McLaren Group set to tap City veteran Paul Walsh as chairman
The British conglomerate behind the McLaren Formula One (F1) team is said to have lined up City stalwart Paul Walsh as its new chairman.
Walsh, who served as chief executive of Guinness owner Diageo for 12 years, is in advanced talks with McLaren Group over the role, Sky News reported.
The appointment, which could be announced as early as tomorrow, would see the heavyweight businessman replace Shaikh Mohammed Bin Essa Al Khalifa.
The move could fuel speculation that McLaren’s shareholders are mulling an initial public offering.
McLaren is majority-owned by Mumtalakat, Bahrain’s sovereign wealth fund, while other shareholders include Saudi businessman Mansour Ojjeh.
However, a source close to the company said there were no plans for a float for at least another three years.
Walsh is set to step down as chairman of FTSE 100 catering firm Compass Group later this year, though he still holds board positions at Fedex and McDonald’s.
His transfer would come at a critical time for the McLaren F1 team, which is gearing up for first grand prix of the year in Melbourne.
However, the sport has been hit by the outbreak of the coronavirus, with the upcoming race in Bahrain set to take place behind closed doors.
In addition to the F1 team, Woking-based McLaren Group also operates the brand’s road-car and applied technology operations.
The road-car division, which makes luxury McLaren supercars, accounts for the majority of the group’s revenue.
McLaren boss Mike Flewitt last month told City PM the company “probably won’t achieve [its] yearly goal for sales in China” due to the coronavirus outbreak.
However, he said the luxury car maker would still achieve a “reasonable” level of sales overall.
McLaren declined to comment.