Adrian Newey is doing something that he does not like to design Aston Martin’s 2026 F1 car

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Aston Martin secured a true coup when the team hired Adrian Newey to be their new managing technical partner and design their car for the F1 regulation changes in 2026.

The Silverstone crew fended off competition from most of the F1 grid to hire Newey after he left Red Bull in 2024. Newey is the most successful car designer in history, having seen his designs win the F1 drivers’ championship 14 times and the constructors’ title 12 times so far.

Aston Martin are yet to win a Grand Prix, let alone either title, throughout the iconic British brand’s time on the grid. The Aston Martin name returned to F1 in the 2021 season, having previously competed in 1959 and 1960, yet the brand boasts nine podiums from 116 starts.

Canadian billionaire owner Lawrence Stroll made Newey a 5% shareholder in Aston Martin, to entice the 66-year-old to join. Stroll has gone all-in viewing on the 2026 F1 regulations as Aston Martin’s route to success, when they will also become the works Honda engine team.

Adrian Newey spends more time than he would ‘like’ checking Aston Martin’s 2026 F1 car designs

Honda will leave Red Bull to join forces with Aston Martin from the 2026 F1 season, with the Silverstone squad becoming the Japanese manufacturer’s only partner. Next season will also mark the start of the 2026 F1 regulations era, with new engine, tyre and aerodynamic rules.

READ MORE: All to know about Aston Martin F1 Team from team principal to lineage

But Newey, who officially took up his role at Aston Martin in March, now admits that he has to spend more time than he would like checking the designs their engineers have created so far. Newey is leaving no stone unturned to ensure everyone is happy with Aston Martin’s car.

“Collaboration, of course, is the most important single aspect,” Newey said in a video shared by Aston Martin on YouTube. “It’s how we all work together, make sure that we communicate and we extract the most from each other.

“For me personally, what does it mean? Well, it means I probably spend around 50% of my day working with other engineers, either at a one-on-one level, gathered around a CAD station, or in meetings.

“I generally, if I’m honest, prefer the former, because I think one-on-one meetings are where you can do the brainstorms. The big meetings, if you’re not careful, become procedural information exchanges without actually coming up with new ideas, which is, of course, the important bit. So, you need a mixture.

“We’re under intense pressure for deadlines to get the major architectural parts of the car, which is the gearbox, followed by the chassis, the front suspension, the rear suspension, etc, released in time for testing in January.

“In truth, I’m probably spending a bit more time than I’d like, about 50% of my time, at the drawing board or looking at the CFD, the computational fluid dynamics, the vehicle dynamic programs etc, and trying to make sure that we’re coming up with a concept that we’re all happy with. I never want it to not be without everybody’s involvement and buy-in.”

Aston Martin will hope to improve on their 2025 results with Adrian Newey’s influence in 2026

Newey has been focused almost exclusively on Aston Martin’s 2026 car since joining them on March 3, at a stage when the team had already spent two months starting to design their package. He has seldom got involved with improving the AMR25 during the current season.

READ MORE: Everything you need to know about the 2026 F1 engine and aero regulations

Aston Martin’s engineers infrequently asked for Newey’s input on their 2025 F1 car, as they initially struggled to improve the package. Fernando Alonso did not score his first point this term until round nine in Spain, but he has earned points in eight of the 13 races since then.

Lance Stroll might have scored points in each of the first two Grands Prix this term, but the son of team-owner Lawrence then went nine races without a point. Stroll has also failed to score any points through the past six since scoring points in Hungary and the Netherlands.

Alonso and Stroll’s efforts leave Aston Martin seventh in the F1 constructors’ standings with three rounds to go in Las Vegas, Qatar and Abu Dhabi. They trail Racing Bulls in the fight for P6 by 10 points, while Haas and also Sauber sit just two and 10 points behind Aston Martin.