Ecclestone does not believe in the rumors about Whitly and Aston Martin.
Bernie Ecclestone does not believe the rumors that Jonathan Wheatley, who currently holds the position of head of Audi F1 Team, could lead the Aston Martin team in the future. "It's practically impossible," said the former head of Formula 1 management in a conversation with a correspondent from the Swiss tabloid Blick. "It would make sense only if Wheatley didn't like living in Switzerland and wanted to return to England." Wheatley himself has repeatedly stated last year that he is thrilled with the opportunities ahead of him, and he immediately fell in love with this country: "My wife and I moved to Switzerland; it's a beautiful country, and we like it here."
Moreover, such a scenario would seriously harm the interests of Audi, and the 58-year-old Jonathan Wheatley is the least likely person to be irresponsible and prone to such actions; he values the trust placed in him by his current employers. This is indirectly confirmed by the fact that in the previous stage of his career, the British specialist worked at Red Bull Racing for two decades.
This, of course, does not rule out the possibility that Lawrence Stroll might have made Wheatley a financially enticing offer, but such events always happen behind the scenes, and the participants usually do not comment on them.
This is also reflected in the statement from Aston Martin that we quoted yesterday: Adrian Newey remains the head of the team. At least for now.
Other articles
Guenther Steiner: Wolff is engaging in self-promotion.
Guenther Steiner criticized Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff for "self-promotion" after Kimi Antonelli's first victory in Formula 1 at the Chinese Grand Prix.
Jonathan Whitley has a conflict with Mattia Binotto.
The name Jonathan Wheatley has been making headlines in the racing press in recent days. The head of the Audi team is considered almost the main contender to replace Adrian Newey as the head of Aston Martin, although the British team denies this.
Verstappen drove 'with half throttle' during the confusion at Red Bull.
Formula 1 | Max Verstappen's challenging beginning to the 2026 season has taken an unexpected turn, as a report indicates that the Dutch driver essentially drove half of the (…)
Laurent Mekis: At the stage in Japan, we will be able to add.
Laurent Mekis is confident that despite the challenges faced by Red Bull in China, the team will be able to achieve certain improvements by the Japanese stage...
Hughes: Newey needs someone who won't interfere in his affairs.
Regardless of the truth behind the rumors of Jonathan Whitley's possible move to Aston Martin, there is significant interest in this topic, and the racing press is discussing it very actively...
De la Rosa: Alonso doesn't know if this is his last year or not.
The answer to the question about Fernando Alonso's future plans is unknown, and even those closest to him refrain from making predictions...
Ecclestone does not believe in the rumors about Whitly and Aston Martin.
Bernie Ecclestone does not believe the rumors that Jonathan Wheatley, who currently holds the position of head of Audi F1 Team, may lead the Aston Martin team in the future...