Toyota Motorsport announces structural changes

Toyota Motorsport has made some personnel changes to its organisation aimed at further improving the efficiency within the Chassis Design group and at simplifying the lines of internal communication, both on the track and within the company.

The "Research and Vehicle Dynamics" and "R&D Testbench Chassis Engineering" areas will be merged into one group, headed by Loic David (previously Senior Manager Research & Vehicle Dynamics) as Senior Manager R&D. Loic David will now report directly to Chief Designer Gustav Brunner.

General Manager F1 Operation, Richard Cregan will take over operational team management functions, as well as the Toyota Drivers Academy (Toyota's young driver programme) and will also assume the position of Team Manager at races.

Chief Race Engineer, Dieter Gass will head the race and test organisation, reporting directly to Technical Director Chassis, Mike Gascoyne.

In line with the redistribution of responsibility and the objective of streamlining and simplifying the reporting and decision process within the organisation, both Norbert Kreyer and Ange Pasquali will leave Toyota Motorsport.

Tsutomu Tomita, Chairman of Toyota Motorsport and Team Principal of Panasonic Toyota Racing said: "We have discussed this decision with all personnel involved in the changes. We acknowledge that the action we have taken may be seen as severe, particularly in view of the significant contribution made by both Ange Pasquali and Norbert Kreyer, not only to the current Formula 1 programme, but also to the World Rally and the Le Mans projects."

"However, the duplication of function and responsibility created by this previously complex organisation and the need to establish a simpler and more effective organisational structure, which is acutely focused on achieving our ambitious goals, has led us to make and implement this difficult decision."

-toyota-