New DS Penske Deputy Team Principal Phil Charles explained that Jean-Eric Vergne and Jay Penske were a huge part of the former F1 engineer moving from Jaguar to DS Penske. 

The former Jaguar TCS Racing technical manager was an instrumental part in bringing Jaguar the success they have had in seasons nine and ten.

The Englishmen explained how important Jean-Eric Vergne (whom he worked together with at Toro Rosso during Vergne’s time in Formula 1) and Jay Penske were in securing his move to the French outfit.

“There are two main reasons why I decided to make the move from Jaguar to DS Pesnke,” stated Charles. “The first was Jean-Eric Vergne. He grabbed me and said that I had to come.

“The second reason was Jay Penske. He was amazingly persuasive. He stands for everything I stand for. He wants to make things better and he is desperate to win races.

“Ultimately, that is why I am here. The team has great drivers, great people, and the fact that Jay Penske gave me a very big pull. 

Charles will be overseeing the engineering side of the garage in his role as Depty Team Principal as well as keeping close tabs on the financial and organisation structure of the team.

“My role within the team gives me quite a bit of freedom. I will be in charge of the team and the engineering side of things, but I will also have a say on some of the more well-rounded approaches like the finance, and the bits involved with the organisation of the team. 

Charles is also confident that the team can challenge for victories this season, which is proven by their strong start to the campaign.

“The team can challenge this season, they were second in the championship before I arrived and that was a great start. The main thing that I have learnt, is that they are a great bunch of people.

“If you look at it as a whole percentage of the team that won back-to-back championships not that long ago at all. That was really good, but also a bit tricky for them. When you win and you’re that prolific, you can start to get a bit conservative, but I’m here now, I have some new ideas and I can’t wait to get started.”