What next for Ross Brawn?

So what is next for Ross Brawn? A return to Ferrari? Honda? McLaren? Williams or time out?

The speculation throughout the year proved to be correct.

Following the end of the 2013 Formula One season Ross Brawn announced that he will leave the Mercedes AMG Formula One team at the end of the 2013 calendar year.

The writing had appeared to be on the wall for Brawn throughout 2013, with Mercedes intent on setting up a new management structure.

Mercedes placed Niki Lauda as non-executive chairman whilst Toto Wolff at the time was Mercedes sports boss.

The German manufacturer then placed Paddy Lowe as executive director (technical) alongside Aldo Costa, Bob Bell and Geoff Willis as senior technical staff. Toto Wolff would then run the business and political side of the team.

With no place for a figure head team principal Ross Brawn’s position looked to be weakening, until the middle of the season when Lauda changed his mind and wanted Brawn to remain with the team.

Brawn held talks with Mercedes for several months towards the end of the latter half of the season, but it became clear that the new management model being adopted was a stumbling block and Brawn made his feelings public at the Japanese Grand Prix.

Shortly after that race it was reported that while not official, Brawn had opted to leave Mercedes come the end of the year, with Mercedes refusing to comment until after the season had ended.

Brawn has since been linked with moves to Honda, McLaren, Williams and Ferrari, but whatever is next move is, it looks likely that he will not be involved in Formula One come the start of the new season in 2014.

‘I’ve no idea. I really genuinely will see how things pan out in the next six, 12 months and make a decision,’ he told International Business Times as quoted by Sky Sports.

‘I’ll take some time off now and reflect on things and see if the juices start flowing again and next summer make a decision on if there’s any opportunities and things I want to do, or people offer me things to do.’