Aston Martin F1 insider reveals 'pain' and Adrian Newey leadership verdict

Aston Martin

Aston Martin F1 insider reveals 'pain' and Adrian Newey leadership verdict

Adrian Newey is team principal and managing technical partner at Aston Martin

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Tuesday 14 July 2026 08:15

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An Aston Martin F1 team insider has spoken out about the vibe within the Silverstone-based outfit amid their dismal start to the season, as well as discussing Adrian Newey's leadership.

Design legend Newey has claimed 26 world championship titles across his illustrious career, working with the likes of Williams, McLaren and Red Bull.

But still at 67 years of age, he is doing certain things for the first time. Whereas Newey has been a chief technical officer and chief designer in previous roles, at Aston Martin he is both the team principal and managing technical partner.

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That means he is involved in helping Aston Martin to develop their AMR26 chassis throughout the season, as well as taking on the day-to-day responsibilities of being a team principal.

All in all, however, it has not been a good start to 2026 for Newey or Aston Martin.

The team's Honda power unit has been causing them reliability and power output issues, meaning that drivers Lance Stroll and two-time world champion Fernando Alonso have largely been fighting at the back of the pack, if they have finished sessions at all.

In more positive news for Aston Martin, however, it seems as though Newey-designed upgrades to their AMR26 are coming, as well as improvements on Honda's side of things.

Now, team ambassador and advisor Pedro de la Rosa has provided insight on how the feel is within the team as they look to continue the upward trajectory.

Aston Martin unchanged despite poor start to 2026

"I wouldn’t say there’s a vibe change," the Spaniard told PlanetF1. "It has been the same since the beginning of the season.

"We obviously realised we were far away from where we wanted to be and, since then, the team put a plan together. We just have been working towards it, knowing that, as we’re going through a period of not introducing upgrades in the car that is painful, but I think that the vibe is still the same.

"We are still united, we’re working well, and we’re working towards a plan, and I think that has been key in the sense that everyone has been informed of what we were doing and when we were doing it.

"This hasn’t been easy, and when things are not easy is when things can fall apart, but we have really stayed together and united, and also having the confidence that we could pull it around."

Aston Martin star's glowing Newey praise

De la Rosa then went on to talk about design legend Newey, and how he is managing the team as both team principal and managing technical partner.

Having joined Aston Martin in March 2025, Newey was announced as team principal in November last year, when Andy Cowell was sacked from the role.

"He’s just super good, because that’s Adrian," De la Rosa continued. "With no filters, that’s how he is within the factory, within everyone in the team when he talks to Lance and Fernando, and I think that’s why he’s such a good leader, because the key in our current situation is that everyone has been informed of the plan we were following.

"Now, the world or the people might sound surprised, because you consider that interview to be very, very transparent, but that’s the reason why we have kept calm within the organisation, because everyone had this information.

"That’s why we are not that surprised, and that’s why Lance and Fernando have kept their heads down.

"At the end of the day, I think that’s what makes Adrian so special; my experience with him when I worked at McLaren is that he always wanted to know why you couldn’t go any faster, and that’s something no sensor, no data can show or prove to any engineer."

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Sam Cook - Digital Journalist

Sam Cook is a talented young sports journalist and social media professional who now specialises in Formula 1, having previously worked as a football journalist and a local news reporter for a variety of different brands.

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F1 Aston Martin Adrian Newey Pedro De La Rosa