Aston Martin: Jonathan Wheatley isn’t joining “for the…

Aston Martin Formula 1 ambassador Pedro de la Rosa has stated Adrian Newey’s team principal job “will remain unchanged” and Jonathan Wheatley isn’t joining the squad “for the time being”.

Wheatley officially left his position at the rival Audi team last Friday ”due to personal reasons”, one day after Motorsport revealed he was set to replace Newey as Aston Martin’s team principal, with the latter focusing on his duties as managing technical partner.

Aston released a statement 15 minutes after Audi announced Wheatley’s exit, reaffirming Newey’s role within the team and insisting: “We are regularly approached by senior executives of other teams who wish to join Aston Martin Aramco, but in keeping with our policy, we do not comment on rumour and speculation.”

One week later, on Friday at the Japanese Grand Prix, de la Rosa was speaking to Sky Sports F1 and was unsurprisingly asked about the hot topic.

“Is the key here to helping Adrian focus on what he's fantastic at – we all know he's the best in the business – and bringing in someone like Jonathan as a team principal?” presenter Natalie Pinkham inquired.

“Well, at the moment, we remain... Our structure is...” de la Rosa stammered. “We're happy with what we have, you know? And how we have organised the team. And Adrian being the team principal, but he's more than a team principal, he's actually a managing technical partner. So, that's going to remain the same.

Pedro de la Rosa, Aston Martin F1 Team (Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images)

“I mean, Jonathan has left. I mean, we really shouldn't comment on things that are happening. We don't know why he has left. We don't know, you know, the situation, really. We all know. And the only thing we know, really, is that we have a team principal, and it's Adrian Newey, you know? And that will remain unchanged, you know?

“We have to believe in our structure and not change it anymore.” Aston has already have four different team principals in its five-year history under this name.

Pressed on whether Wheatley was coming to Aston, de la Rosa replied: “Well, not for the time being, you know? I mean, it's just... We shouldn't comment on rumours and speculation. Because we have to be respectful as well for what Jonathan wants to do in the future.”

Aston has endured a tough start to the season, with its new works Honda engine generating vibrations which damage batteries and spark driver health concerns. As a consequence, the AMR26 is yet to be classified at the end of a grand prix.

De la Rosa praised the team for its ‘transparency’, even though Honda has so far refused to give any insight into how many spare batteries it had at its disposal, with Aston’s chief trackside officer Mike Krack rhetorically asking what the point was.

“You have to face the public, the people,” the Spaniard insisted. “When things go right and when things go wrong, you also have to be here and explain.

“And it is very important to actually be very transparent, to explain the things in a proper way, because the people want to understand why we are so slow. We are not happy, but they need to know as well that we are fighting and that we are not happy at all.

“There's no time for being frustrated or disappointed, you know. We just have to work hard, harder than anyone else, but also with a very good strategy.”