A long love story
When reading the name of Jean Todt it is impossible not to visualize him dressed in red and bring the mind back to the golden period of Ferrari in the Schumacher era. The five consecutive drivers’ world titles and the six constructors’ titles wrote the history of Formula 1. But they came from very far away, with the work of Jean Todt which began in 1993 and which brought the first title – the constructors’ one – only eight years later: several times the French manager was put on the stand, but time has abundantly proven him right.
Todt left the role of team principal at the end of 2007 and any role in Maranello in 2009, after 18 years.
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The backstory: Todt and the Red Bull offer
In the long chat of Jean Todt on the High Performance podcast, there was also room for a backstory unknown to most, namely that the former Ferrari man – once he left the Scuderia – received an offer from Red Bull to take the reins of the Austrian company’s motorsport.
Here is Todt’s account: “When I left Ferrari, Dietrich Mateschitz wanted me to join Red Bull. He came twice for lunch at my house in Paris. He really cared, he was very interested. He didn’t like traveling, but he came twice anyway. He asked me to lead the team and manage Red Bull’s motorsport activities.”
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Jean Todt hinted that he had no hesitation: “I told him no, that chapter was closed for me. I had successfully managed an iconic brand. In a way, I couldn’t do better. And I wanted to dedicate myself to other things.”
The most classic of sliding doors: Christian Horner (who arrived in 2005) remained in his place at Red Bull, while Jean Todt in October 2009 became president of the FIA.
