Aston Martin's meteoric rise on the F1 grid raises suspicions of copying
Mar.6 - Red Bull thinks Aston Martin made a meteoric leap up the grid over the winter by clearing copying clear aspects of last year's dominant car.
"It's nice to see three Red Bull cars on the podium," Sergio Perez joked after Sunday's season-opening Bahrain GP.
The Mexican, second, was beaten by his Red Bull teammate and reigning back-to-back world champion - with Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso an impressive third after switching from Alpine.
"We are all Red Bull drivers," Perez joked again.
As far as top team official Dr Helmut Marko was concerned, the fact that Spaniard Alonso, 41, beat every car apart from the two Red Bulls was no surprise.
"I said before the race that Alonso would be third," he told Servus TV. "If he had qualified higher, he surely would have been a threat to us."
That is some statement, given just how clearly Red Bull dominated on Sunday.
Ferrari's Charles Leclerc suffered two technical problems on Sunday - one of them terminal - while Carlos Sainz said fourth behind Alonso is "a kind of reality check".
Red-Bull RB19 VS Aston Martin AMR23 side view
"Little by little, the race took shape and we finished where we deserved," he told DAZN. "And that was behind that Aston Martin.
"We must improve, because not only the Red Bulls are on another planet, even the Aston Martins are."
As for Mercedes, Toto Wolff said the realisation that the team's 'no sidepods' concept has proven a failure made Sunday "one of the worst days in racing".
"I'm not bullshi**ing myself and I'm not bullshi**ing the media," he said.
George Russell's assessment is also stark, as he said late on Sunday that "Red Bull have got this championship sewn up" after just a single race.
Red Bull's Marko admits it will be difficult for Wolff's team to catch up now.
"We have the cost cap, so whatever they try or redesign gets lost in the budget for other things," the Austrian said.
So when asked who Red Bull's main rival will be in 2023, Marko answered: "The third Red Bull."
He suggested Red Bull's former aerodynamics boss Dan Fallows' defection to Aston Martin, where he is now technical director, has had a big impact.
"It's true - what Fallows had in his head cannot be erased," said Marko, 79.
"Copying the concept is not prohibited, but can you copy in such detail without having documentation of our car?" he added.
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On one hand there's Christian praising the AM because they are using so many Mb parts, then the "that copying isnt allowed brigade", copying/buying in ,So that's f1 today, its down now to the Dame to gee up the team with the best facilities and people on the grid (once maybe), to put up or shut up, oh yeah and copy the Rb pdq
MB need a fresh approach, maybe Dan Bernasconi or Martin Fischer?
Bit of tiresome blather from SP and RB. Missing the point that it’s always been done but only some get it right…cough, Alpha Tauri, cough
Ohmygawd - looking at what seems to be working for the fastest cars on the track and doing something similar? Say it ain't so!
Copying the concept is not prohibited, but can you copy in such detail without having documentation of our car? Yes, even a first year CAD student can knock up a replica of something quite easily with a couple of photos and some half descent software.
Copying a successful design is a way to minimise risk and ensure that the final product is functional and not a step backwards. Moreover, copying a successful design does not necessarily mean that it lacks originality. They still bring their own unique style and innovation to the design, while retaining the features that made the original successful.
However, sometimes designers do try to create something new and different to get ahead of the pack and it may not turn out successful. Innovation involves taking risks, and there is always a chance that it may not pay off e.g. W13. Therefore, designers may choose to stick to what works and tweak it, rather than creating something entirely new.
Everyone copies each other, taking what works and adding to it as they go. Henry Ford didn’t invent the automobile, he just came up with a concept to make it more affordable. Just like Apple has taken others' ideas and refined them to great success.
The reason road cars are badged is so you know what make and model just went past. Also, if you rocked up at the airport and looked out at all the planes parked on the apron, you would be hopeful that yours isn’t the one that has its wings on backwards because the designer didn’t want to be seen as copying the rest.
"If every team was given the Red Bull as a base model to start the 2024 season, two things would be guaranteed. We would have a much closer grid than we have ever had, but unfortunately, there would still be at least one team that manages to stuff up the concept and go backward. Let's wait and see what the gap is at the end of the season before we judge Aston Martin, as they will have to run with their updates instead of waiting to see what Red Bull does this year."
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