Andy Cowell Tries to Explain What Went Wrong at Aston Martin in 2024

Andy Cowell, who arrived last autumn as CEO, has also become Aston Martin's team principal in 2025. He tried to analyse the reasons why the Silverstone team did not give the impression of progressing last year.

Published 19/01/2025 à 10:59

Jeremy Satis

  Comment on this article! 1

Andy Cowell Tries to Explain What Went Wrong at Aston Martin in 2024

What will Aston Martin look like in 2025? ©Xavi Bonilla / DPPI

At Aston Martin, the great ambitions, materialized by the brand new campus F1 emerged from the ground at Silverstone, have not changed. The recruitment of galactics has been decisive, with Fernando Alonso who was recruited in 2023, when Adrian Newey will officially join the team in March 2025. Lawrence Stroll wants to make his team a contender for world championship titles, and the arrival of Andy Cowell to replace Martin Whitmarsh as CEO is part of this context. The former head of the engine department of Mercedes will also have an executive role since he was also named team principal at the beginning of January.

In a publication visible on the Aston Martin website and named " My first 100 days as CEO of Aston Martin", the Briton took stock of the situation and delivered his analysis for 2024. "There is no lack of effort within the team"he assured. “We certainly won the world championship for the most updates in 2024, but those updates didn't deliver the lap time – and what everyone wants in this business is the lap time.” 

Andy Cowell, new boss of Aston Martin. © Aston Martin

“That doesn’t mean we have to get it right every time. I’ve seen statistics that show that in real research and development environments, a 20% success rate is high. If we can get a 20% success rate, that’s great, but the difference is that it has to happen on the AMR technology campus and not on the racetrack. We have to make sure that all of our tools and processes on the technology campus are working well enough that every time we make an update to the racetrack, we’re at least 90% confident that it’s going to work on the track and meet our expectations.”, he added.

Only fifth in the constructors' championship, thanks to Fernando Alonso's good start to the season, the Gaydon brand was then in no man's land and struggled to show real signs of progress. “We have very powerful CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) tools and the most advanced wind tunnel in the sport. These are just simulations, there will always be a risk that the data doesn’t quite match what we find on the track, but our simulations can give us a robust direction and I’m confident we can get to the point where we’re right 90% of the time. That’s the level at which the teams that win the world championship operate, so that’s the target we have to set ourselves as a minimum.”

Fernando Alonso Aston Martin F1 contract extension

Fernando Alonso carries Aston Martin in his heart. © Frédéric Le Floc'h / DPPI

While Canadian businessman and owner Stroll initially aimed for 2025 to get closer to the very best before the decisive turn of 2026, the project has inevitably fallen behind schedule to the point that we prefer not to necessarily talk about precise dates. While employees gradually settle in and find their marks within the new factory, Aston Martin will try to be more efficient throughout the season. “2026 is a huge opportunity for us. But it’s not just about 26, it’s also about 27, 28, 29 and 30. It’s about building a team that can achieve lasting success.”

“Yes, 26 is important, but it’s just another step in the journey. 2025 is also an important step in our journey and we are focused on improving our performance this year and maintaining positive momentum through to 2026. We must not underestimate the scale of the challenge in bringing all these elements together. We have to transition from a customer team to a factory team at the same time as the new regulations come into force, and we have to design and manufacture our own gearbox and other components of the car that were previously supplied to us by Mercedes.” There is one for whom, however, 2026 will undoubtedly remain the most important step. A certain Fernando Alonso, who still dreams of a third world title…

ALSO READ > Who is Andy Cowell, CEO and new Team Principal of Aston Martin?

Jeremy Satis

Deputy Digital Editor & F1 Reporter

Comment on this article! 1

Read also

Comments

1 Comment (s)

Yves-Henri RANDIER

19/01/2025 at 03:34 a.m.

Andy Cowell tries to explain what went wrong at Aston Martin in 2024 but at no time mentions a lack of development and technical feedback from the driver duo with Fernand who has never been recognized for his qualities as a developer (he has others) and with the only permanent employee on the grid who drags his infectious joy into the paddock to please Papounet!

To write a comment