Pierre Wache joined Red Bull in 2013 and has been with the company ever since.
Life after Adrian Newey is fast approaching Red Bull and the man tasked with taking on the mantle is Pierre Wache, but who is the French engineer?
How did Wache end up as the overseer of Red Bull’s technical team after Newey’s sudden departure from F1 to concentrate on the RB17 hypercar?
Who is Red Bull’s new tech chief Pierre Wache?
Born on December 10, 1974, in Auchel, a town in northern France, Wache’s journey into F1 is certainly one of the more unconventional ones.
Instead of focusing on automotive subjects, he dedicated a substantial portion of his education to biomechanical engineering, earning a PhD in fluid mechanics from the Institut National Polytechnique de Lorraine in Nancy and Georgia Tech in Atlanta.
However, in 2001, he landed his initial position in the motorsport industry when he was recruited by Michelin, the former Formula 1 tire provider. His responsibilities involved analyzing the connection between the track surface and the rubber composition of the tires utilized by the four F1 teams supplied by Michelin.
After climbing the Michelin ladder, he reached the position of project leader. However, when the French tyre supplier departed from F1 in 2007, Wache transitioned to BMW Sauber as a vehicle performance engineer.
After his successful stint at Michelin, Wache continued to climb the ranks at BMW Sauber, eventually attaining the position of head of the team’s vehicle performance group. In 2012, he transitioned to their technical committee, where he specialized in race engineering and vehicle performance.
During his time at Sauber, he had the opportunity to collaborate with a promising young driver named Sergio Perez. Following a prosperous 2012 season, during which the team secured a sixth-place finish, he was recruited by Red Bull to assume the role of chief engineer for their performance team.
Once more, he climbed the ladder of success until he achieved the position of technical director in 2018. Since 2021, he has played a significant role in driving Red Bull’s revival.
In 2021, his significant contribution to the RB16B design led Max Verstappen to secure his first Drivers’ title. However, it was in 2022 when the entire technical team at Red Bull started surpassing their rivals, displaying exceptional performance.
In 2022, the RB18 secured victory in 17 races. However, it was outperformed by the RB19 in 2023, which triumphed in all but one grand prix that season. The present vehicle, the RB20, seems to be heading towards matching that achievement as it has performed exceptionally well this year.
Wache, like Newey, has garnered attention from various teams throughout his career. Ferrari, in particular, has shown interest in Wache and made multiple efforts to recruit him to Maranello.
In August of last year, German outlet Auto Motor und Sport reported that Ferrari was in discussions with the Frenchman, suggesting it was one of their latest endeavors. The addition of Loïc Serra, a compatriot and Mercedes’ performance director, to Ferrari was seen as a significant advantage for Wache.
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Although the previous attempt was rejected, Wache has once again been recently associated with a potential exchange to Maranello.
According to reports, Wache is expected to continue his Red Bull contract for at least three additional seasons following the current one. Christian Horner had previously explained last year that Wache has progressively assumed greater responsibilities in recent years.
“Adrian’s contribution to the team and our accomplishments cannot be understated,” Horner expressed to Autosport. “However, it is important to acknowledge that his role has transformed in recent years. The exceptional work carried out by the technical team led by Pierre Wache ensures that we are not solely dependent on Adrian.”
“He possesses the capacity to seamlessly switch between projects, contributing to the growth and development of the team.”
The truthfulness of that statement will be put to the test as Wache takes charge of the technical team going forward.
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