‘Three Red Bulls on podium’ – Team chief questions legality of Aston Martin F1 car after Fernando Alonso’s third place
DESPITE a storming weekend for Fernando Alonso and Aston Martin, questions have been raised over the legality of their car.
Alonso scored his 99th career podium in Formula One at the season opener in Bahrain, adding £250million to Aston Martin's share price in the process.
The Spaniard overtook Lewis Hamilton and Carlos Sainz on track before scoring a third-place finish behind Red Bull drivers Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez.
However, Red Bull chief Helmut Marko could not help but question the specification of the car.
Speaking to Servus TV following the race, Marko said: "We had three Red Bulls on the podium, only the last one with a different engine."
Indeed, the Silverstone-based outfit recruited Red Bull's former head of aerodynamics Dan Fallows in 2022.
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Perhaps unsurprisingly it has led to some similarities being drawn between the two concepts.
But Marko has been left wondering whether there is any foul play involved.
He added: "It’s true that what Fallows had in his head cannot be erased.
"Copying the focus is not prohibited, but can you copy in such detail without having documentation of our car?"
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Despite Marko's serious tone on the matter, Perez and team principal Christian Horner have taken a more light-hearted approach.
During his post-race press conference, Perez joked: "It’s nice to see three Red Bull cars on the podium."
Meanwhile, Horner said: "They say imitation is the biggest form of flattery, and it’s good to see the old car going so well."
Aston have previously landed themselves in hot water with a similar situation a few years ago.
When they were still known as Racing Point, the team were accused of copying Mercedes' 2019 car design in 2020.
This led to their car being nicknamed: "The Pink Mercedes".
Following a protest from Renault - now Alpine - the FIA slapped Racing Point with a £359,000 (€400,000) fine and a 15-point deduction in the constructor's championship.
This was because they had been found guilty of copying Mercedes' rear brake ducts from 2019.
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