Does Aston Martin have its own Adrien Newey in its hands?
During the launch of the AMR23, Lawrence Stroll, the team owner, reiterated Aston Martin's ambition to become a top team in the near future. Among the numerous recruitments made, Dan Fallows, appointed as technical director, is expected to contribute to the expected growth.
Arriving in Formula 1 in 2001 at Jaguar as an aerodynamicist, Dan Fallows made a stint at Dallara before returning in 2006 to the same team, now under the Red Bull colors, as the head of the aerodynamics department.
For fifteen years, he worked closely with the technical director of the team, Adrien Newey, who is widely regarded as the best Formula 1 designer in the world, allowing him to gain a great deal of experience in one of the best teams of the 21st century. In 2014, Dan Fallows was appointed as the chief aerodynamics engineer, a position he held until last season, when he joined Aston Martin.
When he is asked what he takes away from the time spent with Newey, he states that he is one of the lucky people who have worked under Adrian and have seen his methods.
Marked by Adrian Newey
He has a very clear approach in the way he designs and develops a car, especially when it comes to the aerodynamic aspect of things. It’s an uncompromising approach, very focused on the little details.
But one of the things I really appreciate about him is that he has no kind of technical arrogance about himself. He is very open to being told that things he has stated or suggested didn’t work or that there are better ideas.
It’s something that I’m really trying to incorporate into my own work and I strongly encourage the technical team to be open-minded. Even if you have very clear visions on how you want to develop things or very clear ideas about the car, make sure you’re not technically arrogant about it. If someone suggests something better, be open-minded, no matter who they are.
« It is one of his greatest strengths, and I hope I can continue. »
« We certainly have the necessary facilities to be competitive, but we must be realistic: we are not at the same level as some of the best teams. And I say this from the perspective of facilities rather than expertise, because I think we are very strong in that regard, continues Dan Fallows.
« I was very impressed by the overall level of expertise we had in the team when I joined. The missing elements are the wind tunnel, which we are clearly looking into. We are very fortunate to be using the Mercedes wind tunnel right now, but there are limitations and nothing replaces yours, the flexibility to test whatever you want. »
« There are simulation facilities and other things that will also be put online. Does this prevent us from progressing as we wish? Absolutely not. But are they essential to enable us to achieve sustainable performance gains in the future? Absolutely. And that’s why we need to push », he concludes.
The staff now includes a multitude of engineers and designers who make it a hub of creativity, such as Eric Blandin, responsible for aerodynamics, formerly at Mercedes, and Luca Furbatto, who came from Sauber.
If Dan Fallows is not Adrian Newey, he is nevertheless one of the main spearheads of the project. And if he manages to bring together the team staff, then Aston Martin should be able to set itself on a launch ramp in the coming years, as Lawrence Stroll wishes, to become one of the greatest teams.
