Aston Martin announced on Wednesday that top designer Adrian Newey will also take on the role of team boss within the British racing stable from 2026. A striking choice, given his technical responsibilities. Max Verstappen, who worked with the celebrated Brit at Red Bull for over eight years, understands why Newey is being promoted. The Dutchman is delighted for his former colleague and curious about what he can achieve at Aston Martin.
The media in Qatar asked Max Verstappen about the news regarding Newey. Was he surprised by his sudden promotion? “You see this happening with multiple teams, right?”, he responded calmly. The four-time world champion has a point; with the exception of Mercedes boss Toto Wolff, all Formula 1 teams have attracted a leader with a technical background. With Laurent Mekies, Red Bull – which said goodbye to Christian Horner this summer – also has an engineer at the helm.
‘Confident He Will Do Well’
“Aston Martin seems to be heading in the same direction,” Max Verstappen explained. “Of course, you have to ask them why they chose this path, but in my opinion, it’s the logical explanation.” Verstappen is, in any case, delighted that Newey is being promoted. The aerodynamics guru has won numerous titles in his illustrious career, but has never been in charge of an entire team. “I’m happy to see him getting this opportunity,” said Verstappen. “I don’t know how much this will change his involvement with the car, but I’m confident he will do well.”
The fact that Newey has focused solely on car design in recent years has raised some questions. Can he also be a good team leader? “Only time will tell, right?” said Verstappen. “I’ve never discussed it with Adrian. At Red Bull, it was never an option, so I didn’t know what his further ambitions were. But I’m obviously happy for him. I can’t look into the team to see why he was promoted; I have no idea. I’m just watching and enjoying it. Hopefully, the team will ultimately benefit from his knowledge.”
