Helmut Marko, Red Bull F1 Motorsports Advisor, said he is investigating allegations that the Aston Martin F1 team has copied Red Bull Racing’s RB18.
The Aston Martin F1 team arrived at the Spanish Grand Prix this weekend in a car very similar to the RB18. With this, the FIA (International Automobile Federation) investigated whether the team had legally developed the upgrade package or obtained data from Red Bull.
“Reverse engineering” is illegal in F1.
The FIA said Aston Martin’s car was “legal” on Friday morning, but Red Bull F1 motorsport advisor Helmut Marko was downloaded by a former employee who joined the Aston Martin F1 team. He claimed that there was “evidence” and hinted that the problem was not over yet.
“Currently, copying is not prohibited,” Helmut Marko told Sky Sports Germany.
“But we must also take into account that seven people have been pulled out of us and that our chief aero dynamist (Dan Fallows) has joined Aston Martin at a disproportionately high amount.”
“There are still some facts we are checking. We will consider them in detail. There is evidence that the data has been downloaded.”
Dan Fallows joined the Aston Martin F1 team after a long gardening vacation, but Helmut Marko wonders if Aston Martin can reach a similar concept without data.
“Dan Fallows was on a gardening vacation. It’s not banned by the approach of copying what he has in his head … but without copying the documentation, details our car like that. Is it possible to make a good copy? “
Red Bull Racing issued a statement calling the issue potentially “serious concern.”
“Oracle Red Bull Racing is interested in the FIA’s statement and is paying attention to it. Imitation is the greatest form of flattery, but design reproductions clearly need to comply with the FIA’s rules for” reverse engineering. ” However, if an IP (intellectual property) transfer occurs, it clearly violates the regulations and is a serious concern. ”
Category: Category: F1 / Red bull / Aston Martin