The 2024 F1 season is already in gear, and the pressure's on! Dive into who's at the helm for each team as they battle for championship glory.
While drivers often steal the limelight, it is the team principals who play a crucial role behind the scenes. These sharp minds are the driving force behind their teams' success, making critical decisions and managing various aspects to ensure victory on the track.
Team principals also act as the public face of their teams, representing them in media engagements and meetings - such as those with the governing body.
But that's not all; they also play a crucial role in managing the team's personnel, and it is their job to create a cohesive and motivated team environment, foster teamwork, and extract the best performance from each individual.
Now that you have a general idea of what team principals do, get to know who's in charge of each team in 2024.
The longest-serving team principal on the grid is Christian Horner.
He has held the position at Red Bull since the team joined the grid in 2005 and has carved out a legacy as one of the fiercest competitors in the paddock.
A shrewd F1 politician, Horner has set the team up as a dominant force in the sport and is now overlooking its next enterprise, Red Bull Powertrains, with no indication of backing down just yet.
Fred Vasseur is the founder of arguably the most successful junior category team in existence—ART Grand Prix—and is credited with turning around Sauber's fortunes to the point where Audi will join the team in 2026.
Yet the Frenchman is an intriguing acquisition by a Ferrari team desperate for success after 14 years without a title.
Looking outside its own contingent of staff is a rare move by the Scuderia, so after Mattia Binotto's failings, could Vasseur be the man to turn fortunes around?
The other half of the Horner-Wolff wars, Toto Wolff has been at the helm since 2013 and, in that time, has overseen the most successful period for a team in F1 history.
Eight constructors' titles in a row, accompanied by seven drivers' championships up to 2021, came to an end the following season under F1's new technical regulations, but the Austrian is far from shying away from the fight.
Charismatic but strong when needed, Wolff has cemented his status as a great of the team principal world.
Following the surprise departure of Otmar Szafnauer in the middle of the 2023 season, Bruno Famin stepped in with interim duties as Alpine’s team principal from the Dutch GP onwards and was announced as the team's boss on a permanent basis ahead of the 2024 season.
The Frenchman was appointed as Vice President of Alpine Motorsports just before stepping in as a replacement for Szafnauer.
Andreas Seidl's replacement, despite taking a leap in stature, is a very worthy successor.
Andrea Stella has a wealth of experience in F1 having served as a performance engineer for Michael Schumacher and Kimi Raikkonen at Ferrari before becoming the Finn's race engineer as well as Alonso's.
But in recent years, Stella has been McLaren's racing director. Can he now steer the ship?
Stake F1 Team - Alessandro Alunni Bravi
Andreas Seidl, in his new role as Sauber CEO, has given Alessandro Alunni Bravi the task of becoming the team's 'team representative' alongside his position as Sauber managing director.
The Italian man will join the team from August 1 ahead of its debut season under the Audi banner in 2026, with Seidl and chairman of the board of directors Olivier Hoffmann departing.
Aston Martin - Mike Krack
Mike Krack took over duties at Aston Martin in January 2022 and, despite a tough start to the season, was able to oversee a turnaround in fortunes.
In 2023, Krack led the team to their best-ever finish—fifth in the constructors' championship and fourth in the drivers' championship. Now, the former BMW engineer sets his sights on even greater heights for the future.
In a shock move, Haas have made a significant change in their leadership structure with the departure of long-time team principal Guenther Steiner and the appointment of Ayao Komatsu as his successor from 2024 onwards.
Komatsu has 20 years of F1 experience under his belt and has held different roles with different outfits, including Haas, where he spent seven years as Chief Race Engineer since the team's F1 debut in 2016.
With his extensive two-decade-long engineering background and deep understanding of the team's operations, the Tokyo native seems like the perfect man for the job.
After serving as Ferrari's deputy team principal and racing director, Laurent Mekies takes over as VCARB's team principal in 2024, succeeding the retiring Franz Tost.
This marks a return to the Faenza-based team for Mekies, who previously worked there as a chief engineer before leaving to join the FIA in 2014 as safety director and F1 deputy race director.
Vowles left his position as Mercedes' strategy director in January 2023, having taken the position vacated by Jost Capito at Williams after a disappointing start to life under F1's new regulations.
GP MONACO
24 - 26 May
GP CANADA
7 - 9 Jun
GP SPAIN
21 - 23 Jun
GP AUSTRIA
28 - 30 Jun
GP GREAT BRITAIN
5 - 7 Jul
GP HUNGARY
19 - 21 Jul
GP BELGIUM
26 - 28 Jul
GP NETHERLANDS
23 - 25 Aug
GP ITALY
30 Aug - 1 Sep
GP AZERBAIJAN
13 - 15 Sep
GP SINGAPORE
20 - 22 Sep
GP USA
18 - 20 Oct
GP MEXICO
25 - 27 Oct
GP BRAZIL
1 - 3 Nov
GP QATAR
29 Nov - 1 Dec
GP ABU DHABI
6 - 8 Dec
Gulf Air Grand Prix of Bahrain 2024
Gulf Air Grand Prix of Bahrain 2024 
Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2024 
Grand Prix of Australia 2024 
MSC Cruises Grand Prix of Japan 2024 
Grand Prix of China 2024 
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