‘I promise you there’s nine other teams trying it’ – Alpine’s Alan Permane on Aston Martin’s controversial new rear wing

Aston Martin caused a stir and caused a lot of chatter in the paddock with the new rear wing design they drove at the Hungarian Grand Prix ahead of the summer break. And while there have even been some question marks over the legality of the wing under F1’s new 2022 rules, a rival sporting director says it’s a route all other teams will be looking at as well.

This is the first year of Formula 1’s new regulations and it was always expected that many innovative designs would emerge this season as teams’ engineers and aerodynamicists pushed the envelope in their quest for more speed. And Aston Martin’s new rear wing sparked much debate over whether it complies with the rules, with some saying it makes it harder for a car to follow. But after the FIA ​​ruled Aston Martin’s work legal, Alpine’s sporting director Alan Permane was asked to offer his thoughts on the design.

“I promise you there are nine other teams running that in CFD right now and if it goes faster I think you’ll see nine more of them,” Permane said. “I don’t see why this shouldn’t happen when it’s perfectly legal. I understand what you’re saying about the intention of the regs, but we just want to be fast and reliable, so it’s really up to the FIA ​​and Formula 1 to function.

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“If they got around the intent and I doubt anything can be done about it this year, possibly for next year but I’m very sure if it’s quicker then you’ll be seeing more of them very soon.”

Team boss Mike Krack also commented on the new Aston Martin rear wing and praised the work of his team. The Luxembourger believes their new rear wing was a sign that the Silverstone-based team had the ability to ‘steal a march’ from their rivals.

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“The new rear wing we brought to the Hungarian Grand Prix underscores our ability to innovate and stay ahead of the competition by coming up with ideas our rivals don’t have,” said Krack.

“A lot of people think it’s easy to just design a new wing, build it and put it on the car. But when you look at the wing or any of the upgrades that we put into the car, how they’re engineered, tweaked and produced, it’s an art form.

“Also you can’t just build one of these, you have to build three or four of the same spec to have enough for cars and spares.”