Fernando Alonso Reveals Adrian Newey's Influence on the AMR25

Highly regarded car designer Adrian Newey has had his first month at Aston Martin after the end of his gardening leave from Red Bull.

Now that the dust has settled on his introduction to the team, team driver Fernando Alonso has admitted that Newey is not having an immediate effect on he 2025 car.

Newey has been in Formula 1 for years, and at 66 years old, he is now taking on a significant challenge with the Silverstone-based team. As a technical partner holding a shareholding position, Newey wields considerable influence over the team's inner workings.

The team has invested massively in the racing side of things, with its brand-new, state-of-the-art wind tunnel and simulator facilities.

Alonso confirmed that Newey is not focused on the current season's car but the massive 2026 regulations.

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“I’m not sure. I think he’s more focusing into next year’s car,” he said.

“But I’m sure that he’s just following the races and the meetings at the factory, and obviously you cannot be completely away from this year’s car."

“I’m not aware of any big, big ideas coming from Adrian for this year’s car because, as I said, he’s focused on next year."

“But I’m sure that, here and there, he is having conversations trying to improve the car.”

The AMR25 has struggled to excel this season, maintaining the pattern from last year, as it fails to accumulate points.

Surprisingly, Lance Stroll has managed to get the most out of the car, scoring 10 points and finishing races, something Fernando Alonso has not achieved so far.

Car build, cost caps, technical directives, a state-of-the-art campus... and 2026.

Chief Operating Officer Ben Fitzgerald talks all this and more as he opens up about the relentless pursuit of efficiency and performance at Aston Martin Aramco. ⬇️
— Aston Martin Aramco F1 Team (@AstonMartinF1) March 25, 2025

According to Alonso, the only fashion that the Aston can score points is with perfection.

“There are some positives, for sure, but some things to fix as well in the car,” Alonso said.

“The picture didn’t change much, just the teams are just closer together."

"So we need to maximise everything on the car, on the setup, on the strategy – everything has to be perfect every weekend if we want to score points and I think that will be the picture for the remainder of the season.”

The 2026 season will seemingly be the year that team owner Lawrence Stroll wants to see tangible progress up the grid amid all the investment he has made.

The 2025 season appears focused on achieving the best possible results to generate maximum revenue while also prioritizing development for the 2026 car.