Adrian Newey’s debut Aston Martin design turned heads from the moment it hit the track at the Barcelona Shakedown, but it was the late arrival that drew just as much attention.
The AMR26 didn’t show up at the circuit until Thursday, by which point three days of testing had already been lost. Lance Stroll didn’t get his first run in until late on day four.
Stroll only managed four laps before coming to a stop at the end of the pit lane. Despite early praise for Newey’s Aston Martin, there’s no denying they’re well behind schedule in gathering data.
Aston Martin had announced ahead of time that they would be late to testing, though no reason was given in their statement.
Newey joined Aston Martin in September 2024 but wasn’t able to start until March. Later that year, he took over as team principal after coming out on top in a power struggle with Andy Cowell.
Martin Brundle says Adrian Newey pushes development ‘to the absolute limit’
There were reports last week that Honda, Aston Martin’s engine supplier, wasn’t fully prepared for the start of the season. Newey told Martin Brundle they were still catching up.
But Brundle also thinks Newey has been delaying deadlines to give more time for development. It’s something he’s been known for throughout his career.
Even though this season has had its challenges, Brundle believes the team can still perform well in the short term.
He said: “Adrian was saying to me that Honda are having to play catch-up because they were leaving and then they came back in. There’s some question marks there.
“You just know that Adrian will have a vision of how to maximise these new regulations. Let’s hope he’s done it. Let’s hope that car just flies.
“He’s also legendary for not wanting to sign things off! When the car was late, it didn’t surprise me at all to be honest, because the long lead times, chassis, gearboxes, radiators and the sort of thing, Adrian will push that, and he always has done, to the absolute limit because he wants the maximum amount of development on those pieces.
“If it absolutely takes off then as ever you can say he got it absolutely right. He’s waited until the last moment before having to commit. I’m going to assume that that car will be pretty handy through the year.”
Martin Brundle’s Aston Martin theory looks spot on based on F1 rumours
According to The Race, there are rumours that Newey has been pushing things to the limit back at the factory. That could explain their delayed start to testing.
If that’s the case, then Brundle may be right. But as he mentioned, all of this will be forgotten if Aston Martin come out strong this season.
According to reports from last weekend, Aston Martin were among the last teams to clear FIA crash tests, though this hasn’t been officially confirmed. Williams faced similar issues and eventually opted out of the Barcelona Shakedown entirely.
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