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Total Competition: Lessons in Strategy from Formula One
Total Competition is the most compelling, comprehensive and revealing insight into what it takes to get to the top in Formula One that has ever been published.
Across four decades, Ross Brawn was one of the most innovative and successful technical directors and then team principals in Formula One. Leading Benetton, Ferrari , Honda, Brawn and Mercedes , he worked with drivers such as Michael Schumacher , Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton to make them world champions. In 2017, he was appointed F1's managing director, motor sports, by the sport's new owners Liberty Media. Now, in this fascinating book written with Adam Parr (who was CEO and then chairman of Williams for five years), he looks back over his career and methods to assess how he did it, and where occasionally he got things wrong.
Total Competition is a definitive portrait of modern motorsport. In the book, Brawn and Parr explore the unique pressures of Formula One, their battles with Bernie Ecclestone , and the cut-throat world they inhabited, where coming second is never good enough. This book will appeal not only to the millions of Formula One fans who want to understand how Brawn operates, it will also provide many lessons in how to achieve your own business goals.
'A must-have insight into the awe-inspiring career of a true motor racing great' Daily Express
Across four decades, Ross Brawn was one of the most innovative and successful technical directors and then team principals in Formula One. Leading Benetton, Ferrari , Honda, Brawn and Mercedes , he worked with drivers such as Michael Schumacher , Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton to make them world champions. In 2017, he was appointed F1's managing director, motor sports, by the sport's new owners Liberty Media. Now, in this fascinating book written with Adam Parr (who was CEO and then chairman of Williams for five years), he looks back over his career and methods to assess how he did it, and where occasionally he got things wrong.
Total Competition is a definitive portrait of modern motorsport. In the book, Brawn and Parr explore the unique pressures of Formula One, their battles with Bernie Ecclestone , and the cut-throat world they inhabited, where coming second is never good enough. This book will appeal not only to the millions of Formula One fans who want to understand how Brawn operates, it will also provide many lessons in how to achieve your own business goals.
'A must-have insight into the awe-inspiring career of a true motor racing great' Daily Express
320 pages, ebook
Published November 3, 2016
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 161 reviews
May 4, 2019
I'm not really sure what book Parr set out to write here. Brawn is interesting enough to carry the book, but this could have been so much better. Parr talks too much and could have improved the editing. Characters are mentioned just once without any background, there's several occasions where I had to check I hadn't skipped a page.
Is Parr trying to write a strategy book, a history of F1, a denunciation of Ecclestone, a book about Sun Tzu? I really don't understand what's added by shoe horning the latter into the text. Reads like a school boys essay trying to reference a book he just read.
Is Parr trying to write a strategy book, a history of F1, a denunciation of Ecclestone, a book about Sun Tzu? I really don't understand what's added by shoe horning the latter into the text. Reads like a school boys essay trying to reference a book he just read.
March 6, 2017
If you are an F1 fanatic, you inevitably fall in one of two camps: you’re either a Brawn / Byrne fan or you are an Adrian Newey fan. I don’t know too many who really love both.
I’m a Brawn / Byrne fan, to the extent that I actually no longer admire Newey as much as I once did.
My problem with Newey is he’d rather his car broke in the lead than it secured a safe second place. He’s a prima donna with immense sense of his own value and Ron Dennis had to let him go for that, for example. Then, of course, he found the biggest budget ever and the rest is history and nobody will take the massive Red Bull success away from him. But I’m a much bigger fan of Brawn and Byrne.
They were first brought together by Tom Walkinshaw who found a home for their abandoned Reynard plans at Benetton (nee Toleman) where they thrived despite having to operate under Flavio Briatore. They re-wrote the record books together at Ferrari (though lots of credit probably has to be given to Jean Todt for keeping Luca di Montezemolo off their back, to say nothing of the contribution of a certain Michael Schumacher) and then Ross Brawn wrote some history entirely of his own at Honda / Brawn / Mercedes.
The other thing I totally love about Ross Brawn is, unlike Newey, he’s still very much with his original wife, he does not have aspirations to do a road car or America’s Cup, he could not care less if he never becomes a household name and his favorite way to spend time is fishing. His choice of vintage cars is awesome too.
Oh, and he’s won the World Championship with a car bearing his name. The previous person to ever do that was called Frank Williams, the one before Enzo Ferrari and the one before that Jack Brabham.
I feel good about being a Ross Brawn fan, bottom line.
“Total Competition” is a conversation between my hero Ross Brawn and a moderately successful egotist called Adam Parr who went to Cambridge (note: Ross did not attend university and Parr draws him into a conversation about his apprenticeship) to study English, ended up in F1 with Williams after stints in the City and in mining and went on to do a PhD in “The Art of War” (no, seriously, if not that, then something very close to that) after he (rightly or wrongly, who knows) got fired by Frank Williams.
The undercurrent of the book seems to be that what we have here is two guys who both suffered an injustice at the hands of the Bernie Ecclestone-supported Toto Wolff because they were not good at reading the politics of the workplace. If you are interested in that, then do buy and read the book.
I am, so I did, and I found out a few more things in the bargain. Skip the following bulletpoints if you are buying the book, because here’s the list of things the book confirms:
• Bernie attempted to scoop the carcass of the Honda F1 team from under Ross Brawn mid-2009.
• Richard Branson did as much too, but Honda actually caused him quite some embarrassment by having Ross Brawn at the other end of the conference call.
• Bernie refused for the longest time to pay Brawn F1 their prize money dues (citing the lack of continuity between Honda and Brawn), hoping that they would become more amenable to his embrace. (No mention is made, on the other hand, of the fact that it was Max Mosley’s FIA that frustrated Ecclestone’s plans and saved Ross Brawn’s bacon by keeping the double diffuser legal)
• Bernie’s deal involved Honda paying him, rather than the other way round, of course.
• The Mercedes engine was worth 1 second a lap versus the Honda engine, so Honda would not have walked the 2009 championship.
• It was Martin Whitmarsh who made the decision to allow Brawn to have the Mercedes engine.
• If Brawn is to be believed, Ron Dennis to this day blames Whitmarsh for the subsequent slump in McLaren’s fortunes, which he pins on this one decision and its consequences.
• In Ross Brawn’s opinion, the “distance” between himself and Ecclestone has its roots in Brawn’s staunch defense in 2009 of his rights to prize money from the previous years.
• Mercedes underperformed in 2010 – 2012 because Brawn was too loyal to Norbert Haug to go over his head and ask Stuttgart for a proper budget like the competition had and was thus stuck with a budget that was the same as Williams, except Mercedes spent more of that budget on drivers and less on the cars.
• One year Mercedes actually had Ross Brawn’s budget cut by 29 million, in keeping with the original Haug proposal.
• Bernie Ecclestone personally called Ross Brawn in 2012 and in essence warned him that he was about to be replaced.
• Bernie Ecclestone called Dieter Zetsche, who did not know better, told him he could no longer work with Brawn and foisted Toto Wolff and Niki Lauda upon him. Both have extensive Ecclestone connections, of course, Toto Wolff via Williams (God knows Frank’s shop needed to be saved at some point, and in a tax-efficient manner) and his former driver Niki Lauda he’d less successfully installed at Jaguar before, for similar purposes.
• The legendary, standard-setting, record-breaking, championship-deciding Ferrari F1 reliability has its roots in the application of quality-control procedures borrowed from, wait for this… FIAT road cars. Who woulda thunk? Next time I’m buying a car, maybe I should put my prejudices to one side.
• Alonso, the best driver since Michael Schumacher’s departure (and arguably even before) was shown the door at Ferrari because his posse of acolytes have convinced him he can actually run the design office too and Ferrari had to draw the line somewhere. This is stuff I have been told before, but I’d never read in print and it was interesting to see it confirmed.
There’s also some revisionist history here. For example, Brawn takes pride in working with the people he finds in every team, rather than bringing his own guys with him, but in my view that’s only the case because English contracts are tough to break, and ultimately not true. So, for example, the chief designer at Ferrari has been a guy with Benetton beginnings throughout 1997-2016, with both of Rory Byrne’s successors having gotten their first F1 job at Enstone.
Also, Ross Brawn is really not allowed to count his years at Williams as Brawn championships. Much as I am a Brawn fan rather than a Newey fan, and no offense meant to Patrick Head, those championships have “Adrian Newey” written all over them, with their car a carbon copy of the Leyton House March in 1991, ’92, ’93 and ’94, in the eyes of an amateur enthusiast like myself, at any rate.
But I guess that’s standard. If you make the mistake of reading a driver’s autobiography, it’s usually a race-by-race account of how he was always faster than his teammate and all times he was outqualified there was some outside reason for it. Compared to that standard (and that IS the appropriate standard, incidentally) Ross Brawn is a very modest man and well deserving of the adulation he gets.
The book, however, is very difficult to enjoy.
For every tidbit of information from the great man, there is a whole lot of “strategy” mumbo jumbo that Adam Parr foists on you. Like, if he was not talking to the man who personified pitwall strategy better than anyone before or since (the stochastic programming geekoids have since taken over), I’d give him a pass. But I can’t.
Ross Brawn did not lose his bearings when it came to strategy. He knew exactly how to get Mercedes to the front. It’s just that it would entail brushing aside people who had been good to him. And at that stage he had exactly zero to prove. He was, like Cassius, “aweary of the world.”
In summary, if you want to discover how City people think about the Chinese “Art of War” as it applies to Ross Brawn’s career, this is the only book on the subject that is ever likely to appear, so go ahead and buy it.
Otherwise, give it a miss.
I’m a Brawn / Byrne fan, to the extent that I actually no longer admire Newey as much as I once did.
My problem with Newey is he’d rather his car broke in the lead than it secured a safe second place. He’s a prima donna with immense sense of his own value and Ron Dennis had to let him go for that, for example. Then, of course, he found the biggest budget ever and the rest is history and nobody will take the massive Red Bull success away from him. But I’m a much bigger fan of Brawn and Byrne.
They were first brought together by Tom Walkinshaw who found a home for their abandoned Reynard plans at Benetton (nee Toleman) where they thrived despite having to operate under Flavio Briatore. They re-wrote the record books together at Ferrari (though lots of credit probably has to be given to Jean Todt for keeping Luca di Montezemolo off their back, to say nothing of the contribution of a certain Michael Schumacher) and then Ross Brawn wrote some history entirely of his own at Honda / Brawn / Mercedes.
The other thing I totally love about Ross Brawn is, unlike Newey, he’s still very much with his original wife, he does not have aspirations to do a road car or America’s Cup, he could not care less if he never becomes a household name and his favorite way to spend time is fishing. His choice of vintage cars is awesome too.
Oh, and he’s won the World Championship with a car bearing his name. The previous person to ever do that was called Frank Williams, the one before Enzo Ferrari and the one before that Jack Brabham.
I feel good about being a Ross Brawn fan, bottom line.
“Total Competition” is a conversation between my hero Ross Brawn and a moderately successful egotist called Adam Parr who went to Cambridge (note: Ross did not attend university and Parr draws him into a conversation about his apprenticeship) to study English, ended up in F1 with Williams after stints in the City and in mining and went on to do a PhD in “The Art of War” (no, seriously, if not that, then something very close to that) after he (rightly or wrongly, who knows) got fired by Frank Williams.
The undercurrent of the book seems to be that what we have here is two guys who both suffered an injustice at the hands of the Bernie Ecclestone-supported Toto Wolff because they were not good at reading the politics of the workplace. If you are interested in that, then do buy and read the book.
I am, so I did, and I found out a few more things in the bargain. Skip the following bulletpoints if you are buying the book, because here’s the list of things the book confirms:
• Bernie attempted to scoop the carcass of the Honda F1 team from under Ross Brawn mid-2009.
• Richard Branson did as much too, but Honda actually caused him quite some embarrassment by having Ross Brawn at the other end of the conference call.
• Bernie refused for the longest time to pay Brawn F1 their prize money dues (citing the lack of continuity between Honda and Brawn), hoping that they would become more amenable to his embrace. (No mention is made, on the other hand, of the fact that it was Max Mosley’s FIA that frustrated Ecclestone’s plans and saved Ross Brawn’s bacon by keeping the double diffuser legal)
• Bernie’s deal involved Honda paying him, rather than the other way round, of course.
• The Mercedes engine was worth 1 second a lap versus the Honda engine, so Honda would not have walked the 2009 championship.
• It was Martin Whitmarsh who made the decision to allow Brawn to have the Mercedes engine.
• If Brawn is to be believed, Ron Dennis to this day blames Whitmarsh for the subsequent slump in McLaren’s fortunes, which he pins on this one decision and its consequences.
• In Ross Brawn’s opinion, the “distance” between himself and Ecclestone has its roots in Brawn’s staunch defense in 2009 of his rights to prize money from the previous years.
• Mercedes underperformed in 2010 – 2012 because Brawn was too loyal to Norbert Haug to go over his head and ask Stuttgart for a proper budget like the competition had and was thus stuck with a budget that was the same as Williams, except Mercedes spent more of that budget on drivers and less on the cars.
• One year Mercedes actually had Ross Brawn’s budget cut by 29 million, in keeping with the original Haug proposal.
• Bernie Ecclestone personally called Ross Brawn in 2012 and in essence warned him that he was about to be replaced.
• Bernie Ecclestone called Dieter Zetsche, who did not know better, told him he could no longer work with Brawn and foisted Toto Wolff and Niki Lauda upon him. Both have extensive Ecclestone connections, of course, Toto Wolff via Williams (God knows Frank’s shop needed to be saved at some point, and in a tax-efficient manner) and his former driver Niki Lauda he’d less successfully installed at Jaguar before, for similar purposes.
• The legendary, standard-setting, record-breaking, championship-deciding Ferrari F1 reliability has its roots in the application of quality-control procedures borrowed from, wait for this… FIAT road cars. Who woulda thunk? Next time I’m buying a car, maybe I should put my prejudices to one side.
• Alonso, the best driver since Michael Schumacher’s departure (and arguably even before) was shown the door at Ferrari because his posse of acolytes have convinced him he can actually run the design office too and Ferrari had to draw the line somewhere. This is stuff I have been told before, but I’d never read in print and it was interesting to see it confirmed.
There’s also some revisionist history here. For example, Brawn takes pride in working with the people he finds in every team, rather than bringing his own guys with him, but in my view that’s only the case because English contracts are tough to break, and ultimately not true. So, for example, the chief designer at Ferrari has been a guy with Benetton beginnings throughout 1997-2016, with both of Rory Byrne’s successors having gotten their first F1 job at Enstone.
Also, Ross Brawn is really not allowed to count his years at Williams as Brawn championships. Much as I am a Brawn fan rather than a Newey fan, and no offense meant to Patrick Head, those championships have “Adrian Newey” written all over them, with their car a carbon copy of the Leyton House March in 1991, ’92, ’93 and ’94, in the eyes of an amateur enthusiast like myself, at any rate.
But I guess that’s standard. If you make the mistake of reading a driver’s autobiography, it’s usually a race-by-race account of how he was always faster than his teammate and all times he was outqualified there was some outside reason for it. Compared to that standard (and that IS the appropriate standard, incidentally) Ross Brawn is a very modest man and well deserving of the adulation he gets.
The book, however, is very difficult to enjoy.
For every tidbit of information from the great man, there is a whole lot of “strategy” mumbo jumbo that Adam Parr foists on you. Like, if he was not talking to the man who personified pitwall strategy better than anyone before or since (the stochastic programming geekoids have since taken over), I’d give him a pass. But I can’t.
Ross Brawn did not lose his bearings when it came to strategy. He knew exactly how to get Mercedes to the front. It’s just that it would entail brushing aside people who had been good to him. And at that stage he had exactly zero to prove. He was, like Cassius, “aweary of the world.”
In summary, if you want to discover how City people think about the Chinese “Art of War” as it applies to Ross Brawn’s career, this is the only book on the subject that is ever likely to appear, so go ahead and buy it.
Otherwise, give it a miss.
July 4, 2021
It's actually multiple interviews between Brawn and Parr, resulting in an excellent read, especially for motorsport enthousiasts. The Art of War is a recurring theme, which doesn't work that well; the search for strategy for its own sake is a bit of a pity. Also, Parr tests his own thinkings as much as he tries to get them out of Brawn. Luckily the book is riddled with many genius passages from Brawn.
February 13, 2023
Števo Eisele to nazval Formulovou Bibliou a moja Ivka pri mojich ponosoch na to, že síce veľa dobrých informácií, ale vo veľmi zle napísanej knihe, konštatovala: "no veď to nazval bibliou, tak čo sa čuduješ". A to je asi tak všetko, čo sa k tomu dá napísať. Ak ste fanúšikovia F1, je to must read, ale ak nie ste fanúšikovia čítania, možno vás ten štýl odradí a radšej si pozriete nejaký F1 dokument :D
August 8, 2019
This author is bad, very bad. He was pushing his agenda so hard with every interview question. There's literally a point of the book when Parr says a long thing, Brawn says "yes", and that exchange repeats about 4 times. Unacceptable for an interviewer. This is only saved from getting a sole star by Brawn's history being interesting.
October 17, 2023
Jaka cholernie nieprzystępna forma ksiazki
Nienawidzę wywiadów a tutaj samo jego istewstwo było kompletnie zbędne i tylko dodatkowo mnie irytowało
Nie wiem o czym ta ksiazka miała kurwa być ale ro nie wyszło po całości. Na każdej płaszczyźnie.
Ja jebe. Nigdy wiecej
Nienawidzę wywiadów a tutaj samo jego istewstwo było kompletnie zbędne i tylko dodatkowo mnie irytowało
Nie wiem o czym ta ksiazka miała kurwa być ale ro nie wyszło po całości. Na każdej płaszczyźnie.
Ja jebe. Nigdy wiecej
May 3, 2018
More interesting as a kind of insider's account of recent F1 history than as a book about organisational strategy.
It might simply be that while the authors have had senior roles in organisations with hundreds of employees, I, um, head up a team of five people, but I do have my doubts about whether 'strategy' is something that can be taught, or that it is possible to develop an abstract theory about. At best, Brawn's career provides an interesting case-study from which it is possible to draw certain lessons. I couldn't help thinking that Parr's attempts to draw parallels with Sun Tzu's Art of War had more to do with the fact that he'd recently finished a PhD on the subject than because the book necessarily provides a great template for running a Formula 1 team.
With that caveat, there's some interesting material in here though. Leaving the digressions about Sun Tzu aside, the book essentially takes the form of a very extended (i.e. 300+ page) interview with Brawn about his career: what worked, what went wrong, and why. It makes for a good companion piece to the other outstanding technical director of recent times, Adrian Newey's 'How to Build a Car'. Where Newey gives the impression of being first and foremost a designer, who, because he is very good at it, ended up in charge of the technical departments of the teams he worked for, Brawn appears first and foremost to be a manager of designers who happens to be much the better at what he does for having begun as a designer himself (though the Jaguar XJR-14 was basically his design, so he clearly wasn't bad at sketching out race cars on the drawing board).
His account of the allegati0ns about Benetton cheating with traction control in 1994 is inevitably very much at odds with what Newey thinks was going on. So, on that score, it really comes down to which of the two of them you find more credible: Newey seemed more or less certain that they were cheating, and Brawn is absolutely adamant that, while he might go right up to the limits of what the regulations allow, he would never consciously cheat.
His story of how the team which bore his name was born from the ashes of Honda's abandoned F1 team contained material I hadn't read before. I didn't know that both Ecclestone and Richard Branson had tried to buy the team out from under him, and in the end it was his close relationship with the Honda board which ensured that they were persuaded to sell the team onto him for essentially nothing (in fact, they did rather more than that, paying a good part of the team's 2009 season budget because it saved them the cost of making hundreds of employees redundant).
Ecclestone is one of few people who really don't come out that well from this book. It is suggested that his ousting from the Mercedes team just as they really came into their own was orchestrated by Ecclestone as revenge for what happened in the aftermath of the Honda sale. But then anyone who has read anything about Ecclestone will know that he had quite a reputation for ruthlessness.
It might simply be that while the authors have had senior roles in organisations with hundreds of employees, I, um, head up a team of five people, but I do have my doubts about whether 'strategy' is something that can be taught, or that it is possible to develop an abstract theory about. At best, Brawn's career provides an interesting case-study from which it is possible to draw certain lessons. I couldn't help thinking that Parr's attempts to draw parallels with Sun Tzu's Art of War had more to do with the fact that he'd recently finished a PhD on the subject than because the book necessarily provides a great template for running a Formula 1 team.
With that caveat, there's some interesting material in here though. Leaving the digressions about Sun Tzu aside, the book essentially takes the form of a very extended (i.e. 300+ page) interview with Brawn about his career: what worked, what went wrong, and why. It makes for a good companion piece to the other outstanding technical director of recent times, Adrian Newey's 'How to Build a Car'. Where Newey gives the impression of being first and foremost a designer, who, because he is very good at it, ended up in charge of the technical departments of the teams he worked for, Brawn appears first and foremost to be a manager of designers who happens to be much the better at what he does for having begun as a designer himself (though the Jaguar XJR-14 was basically his design, so he clearly wasn't bad at sketching out race cars on the drawing board).
His account of the allegati0ns about Benetton cheating with traction control in 1994 is inevitably very much at odds with what Newey thinks was going on. So, on that score, it really comes down to which of the two of them you find more credible: Newey seemed more or less certain that they were cheating, and Brawn is absolutely adamant that, while he might go right up to the limits of what the regulations allow, he would never consciously cheat.
His story of how the team which bore his name was born from the ashes of Honda's abandoned F1 team contained material I hadn't read before. I didn't know that both Ecclestone and Richard Branson had tried to buy the team out from under him, and in the end it was his close relationship with the Honda board which ensured that they were persuaded to sell the team onto him for essentially nothing (in fact, they did rather more than that, paying a good part of the team's 2009 season budget because it saved them the cost of making hundreds of employees redundant).
Ecclestone is one of few people who really don't come out that well from this book. It is suggested that his ousting from the Mercedes team just as they really came into their own was orchestrated by Ecclestone as revenge for what happened in the aftermath of the Honda sale. But then anyone who has read anything about Ecclestone will know that he had quite a reputation for ruthlessness.
April 20, 2020
This really is Adam Parr's book, an extension of his PhD thesis on strategy with Ross Brawn as the case study.
The interview style was hard to get used to and didnt quite work for me as its quite rambly as its pretty much transcribed from recordings. Which also means it jumps around a lot and skirts details (lots of things mentioned in short period). It could have done with more editing / structure at times I think.
It is very interesting to see the behind the scenes of some key moments in Formula one; the Ferrari dominance, Honda/Brawn GP, the battles with Bernie Ecclestone (and insight into how Bernie works) and how Brawn was forced out of Mercedes after laying the foundations for their current dominance.
Brawn is often compared to Newey and I think this is not a fair comparison as for me Brawn seems much more of a brilliant team principle with a technical viewpoint whereas Newey is purely a technical genius.
The interview style was hard to get used to and didnt quite work for me as its quite rambly as its pretty much transcribed from recordings. Which also means it jumps around a lot and skirts details (lots of things mentioned in short period). It could have done with more editing / structure at times I think.
It is very interesting to see the behind the scenes of some key moments in Formula one; the Ferrari dominance, Honda/Brawn GP, the battles with Bernie Ecclestone (and insight into how Bernie works) and how Brawn was forced out of Mercedes after laying the foundations for their current dominance.
Brawn is often compared to Newey and I think this is not a fair comparison as for me Brawn seems much more of a brilliant team principle with a technical viewpoint whereas Newey is purely a technical genius.
May 10, 2020
A terrific account of the world of Formula one from two of the greatest F1 strategists - Adam Parr and Ross Brawn. Written in an interesting interview format, this book delves into the career of Ross Brawn, his learning at each stint starting from Williams, Benneton, Ferrari, Honda, Brawn GP and Mercedes. The Observations section at the end of the book is worth a re-read multiple times over -
1. Strategy is a System
2. Avoid unnecessary conflict
3. Build trust consciously
4. Know yourself and know the others
5. Embrace Humility
6. Invest in People and Culture
7. Take the measure of time
8. A Complete process leads to a competitive product
9. Develop and apply a set of rythms and routines
10. Just Adopt
11. Define the line and own it
12. Strive for simplicity, manage complexity
13. People innovate naturally
14. There is a place for data and intuition
15. Strategy can be studied and applied
1. Strategy is a System
2. Avoid unnecessary conflict
3. Build trust consciously
4. Know yourself and know the others
5. Embrace Humility
6. Invest in People and Culture
7. Take the measure of time
8. A Complete process leads to a competitive product
9. Develop and apply a set of rythms and routines
10. Just Adopt
11. Define the line and own it
12. Strive for simplicity, manage complexity
13. People innovate naturally
14. There is a place for data and intuition
15. Strategy can be studied and applied
March 24, 2023
Hmm… This book reads more like a conversation between two former colleagues who have become somewhat disillusioned by how their careers ended. While it could have been a fascinating look into Brawn's strategic mind and career choices, it falls short of delivering on its potential. It's a shame that this material didn't receive the treatment it deserved.
Read
October 14, 2024I can't finish this. It's like he forgot to make it interesting. This is the first Formula 1 book I haven't liked. You owe my an Audible credit, Ross Brawn!!
October 25, 2022
It gives me great pleasure when a book has a story, athough this one is quite random and casual. I was working a summer job at a brunch place and after getting into Formula 1 (blaming my sister for showing me Drive to Survive), me and the owner of the place used to chat about it everytime I was working on the bar. My last shift, he brought me this book to read, truly, what a guy!
For the actual book, it was fun to read from a Formula 1/business perspective. I will say that the "readability" was lacking a little, so was the overall direction, hence the rating. I do also wish more BTS secrets were slipped, but alas, a girl can dream. What a fun read if you're deep into the Formula 1 world!
For the actual book, it was fun to read from a Formula 1/business perspective. I will say that the "readability" was lacking a little, so was the overall direction, hence the rating. I do also wish more BTS secrets were slipped, but alas, a girl can dream. What a fun read if you're deep into the Formula 1 world!
March 21, 2024
Velmi som chcel, aby to bola dobra kniha, ale nebola. Adam Parr bol v tej knihe cely navyse a mam pocit, ze chcel len vyuzit slavneho a frustrovaneho Rossa Brawna a vydolovat z temy F1 nejake peniaze. Vobec neviem, co vlastne kniha chcela citatelom odovzdat, ale su to skor Brawnove memoare vo forme rozhovoru s kopou sebestrednych postrehov Parra. Slovo strategia je v tejto knihe znasilnene tak, ze aj slovenski politici by verili, ze skutok sa stal. Nerozumiem tomu prepojeniu na Umenie vojny, ani na Parrovu dizertacnu pracu. Ak chcel robit knihu o F1, dalo sa to urobit hodnotnejsie, zrozumitelnejsie a nepochybne kratsie.
January 25, 2023
This book is another great insight into formula 1 background if you seek more and more information. Ross Brawn is definitely one of the most important and interesting characters of F1 and I found this book very enjoyable particularly because of the interview style. I also very much enjoyed the use of Sun tzus art of war in this book as I’d like to get into more strategy books in the future. And it shows you how f1 works.
April 7, 2024
it was actually better than i expected.
as a formula one fan and someone who wants to go into mechanical engineeing, it was fun to see what i was getting myself into (the enviorment, the people etc).
as a formula one fan and someone who wants to go into mechanical engineeing, it was fun to see what i was getting myself into (the enviorment, the people etc).
August 25, 2024
Excellent subject matter and authors' insight, but the book could greatly benefit from better editing.
April 11, 2025
Interesting read to learn more about the political aspects of Formula One, but Adam Parr's sections were a little boring
June 26, 2025
Super intéressant et complet
September 1, 2023
Veľa zaujímavých informácií, ktoré som ale mala pocit, že sa dosť opakujú v každej kapitole.
December 2, 2024
This things I have learnt and the perspective I have gained from this book is amazing. Taking a star off for the weird way it’s formatted as an interview, it almost makes it seem like the laziest form of writing.
March 9, 2025
Daje takie 3,5. Sama książka to po prostu wywiad dwóch gości. Nie mogę powiedzieć, że nie jest ciekawa, ale nie jest to książka o formule 1 tylko o tym jak jeden gościu prowadził swoje zespoły w formule 1. Dużo info o strategii i jakieś nawiązania do starych wojennych książek.
January 3, 2023
I didn't think I'd enjoy a book about F1 so much and get so many applicable learnings out of it. The book is easy to read as it is structured as an interview and a conversation. That's another reason it works really well as an audiobook. It might help people get ahead in sports and business.
August 4, 2025
very intriguing look into the record breaking brawn f1 team and its founder, ross brawn. it is philosophical and connects a myriad of dots, but it never hides this fact and it’s quite a fascinating read. the book discusses a great deal of strategy and interpersonal relationship techniques that many may find useful. i will say it took me a minute to get used to the narrative style but it works.
November 16, 2020
What does it take to win in Formula 1? What sets apart teams who struggle and those that are hard to beat? The best person to answer that is the one who has achieved the most success. Looks like this is what Adam Parr tried to do with this book.
The book is a dialogue between Adam Parr and Ross Brawn. They talk about Formula 1, examples of successes and failures. From Ferrari and Mercedes dominance to Toyota, who spent more money than anyone else yet failed to bring home a single victory. Ross Brawn shares his career story and his experience of with working with Formula 1's most prominent people of his time, like Michael Schumacher, Jean Todt, Bernie Ecclestone, Flavio Briatore and others. Ross Brawn talks about his perspective on creating success in Formula 1 team or any other venture, the underlying principles and process, that create a strategy.
Adam Parr tried to frame the dialogue through a prism of ideas of Sun Tsu's "The Art of War". Although I find it to be an interesting perspective and application of military strategy in sport and business, I don't think that you need to be familiar or interested in "The Art of War" to enjoy the book.
I think this book will be a very interesting for any Formula 1 fan who wants to know more about how teams work from the inside and see the aspects of motor racing that are not seen through TV broadcast.
I think the book would be pretty hard to follow for people not familiar with F1. Also, it is not about race strategy and pit stops.
The book is a dialogue between Adam Parr and Ross Brawn. They talk about Formula 1, examples of successes and failures. From Ferrari and Mercedes dominance to Toyota, who spent more money than anyone else yet failed to bring home a single victory. Ross Brawn shares his career story and his experience of with working with Formula 1's most prominent people of his time, like Michael Schumacher, Jean Todt, Bernie Ecclestone, Flavio Briatore and others. Ross Brawn talks about his perspective on creating success in Formula 1 team or any other venture, the underlying principles and process, that create a strategy.
Adam Parr tried to frame the dialogue through a prism of ideas of Sun Tsu's "The Art of War". Although I find it to be an interesting perspective and application of military strategy in sport and business, I don't think that you need to be familiar or interested in "The Art of War" to enjoy the book.
I think this book will be a very interesting for any Formula 1 fan who wants to know more about how teams work from the inside and see the aspects of motor racing that are not seen through TV broadcast.
I think the book would be pretty hard to follow for people not familiar with F1. Also, it is not about race strategy and pit stops.
January 8, 2025
"Total Competition" by Ross Brawn provides an intimate look into the world of Formula 1, tracing Brawn's career from his early days to his pivotal roles at Benneton, Ferrari, Honda, and Mercedes. As a Formula 1 enthusiast and a reader of sports autobiographies, I was intrigued by the opportunity to gain insights from one of the sport's key figures.
While the book certainly delivers on its promise to share the wisdom of a mastermind in motorsports, the format left me wanting more. Instead of a traditional narrative chronicling Brawn's journey through various teams, the book adopts an interview-style structure, which, in my opinion, somewhat diminishes the storytelling aspect. The format seems to prioritize information over a cohesive narrative, making it feel more like a collection of insights than a continuous, immersive story.
Brawn's experiences and leadership in his teams are undoubtedly fascinating, yet the book lacks the fluidity that might have come from a more conventional autobiography or success storyline. The interview style sometimes feels detached, preventing readers from fully engaging with the emotional highs and lows of Brawn's career.
That said, the book still offers a wealth of information for Formula 1 enthusiasts. Brawn's reflections on team dynamics, strategic decision-making, and the intricacies of Formula 1 provide valuable lessons and a unique perspective. For those seeking a more analytical and strategic view of Formula 1, "Total Competition" is a worthwhile read.
In conclusion, while the format may not suit those who prefer a traditional narrative, the book remains a valuable addition to the library of Formula 1 enthusiasts, offering a comprehensive look into the mind of one of the sport's most influential figures.
While the book certainly delivers on its promise to share the wisdom of a mastermind in motorsports, the format left me wanting more. Instead of a traditional narrative chronicling Brawn's journey through various teams, the book adopts an interview-style structure, which, in my opinion, somewhat diminishes the storytelling aspect. The format seems to prioritize information over a cohesive narrative, making it feel more like a collection of insights than a continuous, immersive story.
Brawn's experiences and leadership in his teams are undoubtedly fascinating, yet the book lacks the fluidity that might have come from a more conventional autobiography or success storyline. The interview style sometimes feels detached, preventing readers from fully engaging with the emotional highs and lows of Brawn's career.
That said, the book still offers a wealth of information for Formula 1 enthusiasts. Brawn's reflections on team dynamics, strategic decision-making, and the intricacies of Formula 1 provide valuable lessons and a unique perspective. For those seeking a more analytical and strategic view of Formula 1, "Total Competition" is a worthwhile read.
In conclusion, while the format may not suit those who prefer a traditional narrative, the book remains a valuable addition to the library of Formula 1 enthusiasts, offering a comprehensive look into the mind of one of the sport's most influential figures.
March 3, 2021
I think this is a book that every Formula 1 fan will enjoy. The first part of the book is about Ross Brawn's career in which he tells really interesting stories about a lot of different topics. It gives a great insight into his career and his experiences. The second part of the book is about strategy in Formula 1 and is discussed in connection to The Art Of War. This to me seemed like a really interesting concept, but I felt that the execution of it was done poorly. I felt that the quotes used from The Art Of War sometimes didn't even seem to connect to Formula 1... Other parts of The Art Of War were really interesting to read in connection to Formula 1 though, so it is a great idea as proved by those parts, but the execution could've been better.
What annoyed me about this book was the editing and structure. The chapters in the second part of the book were often named, but these names sometimes didn't correspond to the topic that was actually being discussed. Other than that, I often found myself confused to if I had skipped a page or a part. It often felt like certain parts were deleted without Adam Parr checking if it actually made sense. It made me feel like there was a lot of skipping going on and I was often confused to what I was reading and why I was suddenly reading about a different topic.
What is really nice to see is that this book is still relevant today and many of the ideas can still be applied to Formula 1 today!! Overall, I really did enjoy reading this book and loved reading about Brawn's experiences and I learned a lot. But, it is just a fun read to me and not much special.
What annoyed me about this book was the editing and structure. The chapters in the second part of the book were often named, but these names sometimes didn't correspond to the topic that was actually being discussed. Other than that, I often found myself confused to if I had skipped a page or a part. It often felt like certain parts were deleted without Adam Parr checking if it actually made sense. It made me feel like there was a lot of skipping going on and I was often confused to what I was reading and why I was suddenly reading about a different topic.
What is really nice to see is that this book is still relevant today and many of the ideas can still be applied to Formula 1 today!! Overall, I really did enjoy reading this book and loved reading about Brawn's experiences and I learned a lot. But, it is just a fun read to me and not much special.
March 10, 2020
In complete contrast to F1 engineering wizard Adrian Newey's (auto)biography, 'How to Build A Car', Ross Brawn's narrative regales the central idea of his wildly successful F1 career, 'how to build a team'. It's a conversation between Ross and his writer/interviewer on the man's philosophies that helped him navigate the crocodile-infested waters of Formula 1 politics, its technical intricacies and infinite chambers of mini battles between sporting, technical and bureaucratic notions. Brilliant for an audio-book format too.
What I loved most about Brawn's tale, as opposed to that of Newey's, is that he transfers credit to his team for all the great results, instead of claiming the spotlight for all those ingenious tactics/engineering masterstrokes that may make the proponent look larger-than-life; almost mythical. The parallels drawn to ideologies in successful warfare in the battlefield are a great touch, making his race strategy choices and driver precedence highly intuitive and tangible. His generous treatment of technicians and staff (not necessarily drivers) blossomed into the most successful F1 campaigns all time with Ferrari (1998-2007) and Mercedes-AMG (2014-date) - yes, Ross Brawn built the current powerhouse that is dominating the sport. Lest we forget to mention the underdog wonder-kid of the 2009 season.
I learned many more important life lessons from Brawn's narrative than from Newey's, although both are true greats in their own regard. I have to admit, however, that I am now #TeamBrawn.
What I loved most about Brawn's tale, as opposed to that of Newey's, is that he transfers credit to his team for all the great results, instead of claiming the spotlight for all those ingenious tactics/engineering masterstrokes that may make the proponent look larger-than-life; almost mythical. The parallels drawn to ideologies in successful warfare in the battlefield are a great touch, making his race strategy choices and driver precedence highly intuitive and tangible. His generous treatment of technicians and staff (not necessarily drivers) blossomed into the most successful F1 campaigns all time with Ferrari (1998-2007) and Mercedes-AMG (2014-date) - yes, Ross Brawn built the current powerhouse that is dominating the sport. Lest we forget to mention the underdog wonder-kid of the 2009 season.
I learned many more important life lessons from Brawn's narrative than from Newey's, although both are true greats in their own regard. I have to admit, however, that I am now #TeamBrawn.
April 13, 2018
I had long been a Ross Brawn fan, observing his pragmatic and interesting style creating much success for Benetton, Ferrari and then with it's last ditch attempt Honda spin off 'Brawn.' This all famously contrasting with his well reported love of fishing. BUT this book with it's monotonous, unoriginal and quite frankly contrived Sun Tzu comparisons is a disaster. I really hope that's the fault of Adam Parr the obviously hapless CEO of Williams. The picture is alarming as it is full of Birtspeak - the philosophy that mortally wounded the BBC. I say I really hope it fault of Parr as otherwise we F1 fans have much to fear from the Ross Brawn design for the future being adopted by Liberty Media the new owners of F1. The sport is already emasculated by the overly green ambitions of the Paris based FIA (the regulatory body)changes to the classic theme tunes, and introductions of various USA style promotions. Why inflict ugly American style on a classic European format that has gained bigger TV viewing figures than both the Olympics and the football World Cup...but means nothing in the USA...where they race around in circles. The book also contains some childish and sad attacks on Bernie Ecclestone...the impresario who took F1 from being a few grubby finger nailed mechanics and some cravat wearing racers to the world. Of course Bernie had his faults but the way that Brawn/Parr deal with this removes any respect I had for them. Ignore this book.
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