F1: There is no replacement for someone like Aldo Costa – Wolff

(GMM) Toto Wolff has denied rumors the team’s former technical boss James Allison has now returned to Mercedes full-time.

In late 2021, Allison took on a new role in America’s Cup yacht racing, with Mercedes and team shareholder Ineos collaborating for Ineos Team UK Britannia.

But after Mercedes’ disappointing start to the 2023 season, amid admissions the basic ‘concept’ of the car will have to change, it was rumored that Allison may now be returning to Formula 1 full-time.

Team boss Wolff denies it.

“He’s not involved,” the Austrian is quoted as saying by the Japanese source as-web.jp.

“He plays an active role in discussing the team’s long-term strategy, but more recently he has devoted his time to the America’s Cup project and other programs aimed at innovation.”

And Wolff said Mercedes’ 2023 recovery would never be as simple as reuniting with a single person.

“James remains very important to our organization,” he said, “but I think the challenges we’re having are not just one person’s problem.”

Wolff admitted, however, that the team has felt the effect of the departure of Aldo Costa – who is now technical boss at the famous racing car constructor Dallara.

“There is no replacement for someone like Aldo,” he said. “What we have done is split his work among several successors.

“Aldo was very good at building a succession structure, but it was not a short-term process. It took two and a half years to shape and adapt the technical department to his absence.”

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The Facts

While they both have designed cars that took 12 drivers to a F1 title, Aldo Costa still leads Adrian Newey by 3 Constructors Titles

While a lot has been said about Adrian Newey’s greatness because he is British and the F1 media is heavily pro-British, Aldo Costa is still the greatest F1 designer in history.

The facts don’t lie.

However, Newey can add to his totals and take the lead if he wins 4 more Constructor’s Titles.

Costa retired in 2019, but stayed on as a design consultant for Mercedes another year and designed the Dual Axis Steering (DAS) system that brought Hamilton yet another title in 2020.

Costa does not get credited with the car design for 2020 because he designed only the DAS portion of the car, but in fact it was his DAS concept and design on the 2020 car that gave Hamilton his 7th world title.

He designed 14 championship winning F1 cars, and should have an asterisk next to that number because he was a big part of the 2020 Championship winning car.

Shall we give him 14.5?

Aldo Costa F1 World Championships 

Adrian Newey F1 World Championships