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Total Competition: Lessons in Strategy from Formula One Hardcover – 3 Nov. 2016

by Ross Brawn (Author), Adam Parr (Author)
4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 1,757 ratings
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Total Competition is the most compelling, comprehensive and revealing insight into what it takes to get to the top in Formula One that has ever been published.

Across four decades, Ross Brawn was one of the most innovative and successful technical directors and then team principals in Formula One. Leading Benetton, Ferrari, Honda, Brawn and Mercedes, he worked with drivers such as Michael Schumacher, Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton to make them world champions. In 2017, he was appointed F1's managing director, motor sports, by the sport's new owners Liberty Media. Now, in this fascinating book written with Adam Parr (who was CEO and then chairman of Williams for five years), he looks back over his career and methods to assess how he did it, and where occasionally he got things wrong. 

Total Competition is a definitive portrait of modern motorsport. In the book, Brawn and Parr explore the unique pressures of Formula One, their battles with Bernie Ecclestone, and the cut-throat world they inhabited, where coming second is never good enough. This book will appeal not only to the millions of Formula One fans who want to understand how Brawn operates, it will also provide many lessons in how to achieve your own business goals. 

'A must-have insight into the awe-inspiring career of a true motor racing great' Daily Express
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  1. Print length
    336 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Simon & Schuster UK
  4. Publication date
    3 Nov. 2016
  5. Dimensions
    24.7 x 2.9 x 16.6 cm
  6. ISBN-10
    1471162354
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1471162350
  8. See all details
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Product description

Review

‘A fascinating insight’ (Giles Richards Observer)

'It has widespread appeal as well as offering a unique insight into F1...this is a must-read.' (Edd Straw Autosport)

'Offers valuable lessons on how to succeed in pressurised environments and forge working relationships with difficult colleagues. And for those in love with the sport, it is a must-have insight into the awe-inspiring career of a true motor racing great.' (Daily Express)

'Eccentric but brilliant...some theories from within could be applied to other professions and indeed personal lives.' (Motorsport)

About the Author

Ross Brawn is the most successful technical director in Formula One history, having led Benetton, Ferrari, Honda, and Mercedes to world championship glory, and worked with some of the greatest names in the sport, including Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton. After retiring at the end of 2013, he returned in January 2017 as F1's managing director, motor sports.

Adam Parr is a businessman, investor, and lawyer whose career has taken him all over the world. Between 2006 and 2012 he was CEO and then chairman of the Williams Formula One team, where he was responsible for bringing hybrid technology to the team as well as turning round its fortunes.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Simon & Schuster UK; UK ed. edition (3 Nov. 2016)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 336 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1471162354
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1471162350
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 24.7 x 2.9 x 16.6 cm
  • Customer reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 1,757 ratings

About the authors

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  1. Adam Parr

    Adam Parr

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    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Adam Parr is an Anglo-French barrister and businessman, and former chairman and chief executive of the Williams Formula One team.

    Adam chairs Oxford Semantic Technologies Limited, an AI spin-out of the University of Oxford, and Cheesecake Energy Limited, a spin-out of the University of Nottingham, developing compressed air energy storage systems.

    In 2020, Adam set up Homeland Conservation, a UK charity dedicated to accelerating the carbon drawdown, focusing on the agricultural sector. So far, Homeland Conservation has helped launch Downforce®, an innovative technology for measuring natural capital, and SRI 2030, an initiative to promote climate-smart rice cultivation.

    Adam is a Business Fellow at the Smith School for Enterprise and the Environment at the University of Oxford and Adjunct Professor at the University of Western Australia.

    Adam is the author of two books about Formula One: The Art of War – Five Years in Formula One; and co-author, with Ross Brawn, of Total Competition – Lessons in Strategy from Formula One. His academic study, The Mandate of Heaven — Strategy, Revolution, and the First European Translation of Sunzi’s Art of War (1772) was published by Brill in 2019.

    Adam was born in London in 1965. He holds an MA from Cambridge University and a PhD from UCL University of London. He has lived and worked in Europe, Japan, South Africa and Australia. Today he lives in Oxford with his wife and two children.

    Learn more at www.adamparr.net

    See more on the author's page
  2. Brawn, Ross

    Brawn, Ross

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Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
1,757 global ratings

Customers say

Customers find the content fascinating, insightful, and succinct. They also describe the strategist as excellent and the book as good. Opinions are mixed on readability, with some finding it readable and informative while others say it's disjointed.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

Select to learn more
ContentDepth of ideasGiftabilityReadability
87 customers mention ‘Content’87 positive0 negative

Customers find the book fascinating, erudite, and insightful. They also say it includes interesting inside information they hadn't previously known about. Readers also say the book is readable and informative about F1 racing.

"...from Parr were too long but the answers of Ross were clear and full of substance...." Read more

"...Overall though this is an easy to read and interesting read about the politics and life of Formula One and if you are interested in the Sport or the..." Read more

"Great Paperback, what a good book that touches the surface really of a very clever and I’d say humble man" Read more

"Definitely loved the insightful chat between two guys who know the inner workings of an F1 team and Ross's take on what it takes to manage a..." Read more

18 customers mention ‘Depth of ideas’18 positive0 negative

Customers find the book has great insights into the workings and dynamics of Formula 1. They also say the author is a very smart guy with well thought through views. Readers also say it's a refreshing and interesting way to present a book.

"...The F1 insights were interesting and included some interesting inside information that I hadn't previously known about certain events and Ross's..." Read more

"A really well written, easy to read, manual for success...." Read more

"...The parts with Ross Brawn discussing his working practices were truly excellent, and the parts where he discusses his working practices with Michael..." Read more

"Ross Brawn is as succinct and informative as I expected him to be.Adam Parr on the other hand (who?) is just annoying...." Read more

4 customers mention ‘Giftability’4 positive0 negative

Customers find the book a good gift.

"...The perfect present for a F1 fan." Read more

"Good gift" Read more

"Good one as a gift!..." Read more

"It made a nice gift for a complete petrol..." Read more

18 customers mention ‘Readability’11 positive7 negative

Customers have mixed opinions about the readability of the book. Some find it readable and easy to understand, while others say the format makes it very disjointed to read and lacks continuity. Some readers also mention that the book is strangely written as an interview, which spoils the flow of the read.

"...Overall though this is an easy to read and interesting read about the politics and life of Formula One and if you are interested in the Sport or the..." Read more

"...of War" by Sun Tzu didn't really add a lot and maybe spoiled the flow of the book...." Read more

"A really well written, easy to read, manual for success...." Read more

"...Its definitely one of the more readable and sport informative F1 books." Read more

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1 out of 5 stars

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Top reviews from United Kingdom

Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars and one could not miss the fact that Ross Brawn is a very smart guy, given his work at Brawn GP team
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 4 March 2018
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I follow F1 since Senna days, and one could not miss the fact that Ross Brawn is a very smart guy, given his work at Brawn GP team.
Honda was withdrawing from F1 and Brawn with the help of a Mercedes engine and a brilliant car developed the year before, won the title.

What was really a delight for me was to discover in Ross a fine man, with principles and deep caring for people as well as for technical side of the stuff. I found some introduction from Parr were too long but the answers of Ross were clear and full of substance. Every fan of F1 would love the book as it gives insights much deeper than the regular articles about the sport. You get to know also the unseen (and ugly) sides of Toto and Nikki and Bernie, principles of management and working with people.
5 people found this helpful
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Sarugumo
4.0 out of 5 stars Total Competition
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 13 August 2021
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'Total Competition' is a book that explores the history and racing strategy of Ross Brawn. Conducted in a series of conversations with Adam Parr, it makes for very interesting reading.

Some of the book feels a little dated now as F1 has moved on quite a lot since this was written, but if you follow the sport then this will still make sense.

Brawn comes across as a decent guy with some interesting ways of running a team and considering his success, they obviously worked. Parr tries to link these ideals into his previously written thesis on 'The Art of War' and sometimes these links feel a little tenuous, but it doesn't detract from how interesting the book is.

Bernie Ecclestone comes in for some stick in this book, from both writers and why this may well be warranted, it became obvious with the degree they did it. As a follower of the sport I found this fascinating, but as a reader of a business strategy book it felt a little out of place.

Overall though this is an easy to read and interesting read about the politics and life of Formula One and if you are interested in the Sport or the career of Ross Brawn, then this is well worth a read. There are some business lessons that you can glean from this, but this feels kinda secondary at times and there are better books if you are after this specifically.
5 people found this helpful
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Paul Myatt
5.0 out of 5 stars Brawn ….
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 15 October 2023
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Great Paperback, what a good book that touches the surface really of a very clever and I’d say humble man
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Craig Thomas
3.0 out of 5 stars Good insight into F1, but not the best example.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 30 May 2018
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Definitely loved the insightful chat between two guys who know the inner workings of an F1 team and Ross's take on what it takes to manage a successful team. I found the linking to "The Art of War" by Sun Tzu didn't really add a lot and maybe spoiled the flow of the book. I would rather have read a short summary of Sun Tzu's work and a separate book on Ross and Adam's F1 experiences.
I preferred the Adrian Newey book.
3 people found this helpful
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shadowfax
5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant book. Probably not for you if all you're ...
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 27 February 2017
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Brilliant book. Probably not for you if all you're interested in is F1 racing. However very very interesting if you want to know what happens in the background, how people relate to each other, what thinking is required, how the business of running an F1 team goes on. Lots of reference (quite appropriately) to Sun Tzu - The Art of War and how this can be applied to the F1 environment. If you thought F1 was a few groups of people racing cars every few weeks then this book will show you what a small (but essential) part of the whole thing the racing really is. From afar I had already formed a very positive and favourable impression of Ross Brawn. This book has just served to confirm my view, and to convince me that F1 under Liberty Media is in excellent hands if they let Ross lead it the way it needs to go.
One person found this helpful
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snowman1
4.0 out of 5 stars A very good read for anyone with an interest in F1 and in effective practice & process.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 7 April 2017
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This book will not be for everyone, but I found it very good.

I am an F1 follower and also have an interest in process and working productively so I am probably the ideal audience for it. The F1 insights were interesting and included some interesting inside information that I hadn't previously known about certain events and Ross's views on some of the key F1 movers he has worked with and against. Brawn is an intelligent, rational and thoughtful person whose views are always well thought through and worth listening to (and I'm looking forward to his current role guiding the direction of the sport to eventually bear fruit). The other side of the book is Ross's views and practice on process, i.e. best approach to problem solving, incentivising, focussing effort, and acheiving quality, honed to what works based a great deal of experience in a competetive and unforgiving arena. Whilst the authors acknowledge where and how this differs from other industries, there is a lot to interest any manager or technical/knowledge worker who wants to see better effectiveness in these areas.

Parr's approach and his influence on the structure of the book is something of a curate's egg. Whilst it is obviously relevant to their discussion, like other commenters I'm not sure that over-reliance on Sun Tzu as a framework for the book always works; it distracts as often as it focusses the discussion. But Parr is a decent foil for Brawn in terms of stimulating their discussion.

In short I'd recommend it as an excellent and stimulating read if you have an interest in the two subject matters. As regards the F1 side, get it now while the content is fresh and relevant to rhe current F1 scene! whilst the discussions on the process and management aspects are solidly based and will not age.
5 people found this helpful
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CS
5.0 out of 5 stars Interesting read on Ross Brawn, and the real behind scenes strategy battles of running F1 team management.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 25 August 2017
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After reading previous reviews I wasn't expecting such an interesting read ! Some of the behind the scenes stuff revealed by RB on the dealings of getting Brawn team going involving Behind his back deals make you realise what a shark infested business world is out there. Ross comes across as a genuinely good and honourable guy although maybe some of the Ferrari 'team orders' make you wonder if that is rose coloured glasses and there might be a slightly different side to that story ? RB doesn't pull his punches when discussing the drivers and team people he has worked with, interesting to read his thoughts on Jenson's mid 2009 season blip and what happened at Mercedes leading to his departure.
Previous comments about Adam Parr's sections led me to expect a low interest but I found it insightful and well explained while making lessons learned from military battles relevant.
Overall I found it a page turner so would fully recommend it.
4 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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Greg
5.0 out of 5 stars Great read
Reviewed in Canada on 19 March 2024
Verified Purchase
Could not put the book down once I started reading it. Well written with some interesting background on F1, especially the governance and team aspects.
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MARCO
5.0 out of 5 stars Buen libro
Reviewed in Mexico on 18 August 2021
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Excelente
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DarthSergius
5.0 out of 5 stars Imprescindible para fans de la f1
Reviewed in Spain on 27 March 2023
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Ross Brawn, poco se puede decir de alguien clave en el éxito de Benetton, Ferrari y Mercedes. Ideal para fans de la f1
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Alexandre Staufacar Correia
5.0 out of 5 stars A deep dive on an amazing sport!!!
Reviewed in Brazil on 26 October 2020
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The book is really easy and enjoyable to read. To understand how the F1 utilizes business tools and how the sport relates to any regular company is incredible. Of course, to learn a little bit more about F1’s back stage and politics is an extra.
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harry
5.0 out of 5 stars Easy read conversation style book
Reviewed in Australia on 24 February 2024
Verified Purchase
Good insight into Ross brawn and his career and how he Went about things over his journey both as a manager and f1 engineer
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