Adrian Newey is ‘convinced’ Aston Martin will emerge with the best chassis despite Bahrain test woes

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Adrian Newey’s first pre-season as the team principal of Aston Martin has been nothing short of woeful, but the 66-year-old design genius is reportedly convinced that he will turn it around.

After failing to get a full three days of laps in at the Barcelona shakedown, Aston Martin were already on the back foot to their F1 rivals upon their arrival in Bahrain.

During the first week of testing in Sakhir, weaknesses were exposed in Aston Martin’s new Honda engine, issues that should have been identified and eliminated during the shakedown.

Once the AMR26 started to gather some data, it culminated in a lot of frustration for the team’s driver line-up.

Fernando Alonso threw his gloves away in fury after his first laps in the new F1 car, while Lance Stroll claimed that the AMR26 is four seconds off the pace.

• READ MORE: F1 fans think Adrian Newey will be furious about Lance Stroll’s testing crash over revealing recovery

Adrian Newey is ‘convinced’ that the AMR26 will have the best chassis on the grid by round eight

David Croft has full faith in Adrian Newey turning Aston Martin’s issues around, and the man himself already has a plan to do exactly that.

According to a report by DAZN commentator Antonio Lobato from inside the pit-lane at pre-season testing in Bahrain, Newey has now set a timeline for when he expects Aston Martin to emerge with the “best chassis on the grid”.

Despite the Silverstone-based team looking like the weakest outfit among their rivals, the team principal is reportedly “convinced” that Aston Martin will be a step ahead of the competition in “six, seven or eight” races’ time.

Aston Martin employees were disappointed with Newey’s first F1 car for the team, but according to Lobato’s “sources”, the AMR26 design that has been present in Sakhir won’t be the same chassis as the one Alonso and Stroll will be at the wheel of in Melbourne for the season-opener.

The biggest issue that the team are facing comes in the form of their Honda power unit. Newey is now delegating the issue to those better placed to fix things there, while he continues to focus on his vision for the chassis.

Lobato also added that Newey has “everything prepared” to address the immediate concerns with the car’s design, which further indicates a positive future for Aston Martin fans.

• READ MORE: Max Verstappen wishes Honda ‘the very best’ with Aston Martin in 2026 after seeing Bahrain test

Prove us wrong: Fernando Alonso’s faith in Adrian Newey is misguided this season after testing woes

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Aston Martin insider says Adrian Newey’s leadership is ‘unquestionable’

Newey’s reputation alone allows him some extra time to get things sorted. As the most successful designer in F1 history, everyone is aware of what he can create.

Despite some of Newey’s former colleagues describing him as infuriating to work with, Aston Martin ambassador and former F1 driver Pedro de la Rosa says that his leadership at the team is “unquestionable”.

He told Mundo Deportivo after the first week of testing, “Since Adrian arrived, his leadership is unquestionable. I think that’s the biggest difference I’ve noticed.

“Yesterday, after a very difficult day of testing here in Bahrain, he spoke in the debriefing, and his leadership is so strong that the whole team knows exactly what to do. 

“This is very different from previous years, where everyone could have their own theory. He’s very clear about what to do, and nobody questions him.”