[Team] Aston Martin Racing in 2023. One of the cars still has Alonso.

[peebee2]

Originally Posted by GTRMagic

There are a number of pseudo-info kinda websites around suggesting that perhaps Mr Alonso is considering leaving F1 again before the 2026 rules…

Nobody seems to have made the link yet, but what if 2024 is his last year.. and he is replaced by a different Spaniard?

What about the contract extension already signed for 2025/6?

[chillibowl]

i would imagine any extension that he signed would still allow him to retire when he wants even if it is early?

and if he's not retiring, Alonso could slide over to Alpine pretty easily i would imagine? Flav is still his manager no?

[crmalcolm]

Originally Posted by peebee2

What about the contract extension already signed for 2025/6?

.

Originally Posted by peebee2

That sounds like an F1 contract all right!

[peebee2]

Originally Posted by crmalcolm

.

Is this another pointless post??

[Teretonga]

Originally Posted by peebee2

Is this another pointless post??

Not entirely.
Fred might quit and go to IndyCar to have another crack at that triple crown.
If Zak offered him a contract for the No. 6 car that would make another change of contract at AMSP and another McLaren contract would be wound up.....

[bjohnsonsmith]

Originally Posted by GTRMagic

There are a number of pseudo-info kinda websites around suggesting that perhaps Mr Alonso is considering leaving F1 again before the 2026 rules…

Nobody seems to have made the link yet, but what if 2024 is his last year.. and he is replaced by a different Spaniard?

Curiouser and curiouser.

[bjohnsonsmith]

Aston Martin have announced that Lance Stroll will race on with the team, for infinity, I mean 2025 and beyond.

https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/a...yond/10627846/

[GTRMagic]

The Aston Martin operation seem to be on a hiring spree.. again.. with big names ex-Ferrari and the like for some seriously senior roles.

How does all that fit under the F1 OpEx salary cap?
It’s hard to imagine the ‘head of’ hires would come cheaply..

[steve_r]

They do seem to drop down the grid order as each season progresses, as they quietly lose the development race. So some extra development ont he current car might be needed if they are ever going to make significant strides over the course of a season.

[Aysedasi]

Originally Posted by GTRMagic

It’s hard to imagine the ‘head of’ hires would come cheaply..

Is he the guy in charge of graphics?

[Tourer]

Originally Posted by GTRMagic

The Aston Martin operation seem to be on a hiring spree.. again.. with big names ex-Ferrari and the like for some seriously senior roles.

How does all that fit under the F1 OpEx salary cap?
It’s hard to imagine the ‘head of’ hires would come cheaply..

Depends how many people and at what cost they already have I guess - like other teams, they can also have senior people on contract and be sharing their time with the road car company, so that not 100% of their remuneration falls into the cost cap.

[peebee2]

Originally Posted by Tourer

Depends how many people and at what cost they already have I guess - like other teams, they can also have senior people on contract and be sharing their time with the road car company, so that not 100% of their remuneration falls into the cost cap.

Possibly they could try but there is no real link between AM and the racing team. It’s a sponsorship deal.

[Tourer]

Originally Posted by peebee2

Possibly they could try but there is no real link between AM and the racing team. It’s a sponsorship deal.

Get that but it could easily be rolled into the sponsorship deal. Ultimately, if they exceed the cost cap, there's a penalty structure and if they don't, bat on.

[Richard C]

Originally Posted by Tourer

Depends how many people and at what cost they already have I guess - like other teams, they can also have senior people on contract and be sharing their time with the road car company, so that not 100% of their remuneration falls into the cost cap.

I am not 100% sure, buti think they have tried to close loopholes like this.

https://us.motorsport.com/f1/news/f1...-fia/10486592/

The one mentioned above is more about subsidiary divisions, but may apply in other "shared resource" scenarios. I assume AM is making their hiring fit budget caps by removing people as they bring new staff onboard?

Richard

[Tourer]

Originally Posted by Richard C

I am not 100% sure, buti think they have tried to close loopholes like this.

https://us.motorsport.com/f1/news/f1...-fia/10486592/

The one mentioned above is more about subsidiary divisions, but may apply in other "shared resource" scenarios. I assume AM is making their hiring fit budget caps by removing people as they bring new staff onboard?

Richard

That's different to what I had in mind. I was thinking that AM could possibly employ key people on a part-time basis (as RBR has done with Adrian Newey for example) and the remainder of their available time then being used at the AM road car company on special models (again, similar to Newey).

May not be needed though, if as you & I have both suggested, AM is simply recruiting to cover people who have left, or roles that are needed but had not been manned previously.