Mar.17 (GMM) Adrian Newey may soon relinquish his new role as Aston Martin team boss amid the team’s horrific start to the 2026 season.
That is the view of well-known Spanish Formula 1 journalist Antonio Lobato, who says tensions are rising at the Silverstone-based outfit following a disastrous opening to the new Honda-powered era.
“There’s a lot of tension right now at Aston Martin, a lot of disappointment, a lot of nerves,” Lobato said on the Soy Motor podcast.
The situation, he believes, goes beyond the reliability vibrations that have plagued Newey’s first Aston Martin.
“There is another, much more significant underlying problem,” Lobato added, pointing to a power deficit from the Honda engine of “well over 50 horsepower”.
The scale of the problem was highlighted in Shanghai, where Alonso retired after painful vibrations left him struggling to hold the steering wheel.
“He completed 33 laps, something we hadn’t done consecutively before,” explained chief trackside officer Mike Krack.
“Fernando said that if you’re fighting for the win, it’s possible to drive like that, but we weren’t in that situation, so it was an easy decision.”
Another striking moment during the race came when Sergio Perez swept past Alonso’s Aston Martin in the Cadillac-powered entry on the straight, prompting the Spaniard to wave at his friend from the cockpit.
“Cadillac was half a second faster than Aston Martin on the straights every lap,” Lobato observed.
The crisis has also raised questions about Aston Martin’s unusual new management structure, with Newey combining his traditional design responsibilities with the unfamiliar role of team principal.
“I would even say there’s a lack of leadership right now,” Lobato said.
“In fact, I think there will soon be a new team principal.”
According to the veteran commentator, Aston Martin is already exploring alternatives.
“They’re looking for one,” he said. “They’ve had three in the last three years, and the last one, Adrian Newey, isn’t fulfilling that role. In fact, he shouldn’t.
“He’s good at what he’s good at.”
Speculation is already swirling that Red Bull boss Christian Horner could re-emerge as a candidate for the job, particularly as Mercedes now seems more likely to buy the available 24 percent stake at Alpine.
Krack insists, however, that Aston Martin is making progress behind the scenes despite the painful start to the year.
“I think people might laugh if I say we’ve made progress,” he admitted.
“But we have learned a lot simply by running and racing.”
He said the vibration issues themselves are not responsible for the team’s huge performance deficit.
“The vibrations are mainly affecting our reliability,” Krack explained. “It’s not something that’s costing us seconds.”
Instead, Aston Martin’s main hope of closing the gap lies in potential power unit development once the FIA allows changes under the new ADUO engine rules.
“If we can have improvements sooner, of course that will help,” he said.
Krack also defended his drivers after Lance Stroll’s curt one-word answers in China raised eyebrows.
“The drivers are investing a lot of energy in this,” he said.
“They are professional athletes, but they are also human beings. The situation is difficult right now.”
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