Rob Marshall (born 14 April 1968) is a British

Formula One Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...

engineer for

McLaren McLaren Racing Limited ( ) is a British auto racing, motor racing team based at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, Surrey, England. The team is a subsidiary of the McLaren Group, which owns a majority of the team. McLaren is best known a ...

, being their Chief Designer leading their technical team after initially being hired as the Technical Director for Engineering and Design. He previously had a leading role in the

Red Bull Racing Red Bull Racing, currently competing as Oracle Red Bull Racing and also known simply as Red Bull or RBR, is a Formula One racing team, List of Formula One constructors#Team's nationality, competing under an Austrian racing licence and based in ...

team from 2006-2023.

Career

Marshall studied mechanical engineering at

Cardiff University Cardiff University () is a public research university in Cardiff, Wales. It was established in 1883 as the University College of South Wales and Monmouthshire and became a founding college of the University of Wales in 1893. It was renamed Unive ...

. After his study, he went to work at the design department of

Rolls-Royce Rolls-Royce (always hyphenated) may refer to: * Rolls-Royce Limited, a British manufacturer of cars and later aero engines, founded in 1906, now defunct Automobiles * Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, the current car manufacturing company incorporated in ...

. He switched to

Benetton Formula Benetton Formula Limited., commonly referred to simply as Benetton, was a Formula One constructor that participated from to . The team was owned by the Benetton family who run a worldwide chain of clothing stores. In 2000, the team was purcha ...

as a race engineer in . He continued working for Benetton until the take over by

Renault F1 team Renault, a French automobile manufacturer, has been associated with Formula One as both team owner and engine manufacturer for various periods since 1977. In 1977, the company entered Formula One as a constructor, introducing the Turbocharger ...

. Through a duration in which the team was taken over by

Renault Renault S.A., commonly referred to as Groupe Renault ( , , , also known as the Renault Group in English), is a French Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automobile manufacturer established in 1899. The company curr ...

(2000–2002), Marshall worked his way through the ranks to eventually become Head of Mechanical Design and in 2005, his work, particularly the development of his innovative

mass damper A tuned mass damper (TMD), also known as a harmonic absorber or seismic damper, is a device mounted in structures to reduce mechanical vibrations, consisting of a mass mounted on one or more Damping ratio, damped springs. Its oscillation fre ...

system, helped the team to its first Drivers' and Constructors’ Championship titles. For the 2006 season, Marshall moved to the new

team, where he worked with

Adrian Newey Adrian Martin Newey (born 26 December 1958) is a British engineer, aerodynamicist, automotive designer and motorsport executive. Since 2025, Newey has served as technical director and co-owner of Aston Martin in Formula One; he previously serv ...

in the role of Chief Designer. Here he had a key role in the cars that won 4 world titles between and with

Sebastian Vettel Sebastian Vettel (; born 3 July 1987) is a German racing driver who most recently competed in Formula One from to . Vettel won four Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, which he won consecutively from to with Red Bull, and rema ...

. The introduction of

hybrid engine A hybrid vehicle is one that uses two or more distinct types of power, such as submarines that use diesel when surfaced and batteries when submerged. Other means to store energy include pressurized fluid in hydraulic hybrids. Hybrid powertrai ...

s to F1 led to a less successful spell, but with Marshall at the helm of the Red Bull's engineering department the podiums and victories have continued to flow. In 2016 Marshall was promoted to the position of chief engineering officer. On 30 May 2023, it was announced that after a 17-year tenure with Red Bull Racing, Marshall would be leaving the team and joining McLaren as the Technical Director responsible for Engineering and Design, beginning in January 2024 after a period of gardening leave. However, after just three months this role was changed to that of Chief Designer as part of a technical restructuring at McLaren which involved David Sanchez, Technical Director for Car Concept and Performance, leaving the team.

References

Living people 1968 births Formula One engineers English motorsport people Red Bull Racing Alumni of Cardiff University Benetton Formula Renault in Formula One 20th-century English sportsmen {{England-autoracing-bio-stub