Aston Martin has had a difficult start to the 2025 F1 season, scoring only 14 points and sitting seventh in the championship. This is a far cry from the team that was challenging for wins two years ago. But with design legend Adrian Newey on board, they will look to turn their season around.
Newey is yet to be trackside with his new team, but plans to change that this weekend. The former Red Bull designer will be with the Silverstone-based team for the Monaco GP. He has confirmed he will be in the principality, armed with his trusty notebook.
Adrian Newey to attend first race as Aston Martin employee
Adrian Newey will be in Monaco with Aston Martin for his first outing. The British legend has been working on the 2026 car and cites this as a reason why he is yet to show his face trackside in Green. However, he has his notebook at hand to try and improve Aston Martin’s fortunes this season.
Newey said in an Aston Martin interview: “The deadlines we have in modern F1 seem to be far earlier than they used to be 20 years ago, and there are a lot of them coming up for the 2026 car, which is where my concentration has been, so I’ve not been at the track. I plan to be in Monaco…With the notebook.”
“To be honest, the notebook doesn’t have much in it. It’s just the holder for lots of scraps of A4 paper. Typically, those are sketches, ideas, and prompts. It’s just a way of quickly getting down whatever’s ticking around in my head. It’s a way of developing ideas and then communicating them, though most of them are likely unintelligible to anyone else.”
Newey is a legend of the sport. He has contributed to 26 F1 championship successes, most recently, helping Max Verstappen win four consecutive championships. If anyone can turn around Aston Martin’s future, it is Newey. He has also worked with Honda while at Red Bull, which could be another key component for Aston Martin.
Is Adrian Newey already having an impact?
Adrian Newey’s primary role is to get Aston Martin’s 2026 challenger ready to fight at the front. However, team principal Andy Cowell admitted they are adding 2026 technology to their car to test if it works. These parts will have had Newey’s footprint on them, and they look to be working.
Aston Martin to Trial Adrian Newey’s 2026 Technologies on 2025 F1 Car
For the first time this season, Aston Martin got both cars into the final part of qualifying. Fernando Alonso put his car in P5, which is a major morale-boosting result for the team. Aston Martin introduced seven upgrades in Imola, including some 2026 technology.
Aston Martin had been the slowest team in some of the opening seven race weekends. With Newey’s influence, the team has found some pace. A poor strategy cost Aston Martin converting the qualifying result into points. Aston Martin finally looks to be on an upward trajectory.
