Ex-McLaren boss Ron Dennis waves chequered flag after 37 years

Ron Dennis, the former boss of the McLaren automotive group, is to sever ties with the Formula One company after 37 years.

The announcement of a deal with fellow shareholders confirmed an exclusive Sky News report that Mr Dennis was to sell his stake for £275m.

Mr Dennis is offloading stakes in McLaren Technology Group, which controls the F1 team, and McLaren Automotive Limited, the road car manufacturer.

The deal unites the two arms of the company under a single structure and puts its worth at more than £2bn, making it one of Britain's most valuable private companies.

Bahrain's sovereign wealth fund Mumtalakat and Mr Dennis's long-term business partner Mansour Ojjeh will remain the main shareholders.

Mr Dennis, who turned 70 earlier this month, was put on gardening leave from his role of chief executive of MTG last December following an acrimonious legal battle with his fellow shareholders.

Since stepping down as MTG's chairman and chief executive, Mr Dennis has joined the Ministry of Defence's Innovation Advisory Panel, which is tasked with applying new technologies to defence activities.

He remained on the board of MTG but is now also relinquishing that role.

Mr Dennis spent more than 35 years as the boss of McLaren, enjoying huge success on the track with drivers such as Lewis Hamilton, who is now part of the Mercedes F1 team.

He also became one of Britain's best-known businessmen, expanding McLaren's technology ventures into a wide range of other industries through lucrative commercial partnerships.

However, the recent performance of the F1 team cast a shadow over the entire McLaren brand, and relations between Mr Dennis and his fellow investors soured badly.

"I am disappointed that the representatives of TAG [Mr Ojjeh] and Mumtalakat...have forced through this decision to place me on gardening leave, despite the strong warnings from the rest of the management team about the potential consequences of their actions on the business," Mr Dennis said in a statement last December.

"Ultimately it has become clear to me through this process that neither TAG nor Mumtalakat share my vision for McLaren and its true growth potential."