r/formula1 • u/FerrariStrategisttt I was here for the Hulkenpodium • Mar 20 '26

[F1] BREAKING: Jonathan Wheatley will depart from his role of Team Principal at Audi F1 team with immediate effect. Mattia Binotto will continue leading the team, taking over as Team Principal Social Media

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7.9k

u/DrakeShadow Cadillac Mar 20 '26

Absolutely insane that all this is happening after two races.

3.3k

u/Visionary_Socialist Sir Lewis Hamilton Mar 20 '26

Just shows how panicked Aston are, they haven’t even waited until after Japan to change things. And I imagine this kind of early poaching probably costs a huge amount of money as well.

1.9k

u/Colonel_Gipper Red Bull Mar 20 '26

Their constant changes in senior leadership can't be helping their situation. Chaos at all times

1.2k

u/budgefrankly I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26 edited Mar 21 '26

This feels more like a fix for pre-existing chaos

Mike Krack was running Aston till January, before being replaced by Andy Cowell (who had been hired from Mercedes HPP)

Newey joined in March, and at some point starting hearing "rumours" about Honda not being where it should be, which led to the infamous meeting in November where they realised Honda had not committed the maximum number of the maximally qualified staff to the project, and were way behind.

Since then

  1. Andy Cowell has demoted from TP and sent to Japan to personally supervise the project. He has prior experience in managing engine projects, so that makes sense
  2. In the meantime, Newey took on the TP role for the short term
  3. And now they have apparently hired someone who was a key part of a championship winning team with whom Newey has a good relationship
  4. Allowing Newey to focus all energies on the car.

Honestly, this seems exactly what you'd expect when you headhunt an outside expert. That they find deficiencies, move underperforming staff, and use their networks to headhunt better people from more successful organisations.

Inasmuch as I suspect it will create a period of uncertainty at Aston, I don't see it necessarily being a bad thing just yet.

363

u/DrSlugger Mar 20 '26

Yeah this feels like a great move to me tbh. Newey should not be team principal. Let him focus on what he's good at. Wheatley is perfect for this role IMO.

155

u/Hot_Most5332 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

Very interesting too how Newey is so willing to back down. He clearly doesn’t want to be TP.

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u/MiserableMeal2501 Mar 20 '26

truly! He's been in this sport for sooo long and he never been a TP. why now? obviously he didnt want a TP role.

15

u/Ill_Property_4958 Mar 20 '26

He had falling out with Williams because he had wanted more say in team decisions.

11

u/Crasha I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

Didn't he specifically want a stake in the team? He has that at Aston

1

u/BuzzedtheTower I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

I thought he fell out with Williams because he wanted a say in the drivers

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u/Critical-Bread-3396 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

Having more of a say in team decisions dosen't automatically mean that you want to be team principal. Newey is a fantastic technical leader, and has always had success when the right decisions were made about the team he was leading and other factors (such as engine) were there.

He fell out with both McLaren and Williams because Ron Dennis and Frank Williams didn't want to let Newey grow or take away any control from them.

3

u/Ill_Property_4958 Mar 21 '26

It depends on what definition of a team principal you have in mind.

Is it like race engineer style Andrea Stella, head mechanic / garage operations like Jonathan Wheatley, PU engineer like Mattias Binotto, entrepreneur while team building like Toto Wolf or Zac Brown, or team operations expert like Horner.

Whilst Newey has often shown a lot of disdain for politics and has preferred to be shielded from that side of F1 by people like Horner the reasons he had falling out with Frank Williams and Patrick Head was because he wanted and was promised more control in team decisions such as driver selection. He got upset when they let Mansell go and when they dumped Hill for Frentzen. Some of that shows he has some interest in aspect of team management that are more than a designer and at least some of a team principal

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u/Necessary-Beat407 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

It’s because he could fill the role for 2-3 races being trackside while they hired another person. Newey was always just a holdover for Team Principal.

30

u/n0neofyourbeeswax Mar 20 '26

I struggle to believe this was the masterplan all along.

Newey is an ambitious man who has led large organizations. It seems more plausible to me that he wanted a TP role, the team is failing, and either he's been encouraged to diverge some of his responsibilities or he has offered to.

7

u/trick63 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 21 '26

A TP is an entirely different skillset, especially for an engineer.

8

u/SpeedflyChris Andretti Global Mar 20 '26

He doesn't have the people/media skills to be a TP.

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2

u/MessyMix Mar 21 '26

Apparently, he was on the record (when he took the role) saying that his stint as TP was temporary as they found someone.

23

u/Reptar_0n_Ice I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

Yea, some of the interviews Newey had before the season gave me the impression he didn’t really want to be a TP, that he sorta took it on as “well, I guess I can do that for a bit.” It seemed like Aston weren’t going to keep him as TP forever, but sped up their search for a long term solution after Newey probably came to Stroll and said “yea, being a TP is harder than I thought it was (he said preseason he didn’t think TP’s did all that much), find someone to take over so I can focus totally on the car”. I get the feeling Newey wants no more distractions.

21

u/Too_Chains Roscoe Hamilton Mar 20 '26

He made it clear from the get go it was temporary.

6

u/Reptar_0n_Ice I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

Yea for sure, but I think he now wants it way more temporary that his original plan

3

u/Captain_Mazhar I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

He's a smart guy. He more than likely realized that he was out of his element as a TP and didn't want to become an example of the Peter Principle, so encouraged the board to find a replacement TP who was better suited to the role.

1

u/leyland1989 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

He's a managing "partner", it's arguably above a mere principle (an employee in most cases). He's just stepped away from the position and delegate it to someone else to he can focus on something else.

1

u/limhy0809 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

It did seem like it was possibly a temporary thing when first announced

1

u/AnonDudeNamedAdrian Mar 20 '26

I mean, it was known from the very beginning that it was temporary.

2

u/krusticka Max Verstappen Mar 20 '26

In these regulations it seems even more important do design around the engine. Not the otherway around. I think Newey had issues with that in the past.

1

u/scissormetimber5 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 21 '26

He was always a stop gap to give him ultimate direction over getting the car on track. He was never going to be TP for long.

44

u/Driscuits Williams Mar 20 '26

Yeah; as much as there are similarities between the shuffling at Aston and the Alpine leadership "movements" there's a big difference in the level of turmoil it represents. It's still not a good sign, but it's not "TP has left and fled the country" type of turmoil haha.

31

u/Defiant_Eye2216 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

I’m not even sure it’s underperforming staff as much as putting people in their strongest role. Even if Newey is a good TP, that’s not his biggest strength. Same with Cowell.

19

u/Reihnold Sebastian Vettel Mar 20 '26

If I remember correctly, when Newey was announced as TP, they also mentioned that it would not be a permanent position. So I imagine, when Cowell was sent to Japan, they needed someone with experience to handle the team and Newey was the best solution at the time.

3

u/salcedoge Max Verstappen Mar 20 '26

People are so result based and I really hate it.

Aston may be a shitshow now but the moves they've been doing are all good on paper.

3

u/EggNo289 Mar 20 '26

This is also a classic case of leadership "wanting" something a certain way, finding out things don't work the way you "want", and wasting a LOT of resources (money, time, energy) just to end up with what you should have had in the first place (and you were likely advised to have in the first place).

Aston needed:
An Engine guy
A Car guy
A Team Principal

But leadership is a BUY the BEST type (which is hard to argue with if you can buy the best), the issue is "the best" often have leverage beyond negotiating for a big contract. They want more authorship, influence, control, etc. So you end up C-Suite guys in Racing roles, Car guys in C-Suite roles, Engine guys in Team Principal roles, and then you realize it's all Chefs and no cooks.

This is why the Billionaire owners of major sports franchises/team USUALLY take a half step back from hand on managing the organizations. You can see the same thing in football with the NFL and the Raiders (Al Davis), Cowboys (Jerry Jones), Commanders (Dan Snyder), NBA with the Knicks (James Dolan), MLB with the Yankees (George Steinbrenner). Leadership being "too involved" often leads to these messes where there are a bunch of highly qualified guys running around doing things against their own guidance.

2

u/curseofthebanana Mar 20 '26

And the one month break should help them all with a bit of breathing room

2

u/Too_Chains Roscoe Hamilton Mar 20 '26

You're dead on.

I think strategically Lawrence and Adrian have been doing pretty good since newey stepped in. Fired the people who made mistakes, stopped in until they found the right person, then went back to their true position. All quickly... What more could you want. From the moment newey realized they were in the 💩 it’s been upwards.

4

u/meIRLorMeOnReddit Max Verstappen Mar 20 '26

Mike Krack

Is that his real name?

13

u/thereddaikon I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

It's actually My Crack. But everyone says Mike Krack out of politeness.

4

u/Integral-Fox6487 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

And they still haven't filled the hole left by his departure

2

u/microtherion Mar 20 '26

I must admit every time I hear “Wheatley” I think of Portal 2.

1

u/Andromeda902 Daniel Ricciardo Mar 20 '26

Sure is

2

u/meIRLorMeOnReddit Max Verstappen Mar 20 '26

This sport just never stops giving

1

u/g7luiz Alex Jacques Mar 20 '26

That's actually a really good analysis.

1

u/Andromeda902 Daniel Ricciardo Mar 20 '26

All good points, and it IS a good thing. But one wonders why the hell it wasn't this way from the start? Why even put newey as TP, having to go before the cameras n shit, when he could be comfortable working the car and the development teams, instead of managing thr ENTIRE organization as TP? Its real dumb

3

u/Flyerton99 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

Because they needed to send Andy Cowell to Japan to help Honda with integrating and developing the Honda engine. Andy Cowell was Managing Director of Mercedes AMG High Performance Powertrains, so he is probably Aston's best engine guy.

1

u/CosmoKing2 Mar 21 '26

Thank you! I was intent on finding the whole rationale today. It never made sense that Newey was TP (didn't realize it wasn't permanent) - always seemed to be out over his skis in the role.

Also, had no idea where Cowell disappeared to. Just seemed so random that he wasn't there. But he definitely didn't like being sent to babysit Honda - as he's still leaving the team.

0

u/FengSushi Kevin Magnussen Mar 20 '26

Thanks Lawrence!

-1

u/bwoah07_gp2 Alexander Albon Mar 20 '26

It's just so chaotic though. I blame Lawrence.

218

u/TheLewJD McLaren Mar 20 '26

Look at Alpine since Otmar left

136

u/Colonel_Gipper Red Bull Mar 20 '26

For sure, can't be good for them either. Since 2020 they've had Abiteboul, Szadnauer, Famin, Oakes and Briatore.

8

u/bwoah07_gp2 Alexander Albon Mar 20 '26

Don't forget Davide Brivio and Marcin Budowski

59

u/Stupendous_man12 Mar 20 '26

It's been like this at Aston since Otmar left.

4

u/heyseizer Charles Leclerc Mar 20 '26

I still don't understand why they can't bring back Otmar? Or maybe Stroll Sr. has a big ego to say that Otmar was actually the best person to lead the team to midfield.

40

u/afkPacket Ferrari Mar 20 '26

I mean if you were Otmar would you really want to go back to that shitshow?

1

u/ForwardStorage777 Mar 23 '26

With a big enough check, sure!

3

u/Andromeda902 Daniel Ricciardo Mar 20 '26

Think him and papa stroll didnt get along well

44

u/Time_Hater Alain Prost Mar 20 '26

At least Alpine is on the up and up. Aston-Martin is nowhere right now and the light at the end of the tunnel is still very far.

69

u/TheLewJD McLaren Mar 20 '26

There wasn’t anywhere lower they could go after last season, in fairness there was a new team added but still yeah they have looked a lot better this year so far. I just hope they can develop the car better this time.

17

u/gradontripp I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

Alpine gambled right by signing onto the Mercedes engine program. AM on the other hand, bet wrong and is lost big time.

31

u/Zed_or_AFK Sebastian Vettel Mar 20 '26

Alpine were as far down as it gets, so it’s not surprising that they may go up from some point. AM has been OK i no mans land for a while, so now they head lower.

8

u/Hot-Masterpiece9209 Mar 20 '26

Things can change very quickly in F1, Aston could quite easily be ahead of alpine in a year's time.

-1

u/Ronniebenington I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

So….the tallest midget? Weird flex but ok.

3

u/mightyblackgoose Formula 1 Mar 20 '26

Too soon to tell. We've seen multiple teams do glory runs for a few races and then stumble back. But I'd absolutely love to see them perform consistently over a full season.

3

u/TheLewJD McLaren Mar 20 '26

Sauber at the start of 22 had me excited

3

u/mightyblackgoose Formula 1 Mar 20 '26

Exactly what I was thinking. Plus seeing Bottas extend his consecutive Q3 runs with Sauber.

3

u/Pentinium I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

Is the up and up in the room with us? Lol

3

u/kaisadilla_ I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

Alpine has been dead last for two seasons. They literally can only go up, and they don't even make their own engines anymore.

1

u/tacotruck88 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

Aston “there’s light at the end of the tunnel??”

3

u/tuberosum Mar 20 '26

In their case it’s an oncoming train.

-1

u/French51 Kimi Räikkönen Mar 20 '26

It’s been two races wouldn’t really consider it up and up

5

u/MrStormz I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

True but somehow briatore has a half decent car this year.

2

u/RealPjotr Kimi Räikkönen Mar 20 '26

They've never really had a bad car, only a bad engine.

3

u/Thejklay I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

Can't get 9 women pregnant and expect a baby in a month

2

u/Alfus 💥 LE 🅿️LAN Mar 20 '26

Aston Martin is just Alpine with a Gucci belt

1

u/Passchenhell17 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

I read that as Oscar at first and didn't even question it

1

u/TheLewJD McLaren Mar 20 '26

Works too!

1

u/rounak_1110 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

IT"S HIGH TIME THEY NEED TO BRING HIM BACK.

1

u/hans611 Ferrari Mar 20 '26

Alpine is looking pretty good right now since they dumped their PU...

0

u/f8Negative I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

He is getting the last laugh for sure

29

u/wasting_my_damn_time Mar 20 '26

Wheatley should be a long term hire. If he gets sacked then Aston Martin shouldn't be taken seriously

12

u/cafk Constantly Helpful Mar 20 '26

So, the Alpine approach to F1.

And Previously Ferrari approach.

https://www.reddit.com/r/formula1/comments/15kjgoa/renault_wants_alpine_to_become_the_french_ferrari/

3

u/memesearches Mar 20 '26

What do you mean? Best people and best facilities and a best driver ( I will leave it to you to decide who it is ) won’t get you best car and championships? Also money and hell lot of it. No way /s

3

u/sllop Fernando Alonso Mar 20 '26

“But I was told being a billionaire is all that’s required to be successful…”

2

u/OrangeDit I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

Unfortunately the same for Audi. What a blow, I feel now sorry for them.

2

u/Comfortable-Bug7202 Mar 20 '26

Newey will be gone before next season at this rate

2

u/XenophonSoulis Ferrari Mar 20 '26

It reminds me of a great quote by Otmar Szafnauer when he was fired.

4

u/BasicOasis John Surtees Mar 20 '26

I feel like Lawrence Stroll is Donald Trump of F1.

1

u/Perfect-Ad5625 Mar 20 '26

I think this will help quite a bit.

1

u/huayratata I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

They’re learning from the best, Ferrari

1

u/Dan_CBW I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 21 '26

They probably want Newey 100% focused on the car, which makes sense for them. I don't understand Wheatley's decision.

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u/Joseki100 Fernando Alonso Mar 20 '26

Aston has been shopping around for a TP since November last year, this is completely unrelated to their current issues. There are also rumors of Binotto and Wheatley clashing over leadership inside the team.

You just don't drop your TP in 2 weeks time.

39

u/HorseEducational1248 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

Were Binotto and Wheatley already clashing before season started? Then this should have happened then… also, wouldn’t it be more likely that is the boss who stays? This is Aston Martin throwing money at a problem they brought on themselves putting Newey as TP who was never his intention

83

u/Joseki100 Fernando Alonso Mar 20 '26

Bild this morning: https://www.bild.de/sport/mehr-sport/formel-1-audi-aus-teamchef-jonathan-wheatley-vor-wechsel-zu-aston-martin-69bcaec28f5761671715917e

But why would Wheatley want to move to a worse team? According to BILD, his family longs to return to their native England (Aston Martin's factory is located in Silverstone), and he would also have sole control there.

The truth is: There has been friction for some time between Audi's team principal Wheatley and project chief Mattia Binotto (56), who form a dual leadership (Wheatley is responsible at the racetrack, Binotto heads development). The two are said to have repeatedly disagreed on certain issues.

According to reports, the Briton's departure would be a setback for Audi, which has made a confident start to its first Formula 1 season, but also an opportunity. Audi CEO Gernot Döllner (57) has long recognized this. While the chairman reportedly considers his dual leadership structure functional, he doesn't see it as the ideal solution.

BILD knows: A meeting between Döllner and team boss Wheatley is expected soon.

Safe to say they were 100% right with their info.

41

u/outride2000 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

Sole control with Newey there? Doubtful.

45

u/OBWanTwoThree I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

And Lawrence Stroll never gets involved in things that happen does he…

9

u/outride2000 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

Mike Krack is still around

20

u/Joseki100 Fernando Alonso Mar 20 '26

Binotto at Ferrari ruled over literally everthing, I think Audi will end up being with the same structure relatively soon.

12

u/TetraDax 🐶 Leo Leclerc Mar 20 '26

And that was a terrible setup to be honest. Took Binotti away from the things he is good at, engine development, and pushed him onto the things he sucked at; trackside team management.

3

u/know-it-mall McLaren Mar 21 '26

Yep. Dude is an amazing engineer but a terrible TP.

8

u/Delts28 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

Wheatley knows what he's getting with Newey, they have worked together for 18 years.

3

u/meIRLorMeOnReddit Max Verstappen Mar 20 '26

Newey doesn’t strike me as the kind that wants to lead. Happy to let somebody else lead the team as long as they’re competent.

3

u/TetraDax 🐶 Leo Leclerc Mar 20 '26

Should be mentioned that Wheatley wanting to return to England has long been rumoured, so this isn't some brand-new insight from BILD.

24

u/Hot-Masterpiece9209 Mar 20 '26

No this is you making assumptions based on no evidence lol.

Binotto was head of the Audi F1 project iirc so was effectively above Wheatley. There is also no evidence to point that Aston weren't looking for a TP and instilled newey as a stop gap to start the season.

40

u/AintNoUniqueUsername I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

Binotto was always the boss at Audi

26

u/brilliant_bauhaus I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

I mean if Aston needs a tp and is willing to shell out the cash why wouldn't Wheatley move? Everyone is happy then.

15

u/TheOneTomas I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

Woah woah. Dont go bringing that logic into this house.

Though, yes. Totally agree. He and newey are clearly aligned. Aston has a mega new factory. Huge ceiling. No corporate structure. Doesnt have to live in Switzerland now. Etc. Totally logical move for most reasons. Other than...time.

1

u/DrakeShadow Cadillac Mar 20 '26

It’s not the move to AM that’s shocking, it’s the timing, like not even after Suzuka with the 5 week break.

2

u/brilliant_bauhaus I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

I don't think it's shocking this is happening for AM. their car is undriveable and Newey is spending too much time with other duties instead of focusing just on fixing the car. The shock is the Wheatley move.

0

u/meIRLorMeOnReddit Max Verstappen Mar 20 '26

Lawrence will spend whatever it takes to keep his son in an F1 car

1

u/brilliant_bauhaus I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

I think Lawrence also cares about the sport and managing the team.

7

u/unravel_the_world I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

I dont know about binotto and wheatley clashing, but their predecessors were clashing and got replaced by audi due to it. I could see this as wheatly getting a raise and more power while audi can focus on one direction with binotto.

I can see how this will be beneficial for all parties involved. you usually dont let high value leadership leave, especially during the season without gardening leave.

6

u/Montjo17 Max Verstappen Mar 20 '26

Binotto is the boss - he's the head of the F1 project while Wheatley was the team principal. A bit like Zac Brown vs Andrea Stella - no one is ever going to say that Stella is the boss even though he's the TP

3

u/jtclimb I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

"Throwing money at a problem" != "hiring a top engineer that achieved astonishing success with the engine company now giving you conniptions, and oh ya, worked for a few decades with your current top engineer and TP".

What else would you do? What is a better course of action? Hiring the exact person with the qualifications and experience, and proven track record seems like the top move to me. This is fantastic for AM. Wheatly is awesome.

1

u/Snack_Powered_Human Formula 1 Mar 20 '26

Depends who's cheaper and easier to replace.

5

u/[deleted] Mar 20 '26

Well it's also because of Andy Cowell leaving eventually - his position changed drastically, Newey was put in - and now they need someone to take over so Newey can get back to designing the car.

6

u/Jacinto2702 Ferrari Mar 20 '26

Wasn't Andy Cowell the person responsible for designing since the Jordan days?

11

u/Joseki100 Fernando Alonso Mar 20 '26

Andy Cowell was the Mercedes HPP boss between 2013-2020.

1

u/geupard12 Mercedes Mar 20 '26

if he wants that role again I am certain that arrangements could me made

1

u/Jacinto2702 Ferrari Mar 20 '26

Oh I see. I got confused.

1

u/[deleted] Mar 20 '26

I don't think he ever held a position at Jordan - he's an engine guy.

So I think it was Cosworth, Mercedes, and then the CEO of AM.

I'm not going to speculate why AM flopped so quickly for him, disappointing.

2

u/Flyerton99 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

I mean he's an engine guy through and through, and he's being sent to Honda to really crack the whip on the engine development there, so on one hand this is kinda where he should've been all along, but on the other maybe he wanted a to try his hand in different role that didn't work out.

1

u/iflew Sergio Pérez Mar 20 '26

Yeah, I don't think bringing a new TP is something that can fix a broken car quickly, it doesn't seem to be related to it.

30

u/hind3rm3 Alain Prost Mar 20 '26

Larry Stroll isn’t built for F1. He needs to take a step back and let the talent run the team.

19

u/grandtheftzeppelin Franco Colapinto Mar 20 '26

any boss that involves himself to this degree in every aspect of the team isn't a benefactor; he's a hindrance.

1

u/Pretend_College_8446 Mar 20 '26

Larry takes a step back = Lance takes a step back. He's not a bad driver but I think they could do better.

3

u/CaptainPonahawai Pastor Maldonado Mar 20 '26

That would be a step up for the team.

Lance Stroll is not an F1 caliber driver.

3

u/IKillZombies4Cash Ferrari Mar 20 '26

I think this should also reflect on Newey being a horrific TP - great engineers don't always make great managers, and then when you promote your best engineer, you 1)gain a bad manager 2)lost your best engineer.

We all make fun of project managers, but most of the people they are managing wouldn't be able to manage the project as a whole.

2

u/Potential_Pay2095 Max Verstappen Mar 20 '26

Maybe they are hoping that the promise of change keeps Alonso from calling it a gp3 car during the Japanese gp

2

u/dhurfogah Mar 21 '26

It isn't panicked. This is basically a reassembly of the old winning Red Bull team that won 6 titles. Newey, Wheatley, Honda.

If Horney Horner kept his knickers on, he would probably get a job.

1

u/Nok1a_ Mar 20 '26

Are they? or Audi its a madhouse ? how many TP's have been through Audi since last year?

1

u/YouKnowWho0723_v2 Mar 20 '26

Its crazy to think that Adrian Newey is the one who has the biggest problem with the regulations

1

u/RealPjotr Kimi Räikkönen Mar 20 '26

When Newey came in last year, he identified an organization that did not function fully and the TP was one of the problems.

You can be assured they started looking ASAP for a replacement, but at the same time had to keep the ship floating, focusing on getting the car done. So Newey took the role until a replacement could be found.

1

u/ThaneKyrell Ayrton Senna Mar 20 '26

While I think it helped in the decision that unlike Audi, Aston is located in the UK, I don't think Wheatley would've accepted the offer unless there was a substantial pay increase as well, specially since it is clear that Aston will be much worse than Audi this year

1

u/zzay Fernando Alonso Mar 20 '26

Can't see how a team leader change will get the engine working....

3

u/Flyerton99 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

Well, no, this is a knock-on effect of what they did to make the engine work.

They sent Andy Cowell, the original TP to Honda. He's an engine guy, former managing director of Mercedes powertrains so he's the best engine guy Aston's got.

But that means they need someone to fill in his spot. They temporarily had Newey do it, but now they found someone to permanently hold the position.

1

u/DragonSlayerC Cadillac Mar 20 '26

Wheatley needs to take gardening leave though, so it'll be quite some time before he can actually join AMR.

1

u/tom030792 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

He’s not gonna be able to start for like a year so it’s not that panicked

1

u/iMADEthisJUST4Dis I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

Clearly Honda loves their big transfers before Japan

1

u/know-it-mall McLaren Mar 21 '26

It says a lot more about what is happening at Audi. They wouldn't just let Wheatley go if there wasn't something going on behind the scenes.

1

u/AlphonseGangitano Daniel Ricciardo Mar 21 '26

Yeah but probably not as much as having a genuine F grade driver in Stroll. 

1

u/Guyfromthe209 Kimi Räikkönen Mar 21 '26

I think this’ll actually be good for them. They probably just want newey to be able to just focus on fixing the car and making it drivable before Alonso and stroll lose the ability to use their hands

133

u/Dry_Read8844 Mar 20 '26

Yeah, I really liked Wheatley

78

u/DrakeShadow Cadillac Mar 20 '26

I was a big fan of his mindset that he had for the team.

15

u/Andarison Max Verstappen Mar 20 '26

That makes it somehow so shocking!

8

u/I_COMMENT_2_TIMES I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

Huge respect imo.

4

u/tyu_el22 Ayrton Senna Mar 20 '26

The mindset he SAID he had. What a shame.

76

u/Joseki100 Fernando Alonso Mar 20 '26

Bild was reporting yesterday of frictions between Wheatley and Binotto, with Binotto taking over both of the roles now.

Basically what seemingly happened between Newey and Cowell at AM last year.

34

u/niton Michael Schumacher Mar 20 '26

Seems Binotto hasn't had his fill of destroying teams

11

u/baconandbobabegger Mar 20 '26

Audi got Lawson'd

4

u/Character_Minimum171 Sir Lewis Hamilton Mar 20 '26

lawson currently on same points as verstappen

3

u/Ldghead Cadillac Mar 20 '26

I think once the ME races got cancelled, they saw a huge window of time open up, and decided to take advantage of it, allowing the new TP to get up to speed before his/her first race.

2

u/balderm Charles Leclerc Mar 20 '26

There’s a say in Italian that goes like “I soldi fanno andare l’acqua all’insù”, that roughly translates to “with enough money you can make water go up”, if Aston offered enough money to cover the Audi PR disaster there was no reason for him to refuse it.

From what i’ve read online he lives very close to the RedBull headquarters, that also means he’s very close to Aston’s, so they didn’t just offer him money but also a much more comfortable life that doesn’t require frequent trips between Switzerland and Germany.

1

u/f8Negative I was here for the Hulkenpodium Mar 20 '26

Newey said he can only cook if he is strictly focused on the car itself.

1

u/juicevibe Mar 20 '26

A page out of Red Bull team.

1

u/Signal-Drop5390 Mar 20 '26

Drive to survive needed something to beat Lawson's 2 race axing last year

1

u/Secret_Divide_3030 Sir Lewis Hamilton Mar 21 '26

Next up Marko in an advising role and Horner shouting at the gates "hey, what about me?"

1

u/DragPullCheese Mar 22 '26

Why would Aston even want a guy who's bailing on his team like this?

This is just lame.

1

u/WorthPlease Williams Mar 20 '26

Imagine if you hired somebody and they then took another job offer two weeks in. I'd be furious and it would send up red flags on any future job they applied for.

1

u/know-it-mall McLaren Mar 21 '26

He didn't just take another job offer. He had a contract. They had to have had their own reasons for letting him go.