Szafnauer claims role in Aston Martin's success story: "Who hired those people?"

Otmar Szafnauer has indicated that he did indeed play a role in the current success of Aston Martin. The team principal, who is currently working at Alpine, which is currently in sixth place in the championship, says that he hired the praised engineers of the British team before his departure. Now, he must try to show the same progress with Alpine as Aston Martin.

Aston Martin is currently doing much better than Alpine. The British team is receiving a lot of praise, while Alpine, partly due to its own CEO, is facing a lot of criticism. "There is much talk about Dan Fallows and Eric Blandin and their work on the current car, but who hired them?" a slightly cynical Szafnauer is quoted by SoyMotor. Along with them, other technicians coming from Red Bull or Mercedes have also joined the team in Silverstone.

The American was unable to work with the new people at Aston Martin for even a minute. "It took a long time for these new people to make a difference because they had to first serve their gardening leave." This gardening leave often lasts over a year for prominent figures within Formula 1 teams. Szafnauer himself left due to disagreement with Lawrence Stroll and subsequently joined the Alpine team, which means he is not part of the success of the British team.

Alpine has three more seasons to reach the top

Alpine must now start chasing Aston Martin, and the team aims to undergo the same growth. However, the outdated simulator and wind tunnel are in need of replacement. "Ours is a second-hand model purchased from McLaren. But it will take at least a year and a half, maybe even two, before we have a new one." Alpine still has enough time to be back at the top within 100 Grands Prix. "We have 75 Grands Prix ahead of us, which is equivalent to three seasons," said Szafnauer.