Adrian Newey Set To Become Aston Martin F1's Team Principal For 2026 Season
Newey was a part of the Red Bull family for 19 years, notably designing the famous RB9 - a championship-winning car in 2013, which Vettel bowed down to after securing the Indian Grand Prix.
In a major development heading into the 2026 season of Formula One, the Aston Martin Aramco F1 team has announced Adrian Newey as the team principal, replacing Andy Cowell.
This is part of Aston Martin F1's strategic shift heading into the 2026 season, with Cowell taking on a new role as Chief Strategy Officer. He will help optimise the technical partnership between the Team, Honda, Aramco and Valvoline, the team confirmed in a statement.
"Adrian Newey will take on the role of Team Principal from 2026 and will be guiding the technical team, including the trackside operations of the car," the statement added.
Who Is Adrian Newey?
Adrian Newey is a household name in Formula One and is arguably the most successful car designer in modern F1 history.
Formerly of Red Bull, Newey has a rich track record of being the car designer with the most champions, having designed championship-winning cars for drivers like Ayrton Senna, Mika Hakkinen, Sebastian Vettel and most recently, Max Verstappen.
Newey was a part of the Red Bull family for 19 years, notably designing the famous RB9 - a championship-winning car in 2013, which Vettel bowed down to after securing the Indian Grand Prix.
Newey dominated in the ground-effect era as well, designing the almighty RB19, which is the most dominant car in F1 history in terms of performance and points in a single season, largely thanks to Verstappen.
In 2023, the RB19 won 22 out of the 23 races in the F1 calendar, 19 of which were won by Verstappen.
During his time at Red Bull, Newey worked with Christian Horner and was instrumental in helping RB secure 13 titles overall.
From Red Bull to Aston Martin, can Newey deliver again? (Photo generated by Notebook LM)
Before his stint at Red Bull, Newey worked for McLaren and Williams. He most notably designed the Williams FW16, the car Senna drove when he died in the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix.
Newey left Red Bull in 2024, joining the Aston Martin F1 team, where he has been working with Honda once again to help design AMR's car for next season.
With the new regulations kicking in next year, Aston Martin will bank on Newey and Honda to deliver them a car capable of challenging for the constructors' title.
A solid car in 2026 could give Aston Villa a fighting chance of attracting top drivers for the 2027 season, with the likes of Oscar Piastri, Max Verstappen, George Russell and Charles Leclerc being potentially available.
