MARCH 18, 1996

Rinland to Benetton

THE current wave of engineer movements in Formula 1 continues with the news that Argentine designer Sergio Rinland is to join the ranks of engineers at Benetton. Rinland is expected to concentrate on composite design, replacing Richard McAinsh, who recently left the Enstone team to join Stewart Grand Prix.

Rinland - who was 44 yesterday - has been involved in F1 since 1983 when he was a designer with RAM. He went on to Williams and Brabham and spent a year as chief designer with Scuderia Italia. He returned to Brabham in 1989 and stayed until the team closed down, later employing many ex-Brabham staff in his own design studio called Astauto, which designed the 1992 Fondmetal. Since then, Rinland has worked on the Toyota Indycar, with Keke Rosberg's German Touring Car Championship team and - very briefly - with Forti last year.

Another composite expert Paul Crooks has left the TWR/Ligier empire to join Jordan, where he will be Drawing Office Manager. Crooks's F1 career began in 1983 with Toleman - after 11 years at the Royal Aircraft Establishment, Farnborough - he moved to Ligier in 1989 and stayed there as head of the composite design team until he joined Simtek in 1994. After Simtek's closure he went back to Ligier.

Ligier's technical director Frank Dernie, incidentally, has recently signed a new contract with TWR and is expected to continue in a senior engineering role in the new TWR/Arrows outfit.