Aston Martin team principal Adrian Newey is “not doing well” due to the team’s current circumstances, according to former colleague Helmut Marko.
Newey, viewed as one of F1′s greatest designers, has faced intense scrutiny following the team’s disastrous start to the 2026 season, having taken on the principal role at the start of the year.
The new Honda-powered F1 designed by Newey, has suffered from severe performance issues, including vibrations, leaving drivers Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll with multiple DNFs and no points.
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Newey this month said the car was shaking so much it risked “permanent nerve damage” in its drivers’ hands without major improvements.
Japanese media and Honda executives have reacted strongly to Newey’s comments about the power unit, calling it “unacceptable” and accusing Newey of causing problems.
Reports from Japan state Newey’s late design changes made things more difficult.
Adrian Newey, Team Principal of Aston Martin. Getty
Newey joined Aston Martin a year ago after 20 years and 13 world championships at Red Bull, where he worked closely with Red Bull’s former head of driver development, Marko.
“I had contact with him [Newey],” Marko told Austrian outlet oe24. “He’s not doing well.
“There are problems with this project that won’t be solved quickly.”
Newey is set to step back from his team principal role, which would free him up to focus entirely on car performance and technical issues.
Reports state Jonathan Wheatley will move into the team principal role after leaving Audi.
Any move to Aston Martin would reunite Wheatley with Newey.
Helmut Marko. Zak Mauger via LAT Images
Newey and Wheatley previously worked together at Red Bull when it was F1’s dominant team.
Despite the long list of issues, Newey said in pre-season the AMR26 car has tremendous potential as F1 starts a new era of regulations.
He argued the chassis is F1’s fifth best behind the expected top teams Mercedes, Ferrari, McLaren and Red Bull, despite an aggressive development program.
Its disappointing performance has been variously attributed to a compressed design time due to late arrival, Honda’s need to rebuild its research and development capabilities after leaving Red Bull, the challenge of producing a new in-house gearbox, and the team running a so-far unproven fuels partner in Aramco.
– with AP