Formula 1

Brunner and Minardi make their departures

Fernando Alonso leaving Renault for McLaren in 2007 is not the only departure in F1 circles, as two other well known names have parted company with their teams with more immediate effect. Designer Gustav Brunner and Toyota have gone their separate ...

Edited: Dec 21, 2005, 1:50 AM

Copy link

Share on Facebook

Share on Twitter

Share on WhatsApp

Share on Linkedin

Share on Pinterest

Share on Viber

Add as a preferred source

Fernando Alonso leaving Renault for McLaren in 2007 is not the only departure in F1 circles, as two other well known names have parted company with their teams with more immediate effect. Designer Gustav Brunner and Toyota have gone their separate ways and Gian Carlo Minardi has left the team he founded.

Brunner joined Toyota from Minardi in 2001 as chief designer but the Cologne-based outfit has since organised its chassis department into three groups and has decided the role is now redundant.

"With three groups running in parallel, one focusing on the current car, one concentrating on the next stage of development and the third looking at advanced design, the position of chief designer has become obsolete," said a team spokesperson, according to Reuters.

Speculation has it that Brunner may return to Faenza with Toro Rosso, Minardi's new incarnation. Meanwhile, Gian Carlo Minardi has said goodbye to Formula One after more than two decades in the sport. He founded Minardi in 1979 and entered F1 in 1985. The team was taken over by Paul Stoddart in 2001, who continued to employ Minardi.

Red Bull bought Minardi this year and has renamed it Scuderia Toro Rosso. Reportedly Minardi said there was "a lack of common ground with the new team owners to carry on working". He and Red Bull apparently could not come to an agreement about what role he would have.

We want your opinion!

What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?

Take our 5 minute survey.

- The Motorsport.com Team

Read and post comments

Read also :

Share Or Save This Story

Copy link

Share on Facebook

Share on Twitter

Share on WhatsApp

Share on Linkedin

Share on Pinterest

Share on Viber

Previous article Renault R26 on schedule

Next article Willis aiming to win

Top Comments

There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?

View More & Comment

More from

Fernando Alonso



On this day: Fernando Alonso wins the world title, Michael Schumacher retires from F1

Formula 1

Formula 1

Brazilian GP

2 h

On this day: Fernando Alonso wins the world title, Michael Schumacher retires from F1



“Am I confident? Probably not” – The unprecedented challenge Singapore is throwing at F1 drivers

Formula 1

Formula 1

Singapore GP

“Am I confident? Probably not” – The unprecedented challenge Singapore is throwing at F1 drivers



Fernando Alonso’s idea to ‘save’ F1 before the V8 return – and how realistic it is

Formula 1

Azerbaijan GP

Fernando Alonso’s idea to ‘save’ F1 before the V8 return – and how realistic it is

More from

McLaren



The figures that show Mercedes has lost its supremacy in F1 2026

Formula 1

Formula 1

United States GP

The figures that show Mercedes has lost its supremacy in F1 2026



McLaren held fresh talks after Singapore GP clash as Lando Norris promises to "make better decisions"

Formula 1

Formula 1

United States GP

McLaren held fresh talks after Singapore GP clash as Lando Norris promises to "make better decisions"



Why Oscar Piastri has struggled to show his best with this year's McLaren MCL40

Formula 1

Why Oscar Piastri has struggled to show his best with this year's McLaren MCL40

Latest news



Spire claims Joe Gibbs Racing is now seeking nearly $150m in damages

NASCAR Cup

NAS NASCAR Cup 1 min

Spire claims Joe Gibbs Racing is now seeking nearly $150m in damages



Inception Racing switches to Corvette for 2027 IMSA GTD season

IMSA

IMSA IMSA 5 min

Inception Racing switches to Corvette for 2027 IMSA GTD season



Cadillac reveals date for F1 engine factory debut, thanks drivers for being “patient”

Formula 1

F1 Formula 1

United States GP

7 min

Cadillac reveals date for F1 engine factory debut, thanks drivers for being “patient”



Mission control: Inside the FIA and F1's latest answer to football's VAR

Formula 1

United States GP

Mission control: Inside the FIA and F1's latest answer to football's VAR

Feature

Discover prime content



Mission control: Inside the FIA and F1's latest answer to football's VAR

Formula 1

United States GP

By Jake Boxall-Legge

Mission control: Inside the FIA and F1's latest answer to football's VAR



How Kimi Antonelli levelled up his character to be F1 2026's world champion-elect

Formula 1

United States GP

By Filip Cleeren

How Kimi Antonelli levelled up his character to be F1 2026's world champion-elect



Why Oscar Piastri has struggled to show his best with this year's McLaren MCL40

Formula 1

By Jake Boxall-Legge

Why Oscar Piastri has struggled to show his best with this year's McLaren MCL40



How levelling the playing field isn’t antithetical to the principles of F1

Formula 1

By Pat Symonds

How levelling the playing field isn’t antithetical to the principles of F1

Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.

From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.

You have 2 options:

Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here

Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page

Manage Alerts

Subscribe