Manor strengthens technical department

The Manor F1 Team have confirmed a number of appointments today to strengthen their technical departments for the second half of the 2015 season.

Having nearly failed over the winter, Manor arrived at Melbourne largely unprepared for the season and failed to run a single lap. Ever since the team has been making progress, although still with the 2014 car which has only been updated to meet the regulations rather than moving them off the back of the grid.

The most high profile of the appointments is former Mercedes technical chief Bob Bell, who moves to the team in an advisory role. Current Williams technical director Pat Symonds has also had a similar position at the team, pre-takeover.

Luca Furbatto has moved from Toro Rosso to take up the position of Head of Design, with Gianluca Pisanello joining as chief engineer.

Team Principal John Booth said, “We’re delighted to welcome Bob, Luca, and Gianluca to the team.

“It’s been a dramatic but rewarding start to our 2015 season, and we’re only now able to settle into more of a rhythm, allowing us to look to the future. Our focus this season is to re-build the foundations of the team and develop our internal capabilities.

“As ever in Formula One, we rely on the experience, tenacity and drive of our colleagues, so we’re delighted to welcome our new team members. Each of them brings a huge amount of experience from within the sport, adding further dimensions to our existing technical and engineering capability.

“Whilst we seek to optimise our performance during the remainder of the 2015 season, we can also turn our attention to the next exciting chapter in our story – 2016 and beyond.”

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