In September 2022, by surprise, Aston Martin announced the signing of Fernando Alonso at first hour of the morning. A real shock for Formula 1: its oldest driver was changing to a team that at that time had poor results… and that now accumulates four podiums in five races.
But that union might not have happened because of Adrian Newley, the great guru of Red Bull. The reason is the work that he carried out with Aston Martin years ago, in the project called ‘Valkyrie’.
Christian Horner, Head of the energy drink team, told the ‘Financial Times’ that Newey was even able to ruin Aston Martin with that project because “he never looked at the budget”.
“It was a completely different experience, because working with a car company, even with a smaller brand like Aston Martin, forces you to look at all the expenses you make. And of course, there is Adrian Newey, who surely You don’t even know where our financial department is“He said in statements collected by ‘Motorsport’.
He adds: “He has created an impressive and brilliant car, but almost bankrupted Aston Martin. But that car really is a diamond in the rough. And of course we have learned many lessons during this time…”
He assures that that project helped the team to work with the budget: “There are the F1 regulations, but those regulations have nothing to do with the rules of the road, so we have also learned a lot from that point of view. It has been a interesting challenge of which Red Bull Advanced Technologies will come out very strong for the future.”
This project that Newey has carried out, known as ‘Valkyrie’, consists of the development of street sports cars. A project in which Red Bull and Aston Martin worked together… and in which the great ‘guru’ of F1 could have left catastrophic consequences.
The most respected man?
Newey is one of the most respected figures on the F1 grid. They all surrender to his work. Fernando Alonso have him on a pedestal: “Newey has always made cars that are superior to those of his rivals.”
In this 2023 Red Bull does not seem to have a rival. Max Verstappen and Checo Perez They fight for the championship alone. “It’s difficult to beat their teams, but we’re talking about F1. Their Red Bulls are very fast, and they don’t break down,” Fernando Alonso said about his rival’s car.
