doing what I love to do in racing and that is success!
I agree, they lost their edge and don't seem to know how to find it again. Every time they upgrade the car they claim they've found and fixed the problem but haven't so far.
Its the only boss who let his team loose the soles Championship because he didnt want one of the drivers to win soo that says how good he actually is....
Ron Dennis created LH. He gave LH an opportunity nobody would. Ron Dennis brought Honda back because (he says) customer engined cars can never win the Championship. Ron Dennis has been fully vindicated because Honda became world champions again in exactly three years that Ron Dennis said it would take for Honda to get there. Ron Dennis will always be the greatest Formula 1 Team Administrator there ever was. No one has or will ever come close.
Todt , Briatore and Frank Williams were better than him. Ron was lucky to have Prost and Senna, also stealing Honda motors from Frank after his accident. By the way, Lewis left Mclaren the moment he could to going to Mercedes, the real Key to win.
I knew someone who worked at the Technology Centre (in a lowly role) Despite the immense difference in their positions, Ron never forgot her name and was always polite, enquiring and interested. Sure, he is a very tough bloke but the fact that, despite his considerable wealth,, he chooses to live in the UK and pay his taxes etc, speaks volumes about his integrity and loyalty to his country. We could do with many more like him right now !
I once worked on a UK construction project where some of the internal fit-out contractors had come straight from completing the then new McLaren Technology Centre building.
They all told a similar tale of Ron, who they all came to dislike with a passion. These guys were all time-served tradesmen & spoke of Ron's infamous Sunday morning site inspections, where any & everything would catch his eye on the huge building site, & he became increasingly more & more frustrated & obsessed with the works & detail, & at times would attempt to deal with these himself in his own aloof & arrogant way...
Ben, thank you for sharing this! I can imagine how demoralizing that must feel. Ron certainly was character.
no only Ayrton was driven to perfection...
A true legend whose high expectations definitely influenced the raising of standards of F1 teams. Great little documentary, really enjoyed watching!
Thank you Jane! Glad you liked it.
I can actually understand Ron, and the way he thinks. People would say they can’t work for Ron because he is so demanding, but if you are good at your job, working for Ron would be rewarding.
Dennis shared many qualities with legendary Bruce Mclaren. Same wish to build reliable, SAFE, innovative cars, same attention to details, same smart business side. Similar low background, similar start at young age. Sure, Bruce was a way more familiar, friendly, socially active guy who had tons of friends around.
Great job mate. Enjoyed every minute of your video apart from the jump scares with the loud angina noises. Keep it up (not referring to the volume😊)
Great footage, great editing and a great presentation of a very interesting Denis whom I have followed for over 30 years. Nice soundtrack as well. Happy new subscriber. Here
The footage is wrong. He used the McLaren canam car and try e first McLaren F1 was white and green.
I heard a story about Ron when he was Jack Brabham's mechanic. Jack ran out of fuel in the closing stages of the British GP whilst leading the race. After the race finished Ron went over the fence and put a can of fuel in the car. Maybe, to hide his error of under filling the car?
the MP4/4 was the brainchild of Steve Nichols not Gordon Murray...Gordy had very little to do with it.
This is true.
@@paulconnelly4050 No it's not. Murray has the documentation which clearly establishes the design was significantly more his than anyone else's, Nichols does not. You're repeating a myth.
Completely and utterly incorrect.
ua-cam.com/video/y2L40guTc48/v-deo.htmlsi=WX9toCl5bxE111hA&t=385
@@Eat-MyGoalThe whole team of mechanics actually signed a document (including the chief mechanic and full technical team) denying Murray designed the car in virtually all aspects when someone wrote a book about the 1988 McLaren with the assistance of Murray. I'm sure a whole team cannot be sticking up for Nichols.
Nice job. My suggestion for a topic- Both Gordan Murray and Steve Nichols take credit for the design of the MP4/4. Murray claims it is an update of his disastrous lowline Brabham. Steve Nichols begs to differ. A McLaren mechanic of the time told me Nichols was more responsible for the car. I think you could make a compelling video of this.
i love the Boss legendary together with 6 drivers who get world title. first i knew about him in 2007, Thank you Ron Dennis !!
Thank you for putting this together. Ron is legend but I’m not sure I could have ever worked for the guy😂
thank you! Haha Same here!
This was great! loved the story telling and found it really interesting. he was quite the boss!
he was! Thanks.
It was Steve Nichols who had previously worked at Hercules, the company they got as a partner. And actually, Gordon Murray didn't design the winning cars. The MP4/4 was designed by Nichols, and MP4/5 by Neil Oatley respectively
Myth. Stop repeating things you haven't researched. Do your due diligence. You're 100% wrong.
ua-cam.com/video/y2L40guTc48/v-deo.htmlsi=WX9toCl5bxE111hA&t=385
@@Eat-MyGoalhow many times you going to spew this falsehood? Gordon has many amazing designs... The mp4/4 isn't one of em. According to literally the entire design team.
@@Eat-MyGoalits funny when people act so sure about things they are totally wrong about.
This was a great documentary, if a tad short. If you'd seen a F1 paddock in the mid 90's at what appeared to be the start of the race for the best trucks and hospitality units, you would be aware just how much Mclaren had invested. Their carbon fibre products were second to none in appearance.
Buddy, great 👍 presentation... I hope you can keep up the good work ❤🎉
It's amazing what kind of crap you can find on the internet today. Mr. Ross, I don't know how and where you got your information to make this video, but perhaps you should have done more research. When you say by 1981 "Ron was in full control" is absolute BS. His partner, which you mention later: Mansour Ojjeh (pronounced "O-Jay", for the English speaking) had purchased 60% of McLaren in the early 80's and was Ron's *majority* partner in the company. His funds AND joint forward vision with Ron is what propelled McLaren to its heights. Without Mansour, there is no McLaren legacy as we know it today. This majority partnership lasted until they both sold 40% (10% Ron, 30% Mansour) to Mercedes. And since then, the share structure has changed many times but always with Mansour as an owner.
The last biggest BS about this documentary is claiming Mansour only wanted to be involved with F1 and not the automotive sector. Please provide any source for this claim as it's the furthest thing from the truth.
Also, a minor correction is that McLaren did in fact "manufacture" another car in between the F1 road car and the 12C: The McLaren Mercedes SLR. Yes, it was sold by Mercedes, but it was manufactured by McLaren at Woking.
Ron Dennis and Mansour Ojjeh had make a promise that neither would sell their shares without the agreement of the other, Mansour broke that promise and Ron was sidelined.
He never forgave Mansour because he had broken Ron's trust.
Ron was so obsessive that he employed a man to change the flourescent light tubes and light globe before their use by date epired.
He hated imperfection.
McLaren today is a shadow of its former self. I don’t like Zack. He thinks McLaren is American. It is owned by Arabs from Bahrain.
Thank you for a great video. I have always admired Ron Dennis and his accomplishments. Your comparison to Steve Jobs seems correct. Formula One has SO many interesting personalities. I would love to see a similar video about Bernie Ecclestone, Adrian Newey, and Christian Horner. I had the opportunity to work in Formula One, IndyCar, and other racing series in the 1980s and 1990s. For me, the most interesting and admirable people were not the drivers...it was all of the team owners, managers, and staffers. During that time I got to work with (but not FOR) Roger Penske, a man with many of Ron Dennis' demands for detail and perfection. I realized that I would never enjoy working FOR a Penske or a Ron Dennis. But working WITH them allows you to see how these charismatic, successful men operate, without worrying that you will get fired at any moment for the smallest mistake.
RON DENNIS IS A GENIOUS. JUST A GENIOUS MAKES SUCH A GREAT HISTORY OF SUCCESS . HE IS A MONSTER OF HARD WORK AND INTELLIGENCE.
LOVED THIS PIECE! 👏🏻👏🏻 Is this going to be available on Netflix next 😜
haha YES! That's the plan. And thank you!
This interview is on UA-cam. It’s fascinating. About 90 minutes long.
I somehow want AUDI TO hire him or Porsche, it would be very fun...
that would be very cool...He deserves to be back!
I don't think Audi or Porsche want anything with that fool. I pity the fool.
Excellent video
It's not only the top single seater competition. It's the Tier 1 regardless of what motorsport you are looking at, including 2 wheels. Nothing comes close to it.
Moto Gp is far better than F1, you can see races without sleeping.😂😂😂 And Rallys are more interesting than F1.
"Compete with Ferraris and Porsches", What? You don't really know F1 do you? The only success Porsche had in F1 was with McLaren supplying TAG engines in the 80s.
He got a lot wrong in this video. He was using McLaren CanAm car in the footage while he was talking about the first F1 McLaren car. Also it was not papaya coloured. It was the M2B and it was white with a green stripe and the reason was that it was in the movie Grand Prix and it was a deal with film makers to represent the Yamuza Japanese team. So they used those colours for the season.
Absolutely correct...the Porsche V12 from 1991 was one of the worst F1 engines ever made
0:51 When I hear the word 'Formula One', what do I imagine? Two words. I imagine two words...
fix your sound mate, those racing scene interjections are way too loud
will do - thank you for feedback!
Interesting program. Might have been better had you not had footage of cars at Monte Carlo while Ron discussed the beauty of Brands Hatch. Also, what did the crash of the F2 car have to do with anything?
Scott, you're not wrong, both things could be improved. Thanks for sharing your feedback.
New fan. Great video. Who was that in the brutal crash at 20:30? Which GP?
Its Barichello, 1994 Imola...
Great video! But why on Earth do the cut scenes need to be twice as loud as the rest? This is super annoying, I almost had a heart attack at 23:15 for example.
will get it fixed in the future. Was one of my first videos like these, room for improvement.
@@sergeyrosslive Cool, thanks! Keep it up!
Great story, from a race fan
Good show! just found you and i am happy to say, I just subscribed... A show on John Bernard would be good . if you can collect the info of course. I met him in 99 in Montreal... met isn't the appropriate term... i was stepping over bounds and taking pictures in the McLaren Garage which it turns out he did not like . He told me to fuck off lol
Of note, I was in the pit area well into the evening. The McLaren, Williams, and Ferrari mechanics were working long hours... other teams,, all long since gone. That's the difference between the winners and the loosing team, those extra hours.
thank you for sharing! Great to hear your experience with John. I'll add it to my list of topics.
legends never fall......
Amazing man passionate for building racing cars
At 63 years old and having lived my life in Motorsports I still believe you don’t have to be a prick or a perfectionist to be successful but then again it depends on your definition of success? I’m successful but not at all like many of my peers however I’m still doing what I love to do in racing and that is success!
Haha @16:00 I see he’s @it I remember this moment in the garage 😂
Toto didn’t do anything. He took over from Ross Brawn. Last few years have been a disaster.
I agree, they lost their edge and don't seem to know how to find it again. Every time they upgrade the car they claim they've found and fixed the problem but haven't so far.
Its the only boss who let his team loose the soles Championship because he didnt want one of the drivers to win soo that says how good he actually is....
That's one way to look at it, certainly.
Yeah, Ron is too overrated and I pity that fool. He lost Championship and Mercedes motors by being as clumsy as stupid.
In the world of F1 , you have too be uncompromising, or get run over
I meant to say BUDDY BUDDY BUDDY
Brilliant
no mention of the nigel stepney affair
2:57 the plural of Grand Prix is GRANDS Prix, not Grand Prixs.
Tho i have respect for ron dennis... im noq a fan. His attitude is more than someone with OCD.
Ron Dennis created LH. He gave LH an opportunity nobody would. Ron Dennis brought Honda back because (he says) customer engined cars can never win the Championship. Ron Dennis has been fully vindicated because Honda became world champions again in exactly three years that Ron Dennis said it would take for Honda to get there. Ron Dennis will always be the greatest Formula 1 Team Administrator there ever was. No one has or will ever come close.
he's one of the greats for sure.
McLaren blamed the Honda engine believing their chassis was the best on the grid. When they swapped to Mercedes they found their chassis wasn't that.
Todt , Briatore and Frank Williams were better than him. Ron was lucky to have Prost and Senna, also stealing Honda motors from Frank after his accident.
By the way, Lewis left Mclaren the moment he could to going to Mercedes, the real Key to win.
Grands Prix. Not Grand Prixs.
Senna GOAT
forever
Jim Clarke is,the real GOAT or Fangio.
The arrogance of F1 is a turnoff.
English is a funny language after all.
This is why you build a company and don’t sell the majority share
Excellent video