Cowell: Championship winning future is Aston Martin's 'North Star'
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Aston Martin F1 CEO and team principal Andy Cowell has offered his insight into the outfit's recent restructuring plan that aims to transform the Silverstone-based team into a championship-winning force.
With sweeping changes in leadership and a renewed focus on performance, Cowell has set Aston Martin's sights firmly on becoming title contenders in the coming years, calling it the team's "North Star."
The changes come after Aston Martin finished fifth in the constructors' championship for the second consecutive year.
While the 2023 season started strong, with Fernando Alonso initially challenging Red Bull's Max Verstappen, the team's performance tapered off, resulting in a significantly lower points tally compared to the previous year – 94 points compared to 280 in 2023.
This performance shortfall prompted a thorough evaluation of the team's organization and working methods, leading to the recent restructuring.
A Restructuring to Drive Performance
Cowell, renowned for his engineering prowess during Mercedes' dominant V6 hybrid era, has taken on the dual role of CEO and team principal, while former team principal Mike Krack has moved to the newly created position of Chief Trackside Officer.
The changes, which aim to create a flatter leadership structure, also see Enrico Cardile taking on the responsibilities of Chief Technical Officer, heading the AMR Technology Campus team.
As for Adrian Newey, Aston's Managing Technical Partner will assume a hands-on supervisory and contributory role within the team's engineering department.
"The changes are designed to improve organisational clarity and race car performance," Cowell explained.
"That's why we took the decision to evolve the Aerodynamics, Engineering and Performance Departments into separate, dedicated trackside and AMR Technology Campus-based teams."
©AstonMartin
"The trackside team will be led by Mike [Krack], who becomes the team's Chief Trackside Officer, and the latter will be led by Enrico [Cardile] in the role of Chief Technical Officer, with both reporting into me."
By refining these roles, Cowell emphasized the team's goal of maximizing performance on two fronts.
"This restructuring means Mike's team can focus on getting the maximum performance out of the car at every Grand Prix and Enrico's team can focus on the complex challenge of creating a new race car," he added.
Building Toward the Championship Dream
Aston Martin has been clear about its ambitions to move from midfield contenders to championship challengers.
After finishing fifth in the constructors' standings for two consecutive seasons, the team has doubled down on its commitment to becoming a front-runner, particularly with the upcoming regulation changes in 2026.
"Building a World Championship-winning team is our North Star," Cowell stated emphatically. "Everything we discuss relates to what is needed to make this vision a reality."
Cowell outlined his role in turning this vision into reality, focusing on leadership, infrastructure, and team cohesion.
"My job is to work out what organisation is the right one to achieve this vision: Have we got the right structure? Have we got the right people in the right places? Have we got the right infrastructure? Is everyone pulling in the same direction and working as one cohesive unit?"
"I set out the overarching targets for the executive leadership team and work with them to establish the path to reach these targets that are aimed at getting us to where we want to be.
"And I make sure we're prioritising the right things and working on things in the right order.
"Lawrence has put a huge amount of trust in me to lead this team to the front of the grid. It's very humbling and it's a great privilege."
In conclusion, despite the challenges ahead, Cowell remains steadfast in his belief that Aston Martin has the tools and talent to succeed.
With a revamped leadership structure, state-of-the-art facilities, and a clear focus on performance, the team is positioning itself as a serious contender in Formula 1's next chapter.
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