In an exclusive interview with Auto Motor und Sport, Adrian Newey the legendary racing designer and incoming Aston Martin’s Managing Technical Partner sat down to discuss the 2026 regulations.
The Briton departed from Red Bull Racing after nearly two decades with the Milton Keynes-based team and sought pastures new with Aston Martin after an opportunity from Lawrence Stroll came knocking.
Newey talks about 2026 engines
As the technical director of Aston Martin, Newey will play a major part in how Aston Martin’s 2026 challenger will turn out to be.
Speaking of the 2026 regulations, Newey predicted that in the first few years, it will be another “engine formula” similar to 2014 that saw Mercedes crush the field. He argued that the chassis regulations compensate for the power unit regulations.
“I think there has to be a big chance that it’s an engine formula at the start. I mean, the reality is I can’t remember another time in Formula One when both the chassis regulations and the engine regulations have changed simultaneously.
“And where in this case the chassis regulations have been very much written to try to compensate, let’s say, for the power unit regulations. So it’s an extra dimension. I think engine manufacturers will have learnt to an extent on the lack of pressuration that the rivals to Mercedes did prior to that change.”
How the competition will look like in 2026
Newey tipped that one engine manufacturer would come on top and dictate the field and it would be hard to catch up to them if they possessed strong combustion engines as well.
“But there has to be a chance that one manufacturer will come out well on top and it will become a power unit-dominated regulation, as you say, at least to start with.
“And there’s a chance that if it’s on the combustion engine side of it, that somebody comes up with a dominant combustion engine, that that will last through the length of the formula. Because the way the regulations are written, it’s quite difficult for people behind to catch up.
“If it’s on the electrical side, then there’s much more ability to catch up if you’re behind. Fuel side, there’s there’s flexibility. But with dyno restrictions and the fact that everything’s so optimised that you can’t simply chuck a different fuel into an engine that hasn’t been optimised for it.”
Newey will arrive at Aston Martin on the 1st of March 2025, right before the major regulations change in 2026.
