Fernando Alonso had claimed that Aston Martin are trying to use the ongoing season to build a base for Adrian Newey come 2026. The Spaniard has admitted that the team is not focusing too much on improving the car for the remainder of season. Rather, they are focusing on building a platform for Newey to be able to showcase his work next year.
Fernando Alonso spoke to the media recently, and talked about the difficulties he has faced so far in 2025. While he admitted that Aston Martin are looking to bring improvements to their current car, he also claimed that not too long could be spent focusing on this.
“It has been challenging, but we have understood and we know the problem in the car now, but we cannot put too much focus into solving the problem. Because we need to think about the future and for 2026, but even if it is too late, we will try to get better in the second part of the year, and a lot of the motivation we have for next year is thanks to him [Newey].” said Alonso. [via RacingNews365]
“Even if we had a fast car now, there are a couple of areas we need to keep improving, so we are trying to use 2025 to tackle these and be ready for [Newey] as well.” he added further.
The Aston Martin F1 project looked to be flying already when Fernando Alonso was constantly stood on the podium in the first half of the 2023 season. But the journey has been tough since then. The British team has fallen far behind over the course of the last two years. They no longer hold the spot of the fifth best team on the grid either.
Fernando Alonso claims Adrian Newey is Aston Martin’s source of “confidence” heading into 2026
Fernando Alonso has claimed that having Adrian Newey at the team is the primary source of confidence for Aston Martin heading into 2026. The 43-year-old indirectly admitted that not much would have excited the team for next year, given their current poor form.
“With all the difficulties we have had this year and the problems we are facing, having him on board is giving us enough confidence to look forward to 2026, and expectations will be high, but with the feet on the ground, as we know how far behind we are now.” said Alonso. [via RacingNews365]
Adrian Newey has previously designed race winning machines at Williams, McLaren, and most recently Red Bull. The Briton almost completely transformed the fortunes of these teams. This earned him a lot of respect in the F1 world.
So when the 66-year-old became available again in 2024, Lawrence Stroll snapped him up. Newey signed as Managing Technical Director at the Silverstone-based team, starting in the role in 2025.
New regulations mean that Newey can have a great influence on the design of the 2026 car. Honda are also on board as Aston Martin’s new engine suppliers. Expectations are naturally high at Silverstone, and perhaps even in Spain.
