"The most important consideration in my decision to step down from the role as team principal was to ensure that the timing was right for the team in order to ensure its future success," Brawn said in the statement.

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Brawn stands down as Mercedes F1 team principal

"The most important consideration in my decision to step down from the role as team principal was to ensure that the timing was right for the team in order to ensure its future success," Brawn said in the statement. (Getty Images)

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His departure will bring change for drivers Lewis Hamilton, Britain's 2008 world champion with McLaren, and Germany's Nico Rosberg although the succession has been widely discussed and Brawn's successors have had time to work themselves in. (Getty Images)

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Lowe was with Hamilton at McLaren previously while Austrian Wolff, a former Williams team director, is also in charge of Mercedes's broader motorsport activities. (Getty Images)

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Brawn is one of the most successful and respected figures in the sport after winning a string of world championships with three different teams. (Getty Images)

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The bespectacled Englishman, a keen Manchester United football fan, was the tactical brains behind Michael Schumacher's seven world championships - two with Benetton and then five in a row at Ferrari between 2000-04 . (Getty Images)

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After leaving Ferrari at the end of 2006 to take a sabbatical, and spend some time fishing, he joined the Honda team at the end of 2007 and led them until the Japanese manufacturer withdrew from the sport a year later. (Getty Images)

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With Brawn GB, the team that emerged from the remains of Honda and was later sold to Mercedes, he won both world championships in 2009. (Getty Images)

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