McLaren technical director Paddy Lowe will reportedly leave the Woking outfit at the end of the current season before joining rival outfit Mercedes.
Rumours of such a deal surfaced in January after Mercedes team principal Ross Brawn admitted discussion had taken place with Lowe, however he added that they were purely part of a succession plan in the distant future.
“Paddy is not coming,” said Brawn at the time. “I want to see how things go before I make a final long-term commitment. If I choose to leave the team then Paddy will come. We’ve got a plan. We have a fall-back plan. It’s as simple as that.”
However the Guardian reports that the deal will go ahead and Lowe has been placed on ‘gardening leave’ at McLaren until his contract expires at the end of 2013.
He will therefore not be visible in the paddock or factory this season as McLaren will want to avoid the 50-year-old taking their design secrets for the 2014 season to a rival team.
The report doesn’t speculate on 60-year-old Brawn’s future, which looks unclear with the arrival of Toto Wolff and Niki Lauda.
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