Adrian Newey can be a huge contributor to a great Aston Martin car, but he can\u2019t be the team\u2019s \u201csilver bullet\u201d, according to Sebastian Vettel.<\/p>\n
However, Vettel explained that Newey\u2019s racing obsession means that, in\u00a0the right environment, he can make a major impact.<\/p>\n
Adrian Newey: A key cog in the Aston Martin machine?<\/p>\n
Want more PlanetF1.com coverage? Add us as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list<\/a> for news you can trust.<\/p>\n Vettel has proposes that legendary F1 car designer and his former Red Bull colleague Adrian Newey can be a pivotal contributor at Aston Martin, but not the one answer to all its problems.<\/p>\n Vettel won his four titles in Red Bull machinery designed under Newey\u2019s watch before leading the team in 2014 for Ferrari, and ultimately ended his racing career at Aston Martin.<\/p>\n Newey joined Aston Martin as a part-owner, following his own Red Bull departure in 2024, and is regarded as a key ingredient in the team\u2019s efforts to become a championship contender.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve been in this paddock for a long time in my life, and everybody is trying to find that silver bullet. Nobody\u2019s ever found it. It doesn\u2019t exist,\u201d Vettel told the Beyond the Grid podcast.<\/p>\n \u201cThe magic in Formula 1 starts to happen when everything comes together.<\/p>\n \u201cOf course, you can argue drivers have a unique position because they drive the car and ultimately need to get it right. And then there is other people within a team that are really key in getting the performances.<\/p>\n \u201cAdrian is certainly one of them.<\/p>\n \u201cBut also, Adrian needs to be in the right environment.<\/p>\n \u201cI haven\u2019t seen him in a while, but he\u2019s been such a long time with Red Bull, the chance is definitely there that it sparked something in him to really take on that challenge, which I know he\u2019s mentioned and so on.<\/p>\n \u201cBut I think he does have a quality that not many people have. He is obsessed with racing. He loves racing. He really is like a child when it comes to motor racing, and that\u2019s the biggest driver you can have.<\/p>\n \u201cSo, if Aston is able to provide the landscape, the surrounding, for him to find that, to unleash that, then, yeah, he can be, not a silver bullet, but a huge contributor to a great car.\u201d<\/p>\n More on F1 2026 from PlanetF1.com<\/p>\n The ultimate F1 2026 guide: Everything you need to know about the 2026 season<\/a><\/p>\n First Audi F1 design details spotted as early F1 2026 tech trend emerges<\/a><\/p>\n The F1 2026 season brings together for the first time a host of elements that have been put in place over recent years.<\/p>\n There have been impressive and expansive new facilities constructed at the team\u2019s base, and a long recruitment drive to attract top talent \u2013 Newey among them.<\/p>\n Not only will the coming season see Aston Martin field battle its first Newey-designed car, the team also begins a new alliance with Honda as its engine partner.<\/p>\n Those elements combined have seen the squad fingered as something of a dark horse courtesy of the reset due to the all-new regulations that come into play this season.<\/p>\n \u201cI think there\u2019s more than one dark horse next year, because you don\u2019t know what\u2019s going to happen with the regs, and how teams will interpret them, which is also the exciting bit,\u201d Vettel stated.<\/p>\n \u201cThen there\u2019s always the argument, the strongest team now will have the strongest chance of succeeding with the big rule change, because they have the strongest organisation. So you could argue McLaren is a favourite.<\/p>\n \u201cThen it largely depends on the power unit as well, how that pans out.<\/p>\n \u201cBut it\u2019s going to be the big teams, and Aston could be, I think\u2026 Just from a resources point of view, I know, because I\u2019ve seen the project when they started, and now they are sort of finished. They do take time to really fall into place, with a new tunnel, the factory, the sim, and the partnership with Honda as well.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd Honda doesn\u2019t come out of the box. They\u2019ve had now all these years of experience.<\/p>\n \u201cSo yeah, I think the ingredients are there, and the ingredients have been there for a while, but you see also how hard it is to make it click.<\/p>\n \u201cI mean, 2023, they had a fantastic open of the season, and then struggling a little bit towards the end. Then \u201924 and \u201925 was difficult for them.<\/p>\n \u201cSo, yeah, the resources are there. The people are there. Why not?\u201d<\/p>\n Aston Martin continues with the driver pairing of two-time World Champion Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll, three times a podium finisher, going into F1 2026.<\/p>\n Want to be the first to know exclusive information from the F1 paddock? Join our broadcast channel on WhatsApp<\/a> to get the scoop on the latest developments from our team of accredited journalists.<\/p>\n You can also subscribe to the PlanetF1 YouTube channel<\/a> for exclusive features, hear from our paddock journalists with stories from the heart of Formula 1 and much more!<\/p>\n