How Adrian Newey may already have played a role in removal of key Aston Martin engineer

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Adrian Newey won’t officially start his new role at Aston Martin until the first quarter of 2025. Lawrence Stroll unveiled the legendary designer in September, but he’s still a Red Bull employee for now.

Newey handed in his resignation from Red Bull in the spring after 18 years at Milton Keynes. He then spent the summer weighing up his options.

Eventually, it was Stroll who won the race. Aston Martin gave Newey shares in the team, making him the Managing Technical Partner.

Stroll called it Aston Martin’s most exciting signing, even more so than Fernando Alonso. He believes this is the key move in his quest to win the world championship.

Red Bull have removed Newey from the travel rota because they were unhappy that Aston didn’t wait until next year to unveil him to the media. It appears he’s already exerting an influence at the midfield team.

Newey has previously clashed with Martin Whitmarsh, who stepped down as CEO before he arrived. Former Mercedes engine mastermind Andy Cowell will take over that role.

Adrian Newey didn’t particularly rate Dan Fallows before he vacated technical director role

Earlier this week, Aston announced that technical director Dan Fallows would be stepping down to take on a different role within the company. BBC Sport’s Andrew Benson reports that Cowell has driven this move.

However, The Mail’s Jonathan McEvoy ‘can further reveal’ that Newey ‘did not hold Fallows in especially high regard’. This would also have counted against him.

Before joining Aston, Fallows worked with Newey as the head of aerodynamics at Red Bull. They helped the team win a ‘quadruple double’ of titles between 2010 and 2013.

McEvoy says he first approached Aston over rumours about Fallows back in September. While they denied the story at the time, it came to feel increasingly inevitable with Aston Martin a lonely fifth in the standings.

Fernando Alonso has already issued bleak warning before Adrian Newey joins Aston Martin

Red Bull have lost their way in F1’s development race this season, falling to third in the constructors’ championship. Many have taken that as evidence of Newey’s importance, with the 65-year-old less involved than ever.

But accounts from inside the team differ. Some Red Bull staff trace their problems to spring 2023, while others claim Newey has had no major influence on their last couple of cars.

In all likelihood, he won’t be able to make the Aston Martin car significantly faster until 2026. There will be major changes to the regulations, potentially enabling teams to leap up the pecking order.

Fernando Alonso says Newey will ‘100%’ struggle to make a difference in 2025. Until he can shape their concept, he may be most influential when it comes to personnel decisions, such as Fallows’ reassignment.