Car maker’s involvement in the management of motorsport programmes has been thrust into the spotlight by the 'football manager' style turnover of senior staff at the Alpine Formula 1 team. It doesn’t take an expert to realise that seven team principals across 10 years for the Enstone team is not conducive in creating stability to be successful. The team could learn a lot from how Toyota has tackled the WRC, and in particular the passionate, yet unique way the boss of one of the world’s biggest companies, Akio Toyoda, manages his all conquering rally operation.
His mantra is a simple one but it goes a long way in explaining Toyota’s run to three WRC manufacturers’ titles (2020-2022) and four drivers’ crowns (2019-2022) since rejoining the WRC in 2017 after a 17-year absence.
