Guenther Steiner says Adrian Newey might be responsible for Aston Martin’s overheating issues

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Aston Martin are in crisis heading into the first race of the 2026 Formula 1 season, and Guenther Steiner thinks team principal Adrian Newey has to take some of the responsibility.

Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll were up to four seconds off the pace of the field in pre-season testing. With reliability issues with the Honda power unit and several problems with the car itself, things have only got worse for the Silverstone outfit.

So much so that Newey admits that even the mirrors are falling off Alonso’s car. The AMR26 has severe vibration issues that are causing health concerns for the drivers.

Should F1 stop Aston Martin from racing after Adrian Newey revealed Fernando Alonso’s ‘nerve damage’ fears?

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Subsequently, Aston Martin are not set to complete a full race distance at the Australian Grand Prix. It might not just be in Melbourne that this happens, either, as Newey may seek permission to skip multiple races due to the vibration issue and the safety of Alonso and Stroll.

Newey has told staff the ‘recovery process’ has started, but immediate success cannot be expected. They have countless issues to fix that could set them back months.

READ MORE: All you need to know about Aston Martin F1 team principal Adrian Newey

Guenther Steiner says Adrian Newey might have ‘tried too hard’ at Aston Martin

Overheating has also been a problem with the AMR26, which Steiner drew attention to on the Red Flags Podcast. He thinks Newey might have ‘tried too hard’ at Aston Martin and has to take some responsibility for the issue.

“When you have got a power unit which doesn’t work, it’s difficult to design a car, but then I think we all hear that the car is badly overheating,” said Steiner.

“I don’t know what that is down to, because that normally is down to also the car, the aerodynamics, because the less you cool a car, the faster you go. So maybe Adrian tried too hard.

A frank verdict from Stroll as Aston Martin look for answers 👀

Finish the sentence 'In Australia, Aston Martin will finish XX and XX'…

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“It’s difficult to assign blame. If I want to assign blame, I think it’s a combination of things. Obviously, Adrian, he designed great cars, the most successful designer of Formula 1 cars.

“Taking on a bigger role, maybe it was a little bit too much, and Adrian always had very good people around him. We never have to forget that one and that takes time, to build up that team at Red Bull.

“You know it was the same. It took him a few years, but obviously having now the additional duties of a team principal doesn’t help to do that work, to put a team together around you.”