Why we are still waiting for the 'Newey effect' - F1 Q&A
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- Adrian Newey officially started at Aston Martin on March 2, 2025, two months after the 2026 aerodynamic regulations were published, forcing the team to abandon existing work and switch to his design outline — putting them roughly four months behind once the wind tunnel wasn't ready until mid-April.
- Aston Martin's Hungary debut car was significantly lighter with much-improved downforce, cutting lap times by about two seconds, though Honda's first engine upgrade at the Dutch Grand Prix is expected to close only some of the gap to leading engines.
- Imola is the most likely replacement for Qatar and Abu Dhabi end-of-season races that are in doubt because of the ongoing US/Israel-Iran war, with F1 president Stefano Domenicali saying a decision must be made by mid-September for a potential early-December race in Italy.
- McLaren made forward jumps with their Miami and Hungary upgrades but slipped back as Mercedes and Ferrari brought their own developments, with team principal Andrea Stella saying teams can add up to half a second across the final 11 races — all constrained by a $215m cost cap.
- Zak Brown called staying with Mercedes "priority one" despite customer-team frustrations at McLaren this year, noting McLaren outsources engines to Ricardo and that the next F1 power unit, due in 2030 or 2031, is still being formalised with cost reductions a stated priority for all stakeholders.
Why it matters: Aston Martin's full Newey-led car won't arrive until 2027 because of his March start date and Honda's engine delays, locking the team out of 2026's upgrade arms race. The Iran war is already reshaping F1's commercial calendar — Qatar and Abu Dhabi finales look set to be replaced by Imola, with a mid-September decision deadline imposed by Domenicali.
