Aston Martin F1 has called Red Bull’s slanderous slander this season “white noise” after the AMR23 has significantly moved up the F1 pecking order.
After finishing seventh in last season’s Constructors’ Championship, Aston Martin is now the second fastest car on the grid, ahead of Mercedes, Ferrari and Alpine.
The power unit, gearbox and rear suspension are the same as Mercedes, but Red Bull feels the Aston Martin’s aerodynamics are very similar to last year’s RB18.
While there are similarities, it’s enough to set it apart from the comments made by Christian Horner, Helmut Marko and Sergio Perez following the result of the season opener in Bahrain, where Fernando Alonso finished third. AMR23 has a unique DNA.
In particular, Horner said, “It’s nice to see an old car doing so well,” and Alonso won third place at the following Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
The car was developed by Red Bull’s technical director Dan Follows and assistant TD Eric Blandin.
“It can always happen,” said performance director Tom McCullough when asked by Speedcafe about Red Bull’s remarks.
“Honestly, it just seems like white noise to me. We’re doing our job. We know what we’re doing. Don’t let that distract you.” “
Aston Martin aero development concerns
McCullough admits it will be difficult for Aston Martin to close the current gap, even if Red Bull receives a penalty for exceeding the 2021 budget cap.
McCullough even feels that Aston Martin is likely to lose out in development to both Mercedes and Ferrari this year, with Mercedes and Ferrari two teams looking to move forward from platforms that are relatively low by their high standards.
“Our goal is to develop this car from the ground up and get as close to them as possible,” said McCullough.
“But they are not standing still. Ferrari and Mercedes have a good margin on one lap.”
“Apart from Red Bull, it will be very difficult to maintain the development speed of Ferrari and Mercedes this year.”
“But we are giving it our all every week, every week.”
Red Bull’s cost cap penalty beneficial but not dominant
However, Aston Martin has a significant advantage over Red Bull when it comes to additional wind tunnel time this season.
Red Bull went into this season with a ‘penalty’ for winning last year’s title, but the addition of penalties for exceeding the cost cap has widened the gap on its rivals considerably.
But McCullough believes Aston Martin has imposed more than just wind tunnel information.
“It’s part of the regulation and allowing a little bit of that definitely helps,” McCullough said.
“But I don’t think it’s the dominant factor. Rather, it’s the restructuring that we’ve done, the lessons we learned early last year, and the lessons we learned during the last year.
“What we’re seeing now is an extension of that. Last year there were a lot of things we couldn’t do in terms of cost savings.”
“Years ago we could have made last year’s car even faster during the season. There are things we could have done in the past that we can’t do now.”
“In terms of the cost cap, we will start fresh next season.”
Category: F1 / Aston Martin F1 Team / red bull racing