» An old face returns to the F1 paddock

The Lotus Renault GP outfit has generally seen the departure – as opposed to the hiring – of several high-profile technical staff, but for once it sees an experienced hand join their ranks. Admittedly, however, it’s Dave Ryan, McLaren’s former team manager who was sacked in 2009 after the ‘Lie-Gate’ scandal.

The New Zealander was fired by the team after it emerged he had instructed Lewis Hamilton to lie to stewards following the 2009 Australian Grand Prix.

Since then, he has dabbled in running his own team in endurance racing, ironically fielding a pair of McLaren MP4-12C hypercars.

But BBC F1 lead commentator Martin Brundle has since spilled the beans that Ryan is back in the F1 paddock, “in Sao Paulo to advise [the] Renault team”, he wrote on his Twitter feed.

[Original image via LAT]