Mercedes’ Bradley Lord has reflected on his long career with the multiple World Championship-winning team, and how he’s seen the Brackley squad evolve over the years.

In the final part of our extensive interview with Mercedes’ chief communications officer Bradley Lord, he explained how he offers support to team boss Toto Wolff in his additional role as a team representative for the Brackley-based squad.

How Bradley Lord contributes to Mercedes’ on-track endeavours

In the first part of PlanetF1.com’s interview with Mercedes’ Bradley Lord, we explored his approach to leading the communications department at the Brackley-based squad – a hugely important role in helping to define the narrative around any team, as well as keeping journalists, pundits, and fans as well informed as possible.

Shaping a bespoke direction to make the “star shine that little bit brighter” for Mercedes, Lord’s longevity in this role means his unwavering loyalty has seen his responsibilities evolve since 2011, the year he joined the squad.

This has resulted in Lord also being appointed as an official team representative, frequently appearing on television broadcasts (including on the UK’s Sky F1) to speak on behalf of the team should team boss and CEO Toto Wolff not be available or not in attendance at any given race.

It’s a unique position for a communications officer, the majority of whom would be unknown to the general public despite their very active involvement in the F1 paddock.

It’s indicative of the complete trust Wolff has in Lord that he can serve as his delegate in these areas, but Lord’s involvement goes further than that – he weighs in with his own valued perspective, and works proactively in the background on critical areas such as young driver mentorship and the team’s sustainability push.

With Lord’s involvement more to allow for broader observance of the bigger picture during a Grand Prix weekend, I ask him whether it would be accurate to describe him as Wolff’s “right-hand man”.

“On the left-hand side, standing in the garage so, from a pure technicality point of view, maybe not!” he quips in response.

“But there’s a group that works very closely with Toto, and I’m lucky enough to be part of that, along with James Allison [technical director], Andrew Shovlin [trackside engineering director], and Ron Meadows [sporting director], at the track. We’re in constant dialogue about the race weekend and how it’s going.

“So, the technical team and the sporting team are in the lead. Toto is not stepping in and trying to fly the plane but observing what’s happening and providing helpful inputs.

“The team on the pit wall is focusing on our two cars and how to maximise what they’re doing. We can step back a little more, following what the other teams are saying on the radio for example, and provide some additional situational awareness, hopefully!

“And my role is really supporting the team and supporting Toto in the external representation of the organisation.

“Be it working with our partners or also with the media to share some of that workload because, as the sport grows in popularity and grows in visibility, the demand to be able to talk about what we do outstrips the availability of one or two people to do that.

“It’s also supporting Toto in his role with relationships in the paddock, working with other teams, and around our young driver programme – I’ve been working, since the start of 2024, very closely with Gwen Lagrue, who is our driver development advisor and the brains behind that effort, and I help to coordinate that programme within the team.

“It’s fun and challenging to be learning about areas of the sport that until now have not been as close a focus area for me.”

Finding a new passion in sustainability

It’s in sustainability that Lord has found a particular passion since Mercedes began earnestly seeking ways to reduce its carbon footprint, with clear pride taken in crafting the feel-good press releases marking milestones along the way to creating one of the world’s most sustainable professional sporting organisations.

Alice Ashpitel is Mercedes’ head of sustainability, and a triumphant moment came for the team in 2024 as their fleet of trucks and generators were powered entirely on HVO100 biofuel during the European leg of nine races, resulting in 98 percent coverage as part of the push to become a carbon net zero outfit by 2030.

While it might not be an area that’s particularly sexy for most Formula 1 fans, sustainability clearly lights a fire in Lord, who says it’s an “absolutely crucial part” in the future of F1 – particularly with the sport being the perfect proving ground for technology-led solutions.

“It’s an area that is met with skepticism in some quarters, and that makes it all the more rewarding to work in,” Lord said.

“I’m fortunate to work with a brilliant sustainability team and with a wide range of our partners, building on their expertise to start finding solutions for some of the challenges the sport as a whole faces.

“We set the objectives of being pioneers and leading that charge within the F1 community.

“I believe ourselves and McLaren are probably the two most active teams in that regard, and it’s a space in which there’s a lot of creativity, and particularly when we look at recruitment and young talent coming into the organisation, it’s increasingly important to our team members.

“Formula 1 has an incredible opportunity – not just in the power unit and the fuel for 2026 but how we operate as a sport – to lead the way for other global sports as well.

“That’s what we’re trying to do. So look at sustainability in Formula 1 – we and McLaren come at the challenge from slightly different angles. We’ve really focused on transport and logistics, initially, as our biggest sources of emissions.

“McLaren has put their efforts into circularity and materials we’re using in the cars as a priority focus. But what’s interesting about working on sustainability is that while the competitive nature of the sport is driving us all to try and be the first team with certain projects, it’s also incredibly collaborative.

“As a sport, we’re all conscious that we’re only as strong as our weakest link. Supporting the whole sport, by sharing the learning that we’ve built up with the other teams, with F1, and with the FIA as well, is something that we’re actively engaged in.”

The challenge of embracing and pursuing sustainability in a sport that is, on paper, the complete antithesis of it means Lord takes pleasure in being able to prove the paradox wrong, step-by-step, particularly as each step must be made without having any impact on the competitive aspect.

“How we make the show a more sustainable one and at the same time improve the sporting spectacle is a fascinating challenge, and it’s fun to be involved,” he said.

“We’re in a phase of maybe slightly heightened skepticism around the subject, and, in the wider world, we’re in a phase of pushback in some countries against the prominence of sustainability and the infrastructure challenges that it brings in terms of the energy transition.

“Fundamentally, this topic is only going to grow in importance over the coming years. Being ahead of the curve of change, rather than lagging behind it, is really important.

“It’s where Formula 1 has a huge opportunity as a technology-led and technology-developing sport, to lead the way and build a really strong position of advocacy by demonstrating what Formula 1 can do, and what technology competition can drive in terms of relevant and scalable technologies for the wider world.

“When we look at the balance that we’re striking with the new power unit, between the internal combustion engine that guarantees the noise and the entertainment and the speed factor of the sport, the electrical component that reflects where the automotive industry and personal mobility are headed, and then the advanced sustainable fuel, which is something that’s relevant for the automotive transition as well as aviation, shipping, long-distance haulage, we’ve got elements in that 2026 package that cover multiple different solutions that we’re going to see in the world around us in the future.

“That’s a really exciting prospect – from 2026, we enter an era where we can be confident to advocate what we’re developing in the sport and the impact it’s going to have on the wider world.”

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How has Bradley Lord seen Mercedes evolve since 2011, and what about his own future?

With Lord entering his 15th season with Mercedes this year, he’s seen first-hand how the team has evolved to become a titan of the sport – leading to the unprecedented dominance of 2014 to ’20.

While that dominance may have ended, Mercedes is never far from the front and, with huge regulation changes on the way for F1 2026, there’s genuine optimism that the days of being the sport’s talismanic frontrunner aren’t far away.

The 14 years have seen the team remain largely recognisable in terms of its leading personnel, although a few legendary drivers have come and gone over the years. One of those legends was Niki Lauda – he may not have been a driver for Mercedes, but the three-time F1 World Champion’s significant involvement, his passion and joie de vivre, is something that the team misses to this day, almost seven years on since his premature passing.

“I think we’ve seen a really special team culture emerge,” Lord says of his tenure with Mercedes.

“We’ve been through a run of success that was massively enjoyable, but also some really tough and low moments in those years as well.

“Obviously, the one that immediately springs to mind is Abu Dhabi [2021], but there have been others along the way too.

“We’ve had people part of that adventure, who we’ve lost along the way, like Niki, who made huge contributions. It’s hard not to get emotional, even just thinking back to that time.

“There’s a real bond of loyalty and of having each other’s backs in a way that we will go through fire for our teammates to achieve the objective.

“That’s been the most special thing – the winning and everything else are lovely experiences, but sharing that road with people that you can work with, completely openly, trust completely, and being in an environment where those people are also not afraid to hold you to account and also sit you down and tell you when you’re not doing a good enough job.

“That’s the special bit of being part of the team.”

Lord himself has become an integral part of the fabric of the Brackley-based squad, with Mercedes’ colleagues quick to point out his warmth and friendliness, as well as his unwavering passion for the sport. His strengths make him a very attractive target for any team, with talented communications officers capable of shaping the entire narrative around a squad.

At the time of writing, Aston Martin has just appointed a new chief communications officer in Luke Skipper, while McLaren is on the hunt for a replacement for the departing Steve Atkins in the same role at the Woking-based outfit – two high-profile vacancies that Lord would no doubt be a top contender for if he wanted to be. But the prospect of switching allegiances isn’t one Lord is considering, as he ponders the question of whether he’s found a “forever home” at Mercedes.

“It very much feels that way, I have to say,” he said.

“I think, after such a long period of time, and some of the human experiences that bond a group together as well, it’s very, very hard to think of walking through different doors or putting on a different shirt.”

As for whether he seeks further challenges, maybe by way of outright team leadership, Lord spoke of his complete satisfaction with the status quo.

“I’m really fortunate to be in Mercedes, and to work with a brilliant group of people, and to have a role that, over time, has hopefully evolved to suit where I can add the most value to the team,” he said.

“It’s about that more than anything else. I’ve been very fortunate in my time in Mercedes, my role has been able to grow and hopefully better support the team around me and Toto in his role as well.

“I’ve not got any thoughts beyond staying at Mercedes and doing that as effectively as I possibly can. We’re in the very fortunate position that Toto isn’t just team principal, he’s also co-owner and shareholder of the team, so very much steering its future prospects as well.

“The focus right now is on maximising what’s in front of us and hopefully being part of the journey that sees the team come back to success next year, and part of the new chapter that will be starting as well with George [Russell] and Kimi [Antonelli].

“That’s a huge source of excitement for all of us. Having been on the team since our relationship with George started in 2017, and then a generation further down the road, our relationship with Kimi also began the same year, in 2017.

“It’s really exciting to go into next year as well with that homegrown lineup and to start to see how they perform and deliver as a teammate pairing.”

No matter what comes next for Lord in the future, it’s already been an unforgettable career. Being part of the all-conquering Mercedes team at the peak of its powers in the early years of the hybrid era, it’s easy to lose sight of the incredibly unique position in sport Lord found himself in, but he is cognisant of that fact.

As our interview draws to a close, I put a final question to him – was his role in Mercedes’ domination something he views as defining in his life, not merely in his career?

Pausing to think for a second, Lord replies, “The records are all for the museum and you’re only as good as your last result. It fades very, very quickly.

“Actually, the idea of rolling your sleeves up and getting stuck into the problems and the challenges, that’s what gets most people out of bed every day – solving the problems and overcoming the difficult bits, rather than the prospect of savouring the wins.

“That is the driving force, I think. They are huge life moments but, equally, it’s cars going around in circles. We’re extremely fortunate to be able to work in an industry where what you do every day can overlap with your passion, and what so many millions of people around the world are passionate about.

“I think it’s important never to lose sight of that privilege, and never to lose the sense of wonder that you had the first time you walked into a paddock, walked into a garage, or heard an F1 engine fire up and leave that garage as well.

“The day you lose that is the day it’s time to go do a different job in a different industry.”

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