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Aston Martin had an embarrassing start to the 2026 F1 season, with the Australian Grand Prix being treated like a practice session for the Silverstone-based outfit. Still, F1 expert Christijan Albers has explained why teams will still seek inspiration from Adrian Newey’s latest creation.
While it is still very much in its infancy, the engine collaboration between Aston Martin and Honda has left a lot to be desired following the conclusion of the Australian Grand Prix.
There were questions over the AMR26 being able to even qualify for the race heading into the weekend, and team principal Adrian Newey raised safety issues over the vibrations that were being emitted from their new power unit.
Alas, the British constructor was able to claim a place on the grid, but the Grand Prix still proved to be too much for them.
Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll were both recalled into the pits prematurely, only to be sent out again later on in the race in order for engineers to collect more data to right their current wrongs.
Aston Martin ambassador Jenson Button admitted to their difficulties ahead of the meaningful sessions of the weekend, and it appears that the AMR26 will continue to struggle with completing a race distance at the upcoming Chinese Grand Prix as well.
- READ MORE: Fernando Alonso says Aston Martin could ‘easily’ be in the top 10 without Honda engine issues
How disappointed should Aston Martin be with their Australian Grand Prix performance?
Christijan Albers thinks F1 teams will still copy ‘a lot’ from Adrian Newey’s AMR26
Despite the clear deficit that Aston Martin have to the rest of the F1 grid, former F1 driver Christijan Albers believes that some F1 teams will take inspiration from Adrian Newey’s prowess in chassis development.
The Honda power unit has been identified as the root cause for the Silverstone-based outfit’s abysmal start to the season, while Newey is confident that the AMR26 will have the best chassis on the grid by the midway point of the season.
Albers shared his enthusiasm for the 67-year-old’s latest creation in a recent episode of De Telegraaf’s F1 podcast with journalist Erik van Haren.
He said, “The basics are there because they’ve been busy delivering the engines, from last year and the year before that, too. So the basics are there. It’s not like they have to start completely from scratch.
“And let’s be honest, we’ve had rumours several times last year that there was a lot of vibration in those engines. With Max, too, do you remember?
“In Brazil, there was a different engine in it, and there was a lot of vibration. And you can see that coming back now.
“But when I look at the Aston Martin, for example, man, oh man, that’s a really impressive car to look at. I mean, I’ll tell you one thing.
“Their car may not have the speed yet, but there are a lot of teams that are going to copy a lot of things from that Aston Martin.”
- READ MORE: Gary Anderson hails Adrian Newey for Aston Martin’s ‘extreme’ idea that no rival F1 team has used
Can Adrian Newey turn the Aston Martin AMR26 into a race-winning car in 2026?
Links between Christian Horner and Aston Martin renewed after Toto Wolff’s Alpine bid
Aston Martin may be able to secure the services of a man who can turn their woes around in Christian Horner, after it emerged that Toto Wolff and Mercedes declared their interest in acquiring a stake in Alpine that is currently on the market.
F1 fans accused Wolff of ‘pettiness’ after news of his potential involvement hit social media, with the former rivalry between the two paddock heavyweights regaining some motion.
While it’s a tough gig for the former Red Bull executive, Aston Martin have been identified as the ‘most likely’ destination for Horner now that Alpine appears to be off the table.
It marks another turning point in Horner’s F1 comeback bid, and it’s clear that he will stop at nothing to find his way back into the paddock.
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