VW decapitoed; Jost could not stand winning all the time
Jost Capito has had enough. Too many victories, celebrations, titles… There comes a time when you just cannot stand it anymore. Always the same interviews, explaining why is your team so good, all while you’re hoping for some challenge, a couple of bad weekends, maybe even a disappointment or two. That’s what makes things interesting! That’s when you feel like you’re actually doing something. Not just sit and wait in the service park, minding the champagne fridge temperature and waiting for those blasted drivers to come back with another bloody victory. You want to be winner through hard work and you want the world to see just how hard it was. In Volkswagen it didn’t happen – they just started winning and that was it. Nobody saw the work that made it possible. Jost was not happy with that. But then, then he found a new job, one that will see him return to Formula 1. His new boss will be Ron Dennis and his drivers are Fernando Alonso, the well known Formula 1 humorist, and Jenson Button, a gentleman driver. That’s right. From Volkswagen to McLaren, just like that. Just like Alonso, leaving (or being asked to do so?) Ferrari to join the new Honda “powered” McLaren. These things happen.
But what now? Who will take over the reins of three time World Rally Champions? That is what we want to know next. Volkswagen’s official release says Capito will leave at some point in 2016, so team is probably working on finding a successor and/or getting him/her ready to take over. I don’t suppose much will change in day to day operations and I certainly hope nothing will change for the worse in terms of team’s effectiveness. Because I want to see them remain as strong as they were in first three years of Volkswagen’s WRC campaign. I do not want them to falter – I want others to improve and catch up.
Oh, yes, I hope Jost did not leave because he knows something we don’t about the future of Volkswagen’s WRC programme? Up to now the TDI drama did not touch the team – let’s hope it stays like that. Farewell, Mr. Powerstage Shootout.
Official release below.
JOST CAPITO TO TAKE ON NEW CHALLENGE
Wolfsburg, January 14, 2016– Volkswagen Motorsport Director Jost Capito (57) is to leave the company by mutual agreement during the course of this year to take on a new professional challenge. Capito has been responsible for the Volkswagen brand’s engagement in motorsport since mid-2012 and led the works team to three FIA World Rally Championship titles in 2013, 2014 and 2015.
“We would like to thank Jost Capito for his exceptionally dedicated and successful work for Volkswagen in motorsport. The three World Rally Championship titles with the Polo R WRC represent the greatest sporting achievements in the history of the Volkswagen brand and underscore the technical competence of our company. With his transparent and far-sighted leadership, Jost Capito has been instrumental in this success,” said Frank Welsch, Member of the Board of Management of the Volkswagen Passenger Cars Brand with responsibility for ‘Development’.
Jost Capito will continue to perform the duties of Motorsport Director until such time as his successor at Volkswagen Motorsport GmbH has been appointed. The engineering graduate began working for the Volkswagen Group in 1989, joining Porsche’s racing department. Following an executive post with the Sauber Formula 1 team (from 1996), Capito moved to Ford in 2001, where among other things he held responsibility for motorsport activities and the performance vehicle business. Capito took over as Motorsport Director at Volkswagen in May 2012.
