Peter Windsor hails Aston Martin for hiring ‘big time’ 65-year-old this season

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Formula 1 expert and former team manager Peter Windsor has praised Aston Martin for hiring Bob Bell.

The 65-year-old was previously at Alpine but is one of several key personnel who have already moved on at the start of the season.

Speaking on the Short Corners Podcast, Windsor shared why he thought Bell would be such a good addition to Mike Krack’s team.

Windsor praises Aston Martin for Bob Bell addition

Aston Martin have made steady progress over the winter but haven’t been able to replicate their fantastic start to last season when Fernando Alonso was challenging for podiums.

The legendary Spaniard is still getting the most out of his car and was described as ‘truly phenomenal’ after his performance in Saudi Arabia.

However, there is a suggestion that the 42-year-old is becoming more and more unhappy given he’s not racing at the front of the grid right now.

Lance Stroll needs to step up his performances and while he looked promising in Bahrain, his crash in Jeddah has once again put pressure on the Canadian.

Behind the scenes, Aston Martin are making moves to improve the team and Peter Windsor has hailed the decision to hire Bob Bell.

The 65-year-old arrives as executive director and will be responsible for the ‘technical, engineering and performance’ functions of the team.

It appears to be a real step up to switch Alpine for Aston Martin right now given their struggles at the start of 2024.

Aston Martin making progress off-track

Speaking about Bell’s appointment, Windsor said: “Big news at Aston Martin of course is that Bob Bell has now joined as a senior executive officer in charge of the technical side of the team.

“Really good move by Aston Martin to hire Bob Bell, he was formally at Renault advising, consulting a little bit at Alpine.

“Before that of course, big time at Renault and then at McLaren and maybe Martin Whitmash got to know Bob then from his McLaren days as well.

“So, Bob has been a little bit on the sidelines but I think this is a great move to get him in there and what a great weekend for him to start working with the team.

“The car appears to be pretty much right there in terms of a quick performance lap.”

Aston Martin will hope that Bell has the impact Windsor suggests he can quickly.

While he won’t have a say in who’s driving the cars, a discussion may need to be had about Lance Stroll’s future.

Mike Krack has been urged to replace the 25-year-old, but his father’s position in the team makes that a much more difficult conversation than it should be.