On the plane flying to London, Zhang Guan had information about the Honda team in his hand.
The Honda team was established as early as 1964 and is a team with a long history. However, the current Honda team is not the original old Honda team, but the purchased British and American team. The British American Racing Team is owned by British American Tobacco. Later, tobacco advertising restrictions gave Honda the opportunity to purchase a part of the British American Racing Team. In 2005, the Honda Racing Team purchased all the shares of the British American Racing Team, and the British American Racing Team also changed its name to Honda Racing. The current two drivers of the team are Button, who "doesn't win the championship, or get married" in Xuancheng, and Barrichello, the old partner of the car king Schumacher. However, with Honda announcing its withdrawal from the Formula One sport, Button and Barrichello are also facing the danger of losing their jobs.
The Honda team is headquartered in the UK, and Zhang Guan flew to the UK, of course hoping to buy the Honda team. However, Zhang Guan did not rush to the Honda team headquarters immediately. Instead, he went to meet one person first, that is Ross Brown.
Ross Brawn is currently the CEO of the Honda team, and he can be called a legend in the racing industry. Ross Brawn once single-handedly discovered car king Schumacher. When Ferrari dominated the car world, it was known as the "four carriages", namely car king Schumacher, CEO Jean Todt (future F1 boss, Michelle Yeoh's boyfriend), technical director Ross Brawn and race car designer Rory Byrne.
The reason why Zhang Guan went to find Ross Brown was not only because he was the CEO of the Honda team, but also because without Ross Brown, it would be difficult for Zhang Guan to own a car that could win the championship.
Affected by the economic crisis, the Honda team decided to withdraw from F1. This money-burning sport is also a heavy burden for such a large multinational company. In the course of history, the Honda team was not sold for half a year. In the end, it was Ross Brawn who took over for US$80 million and then renamed the Honda team to the Brawn GP team.
At that time, the entire Brawn GP team only had 5 million US dollars in operating funds, and it could hardly even do wind tunnel testing. They even borrowed the car engine from Mercedes, and the two drivers Button and Barry Chiello even said that he could stay in the team and drive without a salary.
But Ross Brawn built the BGP001, the fastest racing car at the time. He led a team that almost went bankrupt and won the 2009 team championship and driver championship, creating a BPG miracle in the racing world!
The reason why Zhang Guan is so sure that he can win the Formula One world championship next season is precisely because he knows this. He knows that Honda will withdraw from F1, and he knows that Ross Brawn can come up with the fastest car. Racing!
…
In a villa in the suburbs, Ross Brown came over with black tea and snacks. Black tea and snacks are traditional foods that British people entertain guests in the afternoon.
"China is the birthplace of tea culture. There is no milk or sugar in your cup of tea. I hope you can get used to it." Ross Brown said while pouring milk into his tea cup.
"Thank you, Mr. Brown. You are so kind." Zhang Guan expressed his gratitude.
"I never expected that you would come to me. This really surprises me." Ross Brown took a sip of tea and savored it carefully.
"Mr. Brown, I took the liberty of visiting because of the Honda team's affairs." Zhang Guan said straight to the point.
"Team Honda!" Ross Brown smiled bitterly and shook his head: "Team Honda no longer exists! The impact of this financial crisis is really too great. First, Toyota's second team withdrew from the competition midway, and now even Honda, the manufacturer The team can no longer play! Even I am unemployed now!"
The Toyota Second Team Ross Brown is talking about is the Japanese Super Aguri Team. They use Toyota engines and many of the technologies in the racing cars are also supported by the Toyota Team. Team owner Suzuki Aguri has a close relationship with Toyota. Because of their close relationship, they are often called the Toyota Second Team.
In the Formula One competition, there are manufacturer teams and non-manufacturer teams. Manufacturer teams are teams backed by automobile manufacturing companies. Their R&D technology and engine use are all products of the company. For example, Ferrari, they must It will only use car engines developed and produced by its own company. Last season, the manufacturer teams included Ferrari, Renault, McLaren, BMW Sauber, Toyota and Honda. These teams can know the car manufacturers behind them just by listening to their names. It is worth mentioning that Mercedes-Benz owns shares in the McLaren team, so McLaren is considered the manufacturer team of Mercedes-Benz.
Other teams are non-manufacturer teams, which can also be called independent teams. Their car R&D and design may be carried out by themselves, but the most critical car engines must be provided by the manufacturer team. The car engine is the heart of a car, and all research and development by independent teams is aimed at maximizing the operating efficiency of the car engine. For example, Toro Rosso uses Renault engines, Toro Rosso uses Ferrari engines, Williams team uses Toyota engines, and so on.
For factory teams, they will not leave Formula One unless absolutely necessary. After all, the Formula One race is the most famous motorsport in the world, and it is also the top competition in the racing world. Participating in the Formula One race itself is a manifestation of strength. If a car manufacturer can enter Formula One, it can even get... If he wins the award, it will at least prove that he can build the world's top cars, which will be immeasurable for the improvement of the entire brand.
Formula One is very expensive, but for the world's top car manufacturers, spending $100 million a year to play Formula One may be more cost-effective than hiring celebrities for endorsements and advertising. For example, Ferrari, a "nail house" in F1, has been playing Formula One for decades, and finally turned itself into the world's top sports car brand.
Formula One can be played by investing 100 or 200 million US dollars a year, and it can be played by investing 50 to 60 million US dollars a year. If that doesn't work, you can still survive by investing the lowest operating fee in a year, even if you finish last. After all, he is also ranked last in the world's top racing competition. The phoenix tail is worth more than the chicken head. For a multinational car company with sales of tens of billions of dollars a year and profits of billions of dollars a year, the money spent playing F1 is nothing at all. Therefore, when a multinational company like Honda chooses to abandon F1, it also shows that the company is about to reach the end of its rope. They have to save tens of millions of dollars in publicity expenses.
In fact, affected by the economic crisis, Honda really can no longer play. The past October was supposed to be the peak season for car sales, but Honda's profits fell by 90% compared with the same period last year. Honda has even decided to reduce production by 20% next year. to 30% to cope with weak sales, and there may be layoffs in the future. Therefore, withdrawing from Formula One is only the first step for Honda to save itself.
At this time, when Ross Brown was joking about being "unemployed," Zhang Guan next to him couldn't help but laugh. Zhang Guan knew that even if Schumacher lost his job, the old man with glasses in front of him would not lose his job. With Ross Brawn's fame, any car company in the world would treat him as a grandfather.
"This economic crisis has indeed had an impact on many companies, but I think it is also an opportunity. For example, Honda is preparing to sell their F1 business." Zhang Guan said intentionally or unintentionally.
Ross Brown is not a fool. Although Zhang Guan is a world champion, whether it is track and field, tennis or basketball, it has nothing to do with racing. So when Zhang Guan arrived, Ross Brown realized that Zhang Guan must be for Honda. It came from the convoy thing.
At this time, Ross Brown sat up straight and asked: "Mr. Zhang Guan, may I ask, are you personally interested in acquiring the Honda team? Or are you here on behalf of someone else?"
"It's me." Zhang Guan said without hesitation. He looked at Ross Brown and then said: "Or let me put it another way, I want to cooperate with you, Mr. Brown, and we can win the Honda team together!"
"Cooperate? Together?" Ross Brown finally showed a serious look on his face, and he had vaguely guessed Zhang Guan's intention.
"I hope we can jointly invest money and then buy the Honda team, and we can be the owners of the Honda team together." Zhang Guan said seriously.
Ross Brown wrinkled. He was almost sixty years old. Of course he would not be moved by Zhang Guan's words. He thought about it seriously and asked: "Mr. Zhang Guan, according to my understanding , the Honda team can be said to be selling at a loss this time. Although I am the manager of the Honda team, I actually have no say in selling the team. With all due respect, I can't help you save any costs. And even if there is no As for me, with your financial resources, you can also take over the Honda team alone, right?"
"Yes." Zhang Guan nodded and did not hide anything. He continued: "I want to participate in the Formula One competition next season, not as a team owner, but as a racing driver! So I Gotta buy a fleet of cars.”
"What? Racing driver?" Ross Brown's eyes widened in surprise.
Ross Brown has interacted with many wealthy people. He also knows many wealthy young men and has seen the methods used by wealthy people to show off their wealth. Ross Brown has seen a lot of private jets, private yachts, and private islands. But it was the first time for Ross Brown to buy a team in order to become a racing driver.
Motorsport is a very dangerous sport. In the past Formula One competition, drivers died every year due to accidents, including many car kings. For example, the car king Senna died because of an accident on the track. Lost his life, even Schumacher was hit and suffered multiple fractures in his leg. So rich people looking for excitement may go back to play some extreme sports, and some may go drag racing, but absolutely no one will drive F1. Racing cars with a speed of more than 300 kilometers per hour are not only burning money, but also risking their lives!
"Mr. Zhang Guan, I know that you are the best athlete in the world. You have the ability to span multiple sports and stand at the top of the world. But I must remind you that racing and other sports are not the same." Same, this project is very dangerous! A Formula One world champion not only needs excellent racing skills, but also needs a car that is fast enough." Ross Brawn said.
"I know, that's why I came to you. I believe Mr. Brown can provide me with the fastest racing car in the world!" Zhang Guan said with a smile.
"Thank you for the compliment." Ross Brawn bowed slightly. He obviously did not deny his ability to design the fastest car in the world.
"Mr. Brown, I know you will question my driving skills, but what I can assure you is that I have the ability to drive a Formula One car. Let me drive a Formula One car on the track for a few laps." Lap laps can prove this. Of course, I also know that experience is also very important for a driver, but I think every driver comes from the rookie era. Now Lewis Hamilton of the McLaren team, Didn’t he also get on the podium in his first F1 race?”
"Hamilton is indeed a very good driver." Brown smiled slightly, but there was a slight disdain in his smile.
Who is Lewis Hamilton? That was last season's Formula One world championship. When he was still a child, he swept the karting world, was dubbed a "genius driver", and entered McLaren's young driver training program. Later, he won the Formula Renault championship and the F3 annual championship. Championship, GP2 annual championship, and he has just won the Formula One world championship. It can be said that Hamilton has won the championship in almost every formula car he has encountered.
It may take only a generation to produce such a talented driver. Ross Brawn obviously feels that Zhang Guan is a bit arrogant when he compares himself with Hamilton! His disdain was not for Hamilton, but for Zhang Guan.
Zhang Guan noticed Ross Brown's expression. He was not surprised, let alone angry. Any sports competition focuses on performance. Even though Zhang Guan is the greatest athlete in the world, in the field of racing, Zhang Guan's past performance is "zero". He just wants Ross Brown to believe in him with empty words. It's obviously impossible. Assuming that Schumacher came to talk to Ross Brawn, they would probably have already discussed the specific shareholding ratio by now. Therefore, Zhang Guan was already prepared for this situation.
The current situation is that Zhang Guan needs Ross Brown, not that Ross Brown needs Zhang Guan. Zhang Guan is not a car designer, and his system does not teach the skills of designing a racing car, so Zhang Guan needs Ross Brawn to build the fastest car in the world. Ross Brown is different. With his ability, he will receive the warmest welcome from any team he goes to.
In any field, talent is always the most important!
Zhang Guan knew that it would be difficult for him to let people like Ross Brown become his employees, so he planned to negotiate with Ross Brown in the form of cooperation from the beginning, but now it seems that even if it is cooperation, Ross Brown Brown didn’t take any of this seriously!
Zhang Guan knew that if he wanted Ross Brown to take him seriously, he had to come up with some "dry stuff"!
Zhang Guan opened the briefcase he carried with him, took out a document and handed it to Ross Brown.
"Mr. Brown, I have some interesting stuff here, I think you might be interested in it!" Zhang Guan paused and then added: "This is related to racing!"
"It's related to racing..." Ross Brown did not refuse, but there was a playful smile on his face. He felt that Zhang Guan, a layman, probably couldn't come up with anything "good stuff"! However, Zhang Guan's method made him a little curious.
However, when Ross Brown looked down at this document, just the title on the cover made his face change drastically!
PS: I will send you a 4,000-word chapter first, and there will be an update later!
(End of chapter)