Adrian Newey drops first verdict on upgraded Aston Martin F1 car after early failure

Adrian Newey says Aston Martin’s upgraded Formula 1 car showed early “promising results” despite breaking down in its on-track debut at the Hungarian Grand Prix. 

All eyes were on Aston Martin’s much-anticipated B-spec 2026 F1 car as it appeared on track for the first time during opening practice at the Hungaroring on Friday. 

Fernando Alonso set the 13th-fastest time but was still 2.475 seconds adrift of the pace, while there was an early setback for Aston Martin when Lance Stroll suffered a suspected rear suspension failure. 

"Very early days in terms of understanding the new package. Provisional results are promising,” Aston Martin team principal Newey said in a news conference immediately after first practice. 

“It’s only part of the package. We will have some more steps in Zandvoort, Monza and Baku, so it is the first part of our planned upgrade. Very short on parts so being careful with it and trying to learn all about it.”

Aston Martin’s AMR26 challenger is effectively a completely new car following the introduction of no fewer than 16 items in Budapest. 

“It's an evolution in as much as the chassis is the same, the layout's the same, front suspension's the same. So, it's very much an aerodynamic evolution,” Newey added. 

“We were very short on time research time prior to launch of the car back in at Barcelona in February. So, it's really been a matter of taking a step back, trying to understand, and go forward with this package.”

Aston Martin has been keen to manage expectations surrounding the upgrade, and Newey continued to echo previous messages coming out of the Silverstone-based squad. 

“I've never been a fan of setting goals,” he stressed. “Much more a fan of working logically through problems, getting everybody working together, getting a culture together, and then at that point, you end up where you end up. 

"What I have found over the years is when you're not winning, it seems an impossible mountain to climb. When you are winning, sometimes you're not sure how you got there, because you're not actually doing anything different, or you don't feel as if you're doing anything different.”

On the failure that curtailed Stroll’s running after just 11 laps, Newey said: "Everybody is feverishly trying to understand what went wrong and it is only once we have an understanding that we can comment on what we do next. 

"The area involved is not what has been changed, so in that sense it was very unexpected."