Adrian Newey made his track debut with Aston Martin, speaking openly about his first months with the Silverstone-based team.
After weeks of anticipation, Adrian Newey finally made his official debut with Aston Martin during the Monaco Grand Prix weekend. The former Red Bull engineer set foot in the Silverstone-based team’s garage for the first time since his arrival, closely observing the work on Fernando Alonso‘s and Lance Stroll‘s cars. Speaking to the media, Newey gave an initial assessment, sharing how he is approaching this new challenge from both a technical and managerial perspective.
Newey’s words since joining Aston Martin
As reported by Autosport, since his arrival in Silverstone, Newey immediately committed himself to understanding how the team operates and identifying the areas that need improvement: “My first task was to observe, listen, and understand how the team works: what its strengths are and where, instead, there are weaknesses. The goal is to enhance the strengths and tackle the weaknesses with a well-structured plan “.
“There are many truly, truly talented people. It’s just a matter of making sure they work together in a more coordinated way. Aston Martin has always been a relatively small team, yet capable of achieving results beyond expectations. Today, it has grown rapidly and transformed into a much larger organization, but this year it has struggled to express its true potential “.
Newey has not hidden some of the current challenges, particularly regarding the technical facilities. According to the British engineer, some of the team’s tools are not yet on par with those of their competitors, and this could slow down the development process: ” I think it’s fair to say that some of our tools are weak, particularly the full-driver simulator. It needs a lot of work because, at the moment, it isn’t delivering consistent results, and this is a crucial tool for research “.
A look ahead to 2026
Looking to the future, the former Red Bull technical director focused on the new regulations coming in 2026, which are one of the main reasons behind his move to Aston Martin: “When I first looked at the 2026 rules, my initial reaction was, ‘God, there’s not much room to work with.’ But upon closer examination, I realized there is actually some flexibility. When I started, very little had been done on research for 2026, but since then we’ve made great progress. It’s a big challenge, and the deadlines are approaching fast”.
Stroll, Alonso and…Verstappen
Questions about the current drivers on the team were not lacking. Adrian Newey shared his opinion on Alonso and Stroll, offering positive words for both: ” Lance, in my opinion, has an unfairly negative reputation. If you compare him to the teammates he’s raced against, he has always been there, on their level . Fernando, on the other hand, is an incredible character. He has been a ‘rival’ for many years, alongside Lewis [Hamilton]. I’ve always thought I would have liked to work with both of them, but obviously, it wasn’t possible to do so at the same time. Now I finally have the opportunity to work with one of them“.
Finally, a comment on Max Verstappen, who has been linked to Aston Martin several times in recent months. Newey tempered the excitement, putting a brake on the rumors: ” Max is clearly a phenomenal talent. For him, the priority is to race with the team that can offer him the fastest car. So, if we ever wanted to attract Max, the first thing to do is build a fast car. But right now, there’s no point in dreaming “.
Photo: Aston Martin Aramco F1 Team