Aston Martin issue statement amid Adrian Newey team principal speculation

Aston Martin has issued a statement addressing the speculation surrounding its team leadership and Adrian Newey’s position.

The subject of the team principal role at Aston Martin has come into sharp focus over the last 24 hours, as Adrian Newey is understood to be leading the team’s efforts to secure a new, long-term figurehead.

Adrian Newey remains Aston Martin team principal amid speculation

Want more PlanetF1.com coverage? Add us as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list for news you can trust.

Aston Martin has issued a statement clarifying its official position on the topic of its team leadership, saying that, as things stand, Adrian Newey will remain in his position.

“The team will not be engaging in media speculation about its senior leadership team,” an Aston Martin spokesperson told PlanetF1.com.

“Adrian Newey continues to lead the team as Team Principal and Managing Technical Partner.”

The statement comes following 24 hours in which the topic of a potential leadership change at the Silverstone-based squad has been the talk of the sport.

On Thursday, PlanetF1.com revealed that Newey has been at the forefront of a months-long search for a new team principal to step into his role on a long-term basis.

The logic behind this is that Newey, as managing technical partner and minority shareholder, is seeking the right person to bolster the team’s upper management, and it’s believed that his own taking on of the role in November 2025 was with an eye to a temporary bridging between former team boss Andy Cowell and that of a new appointment.

Sources have indicated to PlanetF1.com that GianPiero Lambiase, Red Bull’s head of racing and Max Verstappen’s race engineer, was one of the candidates approached by Newey, with Lambiase remaining content in his role with the Milton Keynes-based squad.

Former Aston Martin Group CEO Martin Whitmarsh is also understood to have been sounded out, as well as Audi’s current leadership figures, Mattia Binotto and Jonathan Wheatley.

It’s the latter who has since been pushed to the forefront of this purported queue by reporting from Italian publications on Thursday, with stories suggesting that Newey is imminently set to leave his role, with Wheatley set to take over in the leadership position, reporting to Newey.

PlanetF1.com’s understanding of the situation is that these reports are overblown and, as reported by this publication on Wednesday, the process of evaluating and negotiating with potential candidates continues.

This process is understood to have begun as far back as the 2025 Las Vegas Grand Prix, and is not being expedited or influenced in any way by the current on-track struggles of the team.

More on Aston Martin

Fernando Alonso was losing feeling in ‘hands and feet’ before Chinese GP retirement

Aston Martin sets record straight over Adrian Newey Chinese GP absence

While Newey is said to have identified Wheatley as an attractive target, due to their long-standing relationship from working together at Red Bull, the British engineer has only just started in a leadership role in the very young Audi project, and is understood to be enjoying the professional challenge.

However, it’s believed that Wheatley’s head could only be turned by an offer from Aston Martin due to personal life factors, perhaps making a return to the UK more attractive.

A formal offer to Wheatley is said to have not yet been extended to him, and sources have indicated there are no imminent changes in management at Aston Martin afoot as the search for the right candidate continues.

Another name, Andreas Seidl, has also been linked with the potential vacancy once Newey does opt to return to his dedicated role in leading Aston Martin’s technical department, with the German engineer currently available on the market following his departure from the Sauber Group CEO role in July 2024.

The other name that continues to remain a potential possibility is that of Christian Horner, with Stroll thought to be enthusiastic about his hiring in a CEO role.

It’s believed Newey may be less enthusiastic about this option, due to the optics of being ‘rescued’ by his former Red Bull boss.

Horner’s agreed period of absence from Formula 1 is believed to come to an end in the coming months, meaning he could be available to start work by the time the European leg of the Formula 1 season begins.

Given that Stroll tempted Newey to join by way of a minority shareholding, Horner’s desire to return to F1 as a partner with equity within a team could be fulfilled in similar fashion.

Horner is known to be one of several parties bidding for the 24 per cent stake in the Alpine F1 team currently owned by US investment company Otro Capital, with one of the rival bidders understood to be a Mercedes effort spearheaded by Toto Wolff.

With the process of finding a new team principal having commenced several months ago, it’s unclear why the vacancy is yet to be filled. Sources have suggested that a stumbling block could be a seeking of assurances that a similar outcome won’t befall a new hire as what happened with Cowell, given Newey’s hands-on involvement and position in the company hierarchy.

It could also be viewed as Aston Martin taking its time in ensuring the right hire for the medium to long-term is secured, given the stability that Newey’s involvement offers to bridge the gap between Cowell and a future appointment.

Want to be the first to know exclusive information from the F1 paddock? Join our broadcast channel on WhatsApp to get the scoop on the latest developments from our team of accredited journalists.

You can also subscribe to the PlanetF1 YouTube channel for exclusive features, hear from our paddock journalists with stories from the heart of Formula 1 and much more!

Read Next: Jonathan Wheatley emerges as lead candidate in Adrian Newey’s Aston Martin team principal search