Szafnauer has left Aston Martin
Otmar Szafnauer has been a mainstay of the Silverstone-based Formula One team through three significant ownership changes: Force India, Racing Point, and now Aston Martin, which arose from Lawrence Stroll’s purchase of the Force India team. He has since departed the team following a disastrous 2021 season in which it ended P7, just ahead of Alfa Romeo, Williams, and Haas. That was a significant dip in performance from P4 in 2020.
There were rumblings that things weren’t going well, and Lawrence Stroll took a tougher approach to controlling the team. He even lured in four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel from Ferrari to partner with his son Lance Stroll as the primary driver. Martin Whitmarsh, the former McLaren team principal, joined as the CEO of Aston Martin Technologies, giving Szafnauer a new supervisor. Many speculated that this was a prelude to Whitmarsh getting more involved with the team, and Aston Martin has also hinted at this. (livingproof.co)
Official Statement
“Fortunately, we are led and managed by a strong group of individuals, and we are comfortable to take a little time to explore options before announcing a new team structure,” said the team in a statement adding that currently the role could be managed within the leadership team.
Many new people have joined Aston Martin, including Dan Fallows from Red Bull, who has been promoted to technical director under Andy Green, who has been promoted to chief technology officer. Fallows has been brought to court by Red Bull in an attempt to compel him to honour his contract with the Milton Keynes-based squad.
Szafnauer May Head To
For Szafnauer, he could be looking at a role at Alpine which has been without a de facto team boss since the exit of Cyril Abiteboul. Laurent Rossi, the new CEO of the brand had been seen meeting with Szafnauer and the team is exploring a restructuring.
