Aston Martin “will win everything” should Adrian Newey find a “loophole” in the F1 2026 regulations, but are “guaranteed” a champion in the next three years regardless.

That is the opinion expressed by seven-time grand prix winner Juan Pablo Montoya, who is not ruling out Fernando Alonso being the driver to deliver on that title guarantee as early as next season.

Aston Martin and Adrian Newey tipped for F1 title glory

Just three race weekends remain before Formula 1 embarks on a new trajectory with heavily revised regulations on both the chassis and power unit fronts looming.

The cars are set to become smaller and 30 kilograms lighter. They will make use of active aerodynamics on both wings, as the Drag Reduction System [DRS] bows out. The Pirelli tyres meanwhile will be 25 millimeters narrower on the fronts and 30mm on the rears.

As for the engines, the maximum electrical energy deployment will be tripled – meaning energy management is expected to become an increasingly vital performance influencer – while the internal combustion engine will run on fully sustainable biofuel.

Such extreme change brings with it the opportunity for shifts in the pecking order, and one team carrying particular intrigue is Aston Martin. The team begins its works Honda engine partnership from F1 2026, while their car will benefit from the F1 design wizardry of Adrian Newey.

Having created title-winning cars for Williams, McLaren and Red Bull, Newey will look to add Aston Martin to that list.

Montoya – who raced for McLaren towards the end of Newey’s time with the team – is absolutely certain that Aston Martin are heading for championship glory.

He believes that Alonso – regarded as one of F1’s best drivers, but without a world championship since winning his second in 2006 – could get the job done already for Aston Martin in F1 2026, especially if Newey finds a “loophole” in the new regulations which can be used to the team’s advantage.

“You can’t write Fernando Alonso off for a championship challenge next year,” Montoya told a gambling platform.

“If Adrian Newey doesn’t get it right with the Aston Martin next year, he will in 2027.

“Aston Martin will have a world champion in the next three years, I guarantee it.

“Honda won’t sit still if they don’t. Every time Honda is involved in F1, they win.

“I’m not 100 per cent sure Aston Martin will be competitive next year, but if Newey finds that loophole in the rules, they will win everything.”

How F1 2026 is shaping up

👉 F1 2026: Confirmed teams and power unit suppliers for F1’s huge regulation changes

👉 F1 2026 driver line-up: Who is already confirmed for the 2026 grid?

Newey arrived at Aston Martin in March as managing technical partner and a team shareholder. At this point, he is deep into the process of crafting Aston Martin’s F1 2026 challenger. He can understand what his wife Amanda means when she tells him that he is in a ‘design trance’.

“Some of the motivation is that fear of failure,” Newey said during an in-house Aston Martin interview when asked if he is afraid of failure.

“I’ve tried to learn to use that constructively, because it’s that difference between too much pressure or pressure mismanaged causing mistakes, versus leading to quite a focused and tunnel vision-like state.

“My wife, over the last three, four months since I’ve joined the team, complains that I’m in a ‘design trance’, and I understand what she means, that I don’t kind of see left and right, and I’m probably not terribly sociable.

“What limited processing power I have is all concentrated on the task in hand, given these pressing deadlines, but that’s not a state to stay in for too long, and that all sounds quite egotistical as well. It’s really ultimately all about the team and how we work together.”

But, Newey has “no idea” what Aston Martin’s prospects are for F1 2026, with each team working in privacy on their new creations.

“We are in a period of transformation,” he added. “We’ve, as a team, grown rapidly. It’s really in a now settling down phase, having grown hugely in numbers.

“We now need to settle everybody down, get them working well together.

“I’ve never been a believer in saying ‘we will now achieve this or now achieve that.’ I think the satisfaction comes from working together to move forwards. If we can achieve that in 2026, that will be the first tick.”

Aston Martin will continue with the same driver line-up of Alonso and Lance Stroll for F1 2026.

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