Cowell Rejects Red Bull's Powertrains Pitch

Red Bull couldn’t persuade Andy Cowell to join its Powertrains project, as he steps back from engine roles.

Did Red Bull attempt to recruit Andy Cowell for its Powertrains project?

Andy Cowell, the former head of Mercedes engines who left in 2020, is making a return to Formula 1 with a more significant role in the paddock, having signed with Aston Martin F1 to become their new CEO of the group.

Cowell is highly regarded for overseeing the V6 turbo hybrid engine that helped Mercedes dominate F1 from 2014 to 2021.

F1 is moving towards a new engine era starting in 2026, and Red Bull will be manufacturing its own engines through its Powertrains company, in partnership with Ford.

But did Red Bull Powertrains try to persuade Cowell?

“Andy is a great guy,” said team principal Christian Horner. “He’s a very strong engineer.”

“He did a fantastic job at Mercedes High Performance Powertrains, he was the main backbone of that project.”

“He chose to leave Mercedes and spend time outside Formula 1, and of course, I think all engine manufacturers spoke to him during that period.”

“After he decided he wanted to take some time off, we made alternative plans.”

“We are very pleased with these plans, but he ultimately chose to have a role that is no longer related to the engine. And now that he’s returning to F1, he confirms this direction with a global position at Aston Martin.”

“We understood from our discussions that he wanted to move away from the engine domain to take on a more global role and that’s obviously everyone’s freedom.”

Cowell’s new position at Aston Martin effectively puts him at the helm of the F1 team owned by billionaire Lawrence Stroll.

Aston Martin will enter the new engine regulation era in 2026 with a new facility in Silverstone and with Honda as their engine partner.