Adrian Newey will become team principal for the first time, taking over the role from Aston Martin’s Andy Cowell in 2026.
Aston Martin signed Newey as managing technical partner earlier this year, working alongside Cowell, who was previously CEO and team principal. However, the team said the two have “agreed to share responsibility,” with Cowell becoming chief strategy officer and Newey leading the team for the first time in his career.
“Over the past nine months, I’ve seen great individual talent within our team,” Newey said. “I am looking forward to taking on this additional role to put ourselves in the best possible position to compete in 2026, where Aston Martin will become a works team and we will face a completely new position, coupled with the huge challenges faced by the new regulations.”
“Andy’s new role, focused on integrating the new PU and our three key partners, will be critical to this effort.”
In his new role, Cowell will report directly to team owner Lawrence Stroll, who leads Aston Martin’s business divisions, and will focus on integrating new technology partners.
“As we move to a full works team and implement much-needed structural changes as we establish the foundations for Adrian and the broader organization, the time is right for me to take on a different role as chief strategy officer,” Cowell said. “In this role, I will help optimize the technical partnership between the team, Honda, Aramco and Valvoline and ensure seamless integration of the team’s new PU, fuel and chassis.”
Stroll himself praised the work of Cowell, who signed with the former head of Mercedes High Performance Powertrain (HPP) last year.
“Andy Cowell has been a great leader this year,” Stroll said. “He is focused on building a world-class team, enabling it to work well together, and fostering a culture that puts race cars back at the heart of what we do. This change in leadership is a mutual decision we made in the best interest of the team. We all look forward to continuing to work with him in his new capacity as Chief Strategy Officer.”
“I am also pleased that Adrian Newey will be taking on the role of team principal, which will enable him to make the most of his creative and technical expertise. These changes will ensure that the team is optimally positioned to maximize its collective strengths.”
Newey becomes the fourth Aston Martin team principal in the past four years, joining Otmar Szafnauer, Mike Clack, who remains with the team as chief trackside officer, and Cowell.
