Aston Martin chief Andy Cowell says the team must “use” and “not stagnate” Adrian Newey’s creativity when the legendary designer joins March.
Aston Martin announced in September that they had signed Newey as the management of the technical partner following his appearance from Red Bull after nearly two decades with Milton Keynes’s squad.
The hope is that Newey’s arrival, along with some other recent high profile arrivals, including Cowell, can push the team into championships when new rules are presented for season 2026.
Newey, who designed the winning championship cars in Williams and McLaren before his success with Red Bull, left the latter after a noticeable breakdown in his relationship with team director Christian Horner.
Asked if he will ensure that Newey has the freedom to operate while wanting in Aston Martin, Cowell said Sky Sports News: “Absolutely.
“Adrian is very competitive, he is very creative and as an organization we have to use it, not expect it.
“All people operating in the creative area, how can we offer an amazing environment – both personally as you work, (and) while working in the building with other people?
“How can we make sure the tools are the top drawer – CFD (the dynamics of the calculator), the wind tunnel, the objects of production? And that’s why I think this is the thing that inspires creative people.”
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Ted Kravitz sits down with Adrian Newey to discuss his Aston Martin seismic movement, Fernando Alonso and if he can turn the team into world champions.
Former Mercedes Cowell engine chief, who overseen an unprecedented period of success for Arrow Silver, joined Aston Martin as the leading official of the group in October last year, before deciding to undertake from Mike Krack as director of the team in January.
Cowell has no illusion about the level of reception faced by the ‘dream team’ collected by the extremely ambitious owner of Aston Martin Lawrence Salc to produce a car – for his son Lance Salc and twice the world champion Fernando Alonso .
He said: “We are working extremely hard to make the racing machine our main focus, to work together in a collaborative way, a high -performance team.
“We believe by working so we’ll get faster and faster. We want to win races, we want to win championships, we would like our drivers to be first and second in the driver championships, and We would like to win the championship back-back.
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Christian Horner answers questions about whether Adrian Newey is less of a threat to Aston Martin and compares his appearance with Eric Cantona and Cristiano Ronaldo in Manchester United.
“This is the dream, to have the green racing car to see the flag check first, and to make that race after the race after the race.
“But we are realistic, we understand that our opponents are extremely strong and therefore we must set difficult objectives, both in terms of performance and in the time we reach them, and leave no gaps, not to We have repentance as we move forward. “
Restructuring created to make the team ‘more efficient’
The team took a big jump in front of 2023 as they started the season as a closer surprise challenge for Red Bull, but failed to build that moment.
As they ended up the fifth in the constructors’ ranking for a second season in 2024, the gap for Mercedes, which completed both campaigns in the fourth, rose from 22 to 374 points.
Given the ambition of the walk, it was not surprising at all when a ‘restructuring of the organization’ was introduced in January, with Krack becoming the Trackside Chief and Enrico Cardile Technical Chief after his arrival from Ferrari.
Cowell said: “Lawrence was very clear that he wanted me to run the team, work on what to do, how to inspire everyone, set the mission and make it. I am enjoying that challenge.
“One of the first things we do in the first few months is to look at the organization and see how it is working, and I think the changes we have made help make the organization more efficient.
“A more enjoyable organization, fewer layers of management, always makes communication better, makes it more efficient.
“My style is to go and see what’s going on, see what’s going on within the engineering area, recruitment, IT, and try to balance all those areas up.”
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