Adrian Newey is not just an engineer who builds the best single-seaters because he knows more about aerodynamics than anyone else, which he could also be, but his knowledge and way of working go much further. He is able to interpret the regulations like no one else can, and in this way, he gains the advantage needed to stay one step ahead of his competitors. With the new regulations for 2026, which will bring about the biggest change in the history of modern F1, the British engineer has much more scope to find regulatory advantages where no one else can.
Adrian Newey’s vision
The beginnings are as ambitious as they are terrifying. At first, you are faced with a lot of information about new regulations. After a first reading, there are few conclusions, many unknowns, but above all, little room for maneuver. But as you understand each paragraph and create a mental outline of the new requirements, you begin to understand how each element has to fit together and you start to uncover the different alternatives available. In the case of the F1 of the future, that of 2026, the change is enormous, both in terms of the chassis and the engine, and Adrian Newey is discovering the endless options available to him to keep moving forward.
“My thoughts on the 2026 regulations are similar to those I had on the big change in 2022: initially I thought the rules were so prescriptive that there wasn’t much (room for innovation), but then you start to delve into the details and you realize that there is more flexibility and different approaches than meets the eye.”
Adrian Newey believes that for the new generation of single-seaters, something similar to what happened in 2022 will happen, when the teams showed their prototypes and the different approaches of each one were seen. As the seasons have progressed, everyone has ended up unifying criteria.
“We saw it at the beginning of 2022, with teams taking really different directions.”
“Now, of course, four seasons later, they have converged to a large extent, but initially that was not the case.”
Adrian Newey, ambitious with the project
The fact that the regulations allow for different approaches is a blessing for Newey, as it takes the competition off the track and into the offices, where engineers seek the best configuration to gain the initial advantage before hitting the asphalt.
“It’s all a bit boring if the cars look identical and the only way to tell them apart is by their livery,” he said. “There’s a high probability that in 2026 we’ll see something similar to 2022.”
“There’s enough flexibility in the regulations, and I’m sure people will come up with different solutions. Some of them will be eliminated during the first two or three years as the teams begin to converge.”
Aston Martin started the 2026 race a little behind its rivals, but it has the best people making cars to close the time gap. Adrian Newey is enjoying the moments he likes best as an engineer, new projects that allow him to see beyond a simple set of regulations and visualize what the car that offers him a real chance of winning should look like. So far, wherever the Briton has been called upon to build a car, he has managed to make the best one. In some cases, it was immediate, and in others, it took a little longer, but he never failed, and that is what Aston Martin is clinging to in order to climb the F1 grid and reach the top of motorsport. As for Fernando Alonso, he hopes that the road to victory will be a quick one.