Newey steps back? – Aston Martin reportedly searching for a new Team Principal

The 2026 Formula 1 season so far has been far from successful for one of the sport’s richest teams, Aston Martin, and speculation is now rife regarding the future of its Team Principal, Adrian Newey.

First reported by Autosport, with additional reporting from BBC Sport, it is thought that the design genius is set to step down as team boss—a role Newey only assumed four months ago—in order to refocus on his original position as Managing Technical Partner.

Aston Martin’s reported target to replace Newey in the Team Principal role is his former Red Bull Racing colleague and current Audi team boss, Jonathan Wheatley, who himself only took on his role in Hinwil a year ago.

Both Aston Martin and Audi have issued statements deflecting the speculation, which has intensified amid the former’s catastrophic start to the new regulatory era in Formula 1.

“The team will not be engaging in media speculation about its senior leadership team. Adrian Newey continues to lead the team as Team Principal and Managing Technical Partner,” said an Aston Martin spokesperson.

Audi’s response echoed a similar tone: “We are aware of the recent media reports. There is no official update from our side at this point in time, and we do not comment on speculation.”

At 67 years old, Newey—renowned for his storied Formula 1 career as a designer and aerodynamicist—had never previously held a Team Principal role prior to this appointment at Aston Martin. He was announced in March 2025 as Managing Technical Partner, alongside receiving team equity.

Newey replaced former Mercedes HPP (High Performance Powertrains) mastermind Andy Cowell as Team Principal, in what was seen as a strategic move to better utilise Cowell’s engine expertise within the fledgling Honda project.

A potential pitfall in this plan only came to light for Aston Martin’s leadership group, including billionaire owner Lawrence Stroll, as late as November last year—despite the partnership between the Silverstone-based outfit and Honda having been announced as far back as 2023.

“When they reformed [Honda at the end of 2022], a lot of the original group had, it now transpires, disbanded and gone to work on solar panels or whatever. So a lot of the group that reformed are actually fresh to Formula 1,” Newey said, reflecting on the unexpected loss of expertise that had powered Red Bull to four consecutive drivers’ titles with Max Verstappen.

“They didn’t bring the experience that they had previously. Plus, when they came back in 2023, that was the first year of the budget cap introduction for engines, so all their rivals had been developing through ’21 and ’22 with continuity, their existing teams, and free of a budget cap.

“They re-entered with, let’s say, only—I’m guessing—30% of their original team, and now in a budget cap era. So they started very much on the back foot, and unfortunately, they’ve struggled to catch back up.”

A lack of reliability and severe vibration issues caused by the batteries have significantly hampered Aston Martin’s start to the new era of engine and chassis regulations—an era in which, given their vast resources and technical leadership, they would have expected to emerge as front-runners.

If this scenario eventuates, Newey would become the fourth Team Principal to step away since the outfit adopted the Aston Martin guise in 2021. His predecessors include Cowell and Mike Krack, who were both reassigned within the team, while Otmar Szafnauer departed entirely.

Wheatley’s potential acquisition by Aston Martin would also mark a third management restructure for Audi in less than two years. Currently, the 58-year old oversees trackside operations, while Head of Project Mattia Binotto manages the factory side.

Wheatley is also reportedly keen to relocate back to the UK, having only moved to Switzerland last year. However, he would likely be required to serve a lengthy gardening leave period before being released by Audi—meaning any move would not provide immediate relief for the embattled Aston Martin outfit.

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Written by

Jawad Yaqub

An eCommerce Specialist by day and live blogging F1 by night. Jawad is passionate about motorsport, having live blogged (almost) every grand prix for since 2014 as well as contributing fan articles about F1 and Supercars. He's also keen on sustainability, photography, collecting vinyl and (trying to) expertly barbeque.

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