Aston Martin is “completely screwed” for the foreseeable future, predicted commentator Will Buxton, as he questioned who would want to take on team principal responsibilities with the struggling outfit.

Since the drama at the end of March which saw Jonathan Wheatley leave Audi “with immediate effect” amid rumours that he was set to join Aston Martin as its new team principal – a position currently held by Adrian Newey – all has gone quiet on the leadership topic at the Silverstone-based team.

While Aston Martin dismissed these links as “speculation”, it is believed that such a move would see Newey able to switch focus back to a technical role, with Wheatley reliving other pressures.

However, Buxton can’t help but wonder why Wheatley, or anyone, would want to make this move.

“In our little WhatsApp group, when we first heard the rumblings of Adrian moving back to TD [Technical director] and the TP role being up for grabs at Aston Martin, my immediate response is ‘Who the hell wants it?’. Because who wants to step into a job where you know ultimately, you are going to fail for at least the next year, if not two years,” he said on the Up to Speed podcast.

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“The Honda scenario at Aston Martin is a disaster, and it is as bad, if not worse, that what McLaren was facing when Honda first came back in 2015. Honda’s disaster of 2015 took them five years to rectify.

“They didn’t get a grand prix win until 2019, that’s their fifth season back, and it was with a different team, after they moved to Red Bull. McLaren themselves after the furore and the difficulties they had with Honda, didn’t get a grand prix victory until 2021.

“So if you are stepping into that Aston Martin position right now, you have got to be aware that for the foreseeable future, possibly the rest of this decade, you’re completely screwed.”

Aston Martin had targeted a significant move towards the front of the grid this season, with the all-new power unit and chassis regulations opening the door for a changing of the guard at the front. But instead, the team has slid to the back of the field, battling with newcomers Cadillac, while enduring near-constant reliability problems.

In a previous era of the championship, a team with the resources of Aston Martin would have been able to spend its way out of such a hole, but since the cost cap was introduced in 2021, this is no longer possible.

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“You can’t just throw money at it,” Buxton continued. “Lawrence Stroll can sit there and say ‘I’ve got more money than God’, great, but we exist in Formula 1 under a budget cap. You cannot just throw money at it like you could 10-15-20 years ago.

“There has to be process, there has to be a decent knowledge of where you’re heading, and if Lawrence Stroll is ultimately overseeing all of this and what you need is a yes man, a puppet, who will do whatever Lawrence Stroll wants, who is willing to step into that and be that person?

“Yes, you may have a massive and very lucrative salary because of it, but if your intention is to be a success, and as we know Jonathan to strive for the best and to win races and world championships, are you going to have that before 2030? I’d argue not.”

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