Aston Martin suffered a tough start to the 2025 season, with their car lacking pace and sometimes being the slowest over a race weekend. However, upgrade packages were introduced to the car under the watchful eye of Adrian Newey, and now the Green team is fighting hard for the lower points.
However, Newey is now fully focused on preparing the team’s 2026 challenger. The AMR25 is not Newey’s design, and the former Red Bull legend is focusing on the team’s future. This is not stopping Aston Martin from bringing more updates to the car, as it pushes for the second half of the season.
Aston Martin is bringing upgrades to the Belgium GP
Aston Martin currently sits eighth in the championship after a difficult start to the season. However, the Silverstone-based team has scored in the last four races, bringing them closer to the midfield pack. Aston Martin brought upgrades to the British GP as they recorded their first double-points finish of the season. The team plans to continue their momentum by adding more upgrades for Belgium.
Speaking to SiriusXM, team principal Andy Cowell, said: “We’ve got another big component coming to Spa, and we’ll work out what we’re doing for the rest of the year as well.
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“We’re not putting any more significant aerodynamic resource on, but if there are things that we can spot that we can tidy up that just help refine our tools, doing that work now will help us for ’26 and beyond.”
Aston Martin had a slump last season after a positive 2023 season. The decline has continued into this season, but the team is starting to show signs of a comeback. In past seasons, upgrades failed to help the team. However, this time around, the car is improving, despite no input from Adrian Newey. The team will hope to continue their upward trajectory as they look to break into the top 5.
Can Aston Martin be optimistic for 2026?
There are reasons why Aston Martin should be quietly optimistic for the 2026 season. The Silverstone-based team managed to poach design legend Adrian Newey from Red Bull. Fernando Alonso has confirmed that Newey is putting most of his work into next season’s challenger. If Newey can get the car to click, Aston Martin could be a force.
Newey wasn’t the only major coup Lawrence Stroll signed. Enrico Cardille has joined as their Chief Technical Officer, having previously worked at Ferrari. Another important signing for the Green team was Andy Cowell, who was instrumental in Mercedes’ engine success during the hybrid era.
Aston Martin is also changing engine providers. They are moving away from Mercedes and joining forces with Honda. This is a gamble as Mercedes is predicted to have the best powertrain for next season. However, Honda has had large success with Red Bull over the last few years, and will only be providing engines to Aston Martin, meaning Stroll’s team will have their full attention.
Aston Martin also has a new state-of-the-art facility at their Silverstone base, which was estimated to have cost somewhere in the region of £180 to £200 million. With all these factors, the Green team can be optimistic going into the 2026 season.
