Adrian Newey officially begins his new stage at Aston Martin and at the same time an exciting new chapter begins for Fernando Alonso and the British team. The arrival of the great designer marks a turning point for the Silverstone team, making it one of the serious candidates for the title in the run-up to the revolution in regulations in 2026.
The structure that is Adrian Newey
In the interval between the announcement of Newey’s signing and the day he joined the factory, significant changes were made to the technical structure of Aston Martin. Firstly, Cowell, who was already the team director at the time, had simultaneously taken on the role of CEO; secondly, the new technical director was Enrico Cardile, formerly of Ferrari; and thirdly, the new “Managing Technical Partner” had become co-owner of the team.
The immediate challenge facing “engineer” Newey will have to face is that of the merger with Cardile, given that Aston Martin has already started working on the 2026 car, where they already have a team totally dedicated to the creation of that car, which indicates a structural change for the team and in fact a decisive commitment on the part of Lawrence Stroll, who wants to transform the team with a combination of top-notch people and resources.
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Although Newey’s arrival at Aston Martin is a little late for the 2025 car, his experience will be crucial in optimizing the car throughout the season, with the goal of the 2026 car being under a totally different set of regulations and with Honda as the supplier.
Newey will offer his perspective, which will in any case be useful for getting the most out of a car from which he needs to extract the maximum aerodynamic and mechanical performance. During his time at Red Bull he worked in a structure of the same type, where Pierre Wache did the day-to-day work and he was responsible for overseeing the design philosophy. At Aston Martin his role will follow the same line, underpinning the technical direction while Cardile is in charge of the day-to-day running of the car.
His background in interpreting regulations could prove useful in the search for novel adjustments that give Aston Martin a competitive advantage. Switching to a completely new car in 2026 requires challenges at the chassis level and in the integration of the Honda engine, areas where Newey has an outstanding record of success.
Adrian Newey’s roadmap
One of Aston Martin’s main difficulties will be to maintain the evolution of the 2025 car and the design of the 2026 car at the same time. Cowell has been clear that the British team prefers to separate them in order to have the most efficient approach possible. “If an engineer has to think about today and next year, he will never stop focusing on today,” Cowell said.
The challenge is huge: Aston Martin not only has to build a car that can compete in 2025, but it also has to adapt to being one of the factory teams with Honda. In other words, it has to design its own transmission and its own rear suspension, something it previously took advantage of from Mercedes.
Thus, the arrival of new talent and the modernization of Silverstone’s infrastructure will be decisive in this transformation. With all these challenges ahead, Adrian Newey already has his to-do list full. His influence on the Aston Martin project could be the key to seeing Fernando Alonso back in contention for a world title in the new F1 era.