40. Sultan Ojjeh

McLaren Group has seen a change as Sultan Ojjeh has taken over as the director from his father, Mansour Akram Ojjeh.

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Ojjeh Sr has been part of the McLaren Group for over three decades since investing in the British car-making company. He is one of the longest-serving shareholders and has helped grow the Formula 1 team and the automotive business.

According to recent documents provided by McLaren Group, Sultan took over as the new director on June 12, 2020, the exact date of the termination of Ojjeh Sr. Even though he has a Saudi background, the youngster holds French nationality.

The 30-year-old has been working behind the scenes for the last few years and now takes over from his father to lead the company, which is undergoing massive stress due to COVID-19. The Group confirmed layoffs as raising money is a prime step at hand.

Sky News has written multiple stories about selling heritage cars, while news of the minority sale of the F1 team is also being examined. They approached the UK Government to inject cash but could only offer their furlough scheme.

Bahrain’s Mumtalakat Holding Company, which holds the majority shares, injected cash amid COVID-19 but needs more to survive. As mentioned, all options are being looked at by the board, which will see Sultan representing the Ojjeh family.

They hold 14.32 per cent of shares which is the second-largest behind Bahrain, while Michael Latifi has 9.84 per cent. Ojjeh Sr had left his director post at McLaren Racing back in 2018, which created an unnecessary controversy.

Sultan Ojjeh competes in the Pure McLaren GT Series – a prestigious one-make championship for amateur racers to enjoy their first steps in motorsport in an environment benefiting from full McLaren support.