'Embarrassing' Aston Martin told Adrian Newey change won't fix problems

Aston Martin

'Embarrassing' Aston Martin told Adrian Newey change won't fix problems

Adrian Newey has divided opinion in his role of team principal

Sheona Mountford F1 Journalist

Motorsport journalist working in F1 since 2024.

Wednesday 22 April 2026 09:15

There's a lot of noise at present as to who Aston Martin's F1 team principal should be, but are these concerns ignoring the heart of the issue at the team?

The 2026 Aston Martin car will go down as one of the all-time flops in F1 history. Not only are they widely off the pace of their rivals, but the vibrations from the Honda power unit increase the risk of causing battery damage and limits the drivers' mileage, such is the discomfort.

Team principal Adrian Newey arrived at the season opener in Melbourne with all the problems but none of the answers to present to the world media, testing the chief designer who is more renowned for his technical mind that people skills in Formula 1.

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Following the announcement Jonathan Wheatley would be leaving his role as Audi team principal, the 58-year-old was strongly linked to a team leadership role at Aston Martin, tipped to act as a supporting figure to team principal Newey.

Newey's decision to take on the role of team principal certainly raised a few eyebrows, with former F1 boss Guenther Steiner commenting on the Drive to Wynn podcast that the designer might be regretting his promotion and the team principal role isn't where his strengths are.

Yet, all this focus on who should be Aston Martin's team principal is distracting from bigger issues, according to another pundit.

READ MORE: Newey Aston Martin regret revealed

Should Aston Martin be focusing on a technical hire?

Speaking on the Sky Sports F1 Show, Karun Chandhok discussed Aston Martin's current issues and whether Wheatley was the best candidate to lead the team.

Chandhok however, moved the conversation on from who should be boss, and explained: "Honestly though, Aston, they've got bigger problems than the team principal isn't it?

"You know, they've been just… I mean, disappointing is not even the word, is it? It's just been embarrassing how far off the pace that whole package has been due to the issues from the Honda side."

"So I think the team principal is the least of their issues. They need somebody to resolve the technical issue and I don't think Jonathan's necessarily the person for that. They need engine people sitting in Sakura to try and dig them out of this hole."

F1 Aston Martin Adrian Newey Honda Jonathan Wheatley Karun Chandhok