- Ron Dennis, the former head of McLaren's Formula 1 team and executive chairman of McLaren Automotive, has been banned from driving in the U.K. for six months, after running a red light.
- Dennis was charged three points for the infraction, bringing his total to 12 points, resulting in an automatic six-month driving suspension.
- The local court denied Dennis' request to keep his license and fined him $650, including court costs.
WOKING, England — Ron Dennis, the former head of McLaren's Formula 1 team and executive chairman of McLaren Automotive, has been banned from driving in the U.K. for six months, after running a red light and accumulating too many penalty points.
Dennis was charged three points for the infraction, bringing his total to 12 points, resulting in an automatic six-month driving suspension, according to Autosport.
London's Daily Mirror said the local court denied Dennis' request to keep his license and fined him $650, including court costs.
U.K. media reports said Dennis told the court he drove through the light last fall in Bagshot to avoid collision with a friend's car that was following close behind.
Inside Line says: During the global rollout of McLaren's new MP4-12C, don't look for Dennis in the driver seat — unless it's on the racetrack. — Paul Lienert, Correspondent
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mce63 says:
05:13 PM, 03/14/2011
Quick. The first thing that pops into your head:
"...My ##### does one-eighty-five. I lost my license, now I don't drive."
desmolicious says:
02:06 PM, 03/14/2011
Well, at least Dennis didn't start a thread complaining about getting a ticket in a no stopping zone...
throwback says:
12:22 PM, 03/14/2011
The important questions here is; Was he driving a MP4-12C? If so then the fine is okay. If he where driving a Ferrari however, well a year at least, is called for.
e90_m3 says:
12:16 PM, 03/14/2011
He should threaten to move McLaren out of the UK if the authorities don't back down.
What's the point of having England if McLaren, Top Gear, and the Premier League are not around?
ed341 says:
11:30 AM, 03/14/2011
"don't look for Dennis in the driver seat - unless it's on the racetrack"
If the UK has similar rules to the US you have to have a license to drive on a racetrack, unless McLaren now has there own dedicated track. They didn't at the time of the MP4-12C's development because they had to use Top Gear's track.
jhatmaker24 says:
11:16 AM, 03/14/2011
Whatever....British traffic laws are ridiculous. Forget about going 5 over and not getting a ticket. People in LA think the traffic cameras there are bad. In England they practically out-number the people.
It's a shame really, especially out in the county with all those great roads....
No sweat from Ron's neck, I'm sure he can afford a car service. In fact, I offer my services as his personal driver if our car of use is the new MP4-12C
agentorange says:
11:01 AM, 03/14/2011
"U.K. media reports said Dennis told the court he drove through the light last fall in Bagshot to avoid collision with a friend's car that was following close behind."
Which just tells me that Ron and his buddy were going too fast and too close. I don't have a problem with the outcome.