2026 Aston Martin Aramco Formula One Team

[Bill]

we cant go to a series in which the top drivers dont matter anymore. hondas always had one foot in and one foot out of the sport, thats part of the reason things are as they are atm.

they wont do away with batteries all together, but they wont be going to full electric anytime soon either. i see a v8 turbo on efuels sooner rather than later. especially if these new power units make it into a push to pass only series.the cars batteries are dead half way down the straights right now. they are going to spend more time taking care of their battery than they do with tires, until the engineers tell them exactly how to drive each lap to finish the race quickest.

imagine a race where lance stroll (ikr!!) passes 5 cars on the opening 3 turns, only to be passed by 10 on the first long straight because he couldnt charge the batteries while making the passes. its more likely they wont attempt it because they know the outcome. could just end up being a huge snore-fest.

the first couple of races should be cool to watch regardless but i could see it becoming old really fast. i hope im wrong

I agree with you. What I was saying is that I don't think they'll ever go back to combustion-only engines. I also predict, and I don't think it's going to be too late, a switch to solid-state batteries, because consider that it will also help in races since they are more efficient batteries and discharge less.

In the 2026 F1 technical regulations there is no explicit ban on a specific battery chemistry like sodium-ion — the rules do not literally say “only lithium-ion cells.”

What you're really trying to say is that there needs to be a change in the allowed capacity. If the battery isn't allowed to exceed 4MJ in capacity or weigh less than 20kg, then the energy density is effectively fixed in the regulations. Therefore, there is little point in investing heavily in further battery development. Whatever battery chemistry they were using last year was clearly working and lasted the season.

Only fia approved batteries will be allowed,you can't bring a nuclear battery and get away with it.

[FNTC]

Only fia approved batteries will be allowed,you can't bring a nuclear battery and get away with it.

Yeah.

5.21 Energy Store
5.21.1 Only cells approved by the FIA Technical Department may be used in the ES. Subject for
provision of the Article 18.3.5, the approval of the FIA Technical Department is conditional
upon the PU manufacturer, intending to use such parts during a Championship season
undertaking not to conclude any exclusivity agreement (see definition article 5.1.30) for the
supply of such parts with the supplier of these parts. The approval request form must be sent
by the PU Manufacturer to the FIA before the 1st of November of the preceding year.
5.21.2 Solely a single specification of cell may be homologated, including the same exiting position
of the cell connection terminals (cell tabs - Article 5.2.26). The cell tabs may have different
shapes for integration purposes inside the ES.

[Badger]

The gearbox and car pu are both new so they don't don't have past experience to glen from like other teams but ones they fix the gearbox the can unleash the pu ,i don't believe the engine is bad as it is the same concept that won championships. The media would report everything honda but would not touch audi who are having their own problems like honda in 2015.

Comparing Audi to Honda in 2015 is a bit of a self-own considering Audi looks much better than Honda in 2026.

Audi have nothing to be proud off .the sport was dumb down to accommodate them .no mguh .variable trumpet,powerful engine.they ruined f1. the engines are generators to charge batteries

Then it should have been easy for Honda to bring something competitive.

[NAPI10]

AM is for sure behind by at least one 'Test Cycle' , compared to other teams.

I don't understand the overall strategy to focus on 'Aerodynamic Package' over 'New Engine regression testing and Engine/Gearbox integration'. That might have caused sparks between Cowell and Newey.
AM could have launch a plain jane aero package with all focus on testing 'Honda Engine' and 'Gearbox Integration'. Use as must time available in Spain for pre-season testing. Resolve main teething issues and give a good load testing to Honda Engine n battery system.

Honda is already on backfoot by starting late. They need lot of testing, feedback & support from AM to build reliable 'Race Engine'. Team is developing 'Powertrain' n 'Gearbox' for first time and integration with Engine is at most priority.
I am not doubting Newey's pedigree but not able to understand this strategy.

[BrunoH]

i doubt engine is half the performance they are lacking.
I think this car might be again too much on edge or aero detachment problems, especially at low speeds were not enough energy to keep it.
Maybe too much rake?
or too much angles on some points that require higher speeds ?
also the suspension angles are crazy so i can see many places where things can get lost or found but one thing is for sure.
I dont think this has got a quick fix! too many different problems all at the same time,

and 2 drivers overwhelmed with too many variables plus new engine modes and driving strategies to max performance per lap, on top of having to give feedback on what they feel is wrong

This is going to take time and the Honda situation is unacceptable again. I do hope its just the gearbox issue that is not allowing the engine to run free and not really a Honda problem. If it is, they are fkd because its not up to the team to solve it quick. We all have seen the Mclaren first year before.

[Leon Kennedy]

AM is for sure behind by at least one 'Test Cycle' , compared to other teams.

I don't understand the overall strategy to focus on 'Aerodynamic Package' over 'New Engine regression testing and Engine/Gearbox integration'. That might have caused sparks between Cowell and Newey.
AM could have launch a plain jane aero package with all focus on testing 'Honda Engine' and 'Gearbox Integration'. Use as must time available in Spain for pre-season testing. Resolve main teething issues and give a good load testing to Honda Engine n battery system.

Honda is already on backfoot by starting late. They need lot of testing, feedback & support from AM to build reliable 'Race Engine'. Team is developing 'Powertrain' n 'Gearbox' for first time and integration with Engine is at most priority.
I am not doubting Newey's pedigree but not able to understand this strategy.

Because if you test a base car, it is true that you have a better way to be more selective about Power Unit and Gearbox issues, however at the same time you lose very important days to test the aerodynamic solution, but above all the chassis which is synergic with the gearbox, rear suspension and the engine itself. Paradoxically with a basic car the engine could run at full throttle right out of the box without thinking about cooling, interaction etc. Giving you the wrong idea that the engine is working properly.

[sn809]

I guess it would be technically close to impossible but, would it be allowed by regulations if AMR went to, say, RBR and bought a gearbox?

#1 If I remember correctly the gearboxes are pretty much the same what changes is the casing the gearbox sits in. So it would be fairly easy.

#2 They did get a gearbox guy a while back... think it was the Merc gearbox designer. Went back through all the changes since Newey got hired and found him...Stuart Boulton started early March 2025. He'll get it worked out.

- Pablo Vázquez Fernández, Alpine (Lead Surface Designer) -> Aston Martin
- Andrew Sammut Alessi, Aston Martin (Head of Technical Operations) -> ?
- Ian Grieg Head of Aerodynamics (Aston Martin) -> Head of Aerodynamic Analysis and Technology (Red Bull)
- Robbie Stevens Head of Aero Science (Alpine) -> Head of Vehicle Science (Aston Martin)
- Emma McKay Stores Manager (Red Bull) -> Stores and Internal Logistics Manager (Aston Martin)
- Nick Roberts Senior Strategy Engineer (Racing Bulls) -> Senior Strategy Engineer (Aston Martin)
- Gilles Wood Fmr Red Bull Chief Engineer -> Simulation and Modelling Director (Aston Martin)
- Marco Fainello Fmr Ferrari Head of Performance -> Senior Consultant (Aston Martin)
- Fabrizio Pilotti Chief Information Officer (Mercedes HPP) -> Chief Information Officer (Aston Martin)
-Akio Haga Chief Designer (Aston Martin) ->OUT
- Eric Blandin Aerodynamics Director (Aston Martin) -> OUT
- Nick Roberts Senior Strategy Engineer, VC Racing Bulls -> Aston Martin (same position)
-Gioacchino Vino, Chief Aerodynamicist Mercedes -> Aston Martin F1 (Same Position).
-Mark Robinson (previous chief aerodynamicist) -> Aston Martin Performance Engineering
-Stuart Boulton Senior Transmission Design Engineer (Mercedes) -> Head of Transmission (Aston Martin).

Thanks for working so hard on this.

[FNTC]

Chief designer Craig Skinner just quit Red Bull after 20 years. I wonder if Aston hired him? No info on what he is doing next yet. It might also be Horner collecting people for when he buys in to a team. Alpine or another.

[diffuser]

I agree with you. What I was saying is that I don't think they'll ever go back to combustion-only engines. I also predict, and I don't think it's going to be too late, a switch to solid-state batteries, because consider that it will also help in races since they are more efficient batteries and discharge less.

In the 2026 F1 technical regulations there is no explicit ban on a specific battery chemistry like sodium-ion — the rules do not literally say “only lithium-ion cells.”

What you're really trying to say is that there needs to be a change in the allowed capacity. If the battery isn't allowed to exceed 4MJ in capacity or weigh less than 20kg, then the energy density is effectively fixed in the regulations. Therefore, there is little point in investing heavily in further battery development. Whatever battery chemistry they were using last year was clearly working and lasted the season.

Only fia approved batteries will be allowed,you can't bring a nuclear battery and get away with it.

My point was, changing battery chemistry is only useful if you can switch to a higher density battery. The density is EXACTLY were the regs lock the Manufactures in. So no matter what battery chemistry the Manufactures select, they can't exceed that 55KWh/KG. The result of a change in battery chemistry would ALWAYS result in no change in performance. So even if you could get the FIA to signoff on allowing nuclear batteries, those batteries still wouldn't be allowed to exceed 4MJ or be lighter that 20KG. Meaning, no performance gain.

[nmarques71]

I guess it would be technically close to impossible but, would it be allowed by regulations if AMR went to, say, RBR and bought a gearbox?

#1 If I remember correctly the gearboxes are pretty much the same what changes is the casing the gearbox sits in. So it would be fairly easy.

#2 They did get a gearbox guy a while back... think it was the Merc gearbox designer. Went back through all the changes since Newey got hired and found him...Stuart Boulton started early March 2025. He'll get it worked out.

- Pablo Vázquez Fernández, Alpine (Lead Surface Designer) -> Aston Martin
- Andrew Sammut Alessi, Aston Martin (Head of Technical Operations) -> ?
- Ian Grieg Head of Aerodynamics (Aston Martin) -> Head of Aerodynamic Analysis and Technology (Red Bull)
- Robbie Stevens Head of Aero Science (Alpine) -> Head of Vehicle Science (Aston Martin)
- Emma McKay Stores Manager (Red Bull) -> Stores and Internal Logistics Manager (Aston Martin)
- Nick Roberts Senior Strategy Engineer (Racing Bulls) -> Senior Strategy Engineer (Aston Martin)
- Gilles Wood Fmr Red Bull Chief Engineer -> Simulation and Modelling Director (Aston Martin)
- Marco Fainello Fmr Ferrari Head of Performance -> Senior Consultant (Aston Martin)
- Fabrizio Pilotti Chief Information Officer (Mercedes HPP) -> Chief Information Officer (Aston Martin)
-Akio Haga Chief Designer (Aston Martin) ->OUT
- Eric Blandin Aerodynamics Director (Aston Martin) -> OUT
- Nick Roberts Senior Strategy Engineer, VC Racing Bulls -> Aston Martin (same position)
-Gioacchino Vino, Chief Aerodynamicist Mercedes -> Aston Martin F1 (Same Position).
-Mark Robinson (previous chief aerodynamicist) -> Aston Martin Performance Engineering
-Stuart Boulton Senior Transmission Design Engineer (Mercedes) -> Head of Transmission (Aston Martin).

Thanks for working so hard on this.

Another one from Red Bull, in the last year, they brought one leader transmission designer from Alpine and two others from Red Bull.
https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/ur ... EsMQ%3D%3D

[diffuser]

Chief designer Craig Skinner just quit Red Bull after 20 years. I wonder if Aston hired him? No info on what he is doing next yet. It might also be Horner collecting people for when he buys in to a team. Alpine or another.

Skinner joined Red Bull in 2006 after spells with Jordan and Williams, initially as a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) engineer, before rising to group leader in 2009.

Wow what a coincidence he joined RBR at the same time as Newey ....Maybe...

[ALO_Power]

Hope that's just trash rumors:

Sources consulted by MARCA confirm that it's impossible for a new Honda engine 'spec' to arrive before Australia
What they're currently working on is new software
The gearbox can't handle running in short gears with the engine revved up, among other issues. And it could take 6 months to make a new gearbox
In the paddock, it's being said that they'll be dragging a performance deficit until 2027.
Marca

[mzso]

I can say that these rumors sometimes turn out to be true. for example, since last year it has been said that the Mercedes PU is the best

And what's that an example of? We know nothing of the Mercedes PU.

Mercedes has a significant advantage if the FIA is ready to intervene. Do you think if they were behind or on par with the others there would have been the controversy over the microcamera? However, it is also fair to say that we will only see the performance on the track.

Microcamera? WTF is that?

FIA ready to intervene is also just a rumor. A bunch of rumors that are built on each other. I wouldn't be surprised if it's Red Bull or Ferrari who starts at the top.

[Jambier]

Hope that's just trash rumors:

Sources consulted by MARCA confirm that it's impossible for a new Honda engine 'spec' to arrive before Australia
What they're currently working on is new software
The gearbox can't handle running in short gears with the engine revved up, among other issues. And it could take 6 months to make a new gearbox
In the paddock, it's being said that they'll be dragging a performance deficit until 2027.
Marca

Basically confirming that the main issue is the gearbox

[Leon Kennedy]

And what's that an example of? We know nothing of the Mercedes PU.

Mercedes has a significant advantage if the FIA is ready to intervene. Do you think if they were behind or on par with the others there would have been the controversy over the microcamera? However, it is also fair to say that we will only see the performance on the track.

Microcamera? WTF is that?

FIA ready to intervene is also just a rumor. A bunch of rumors that are built on each other. I wouldn't be surprised if it's Red Bull or Ferrari who starts at the top.

A very particular solution, two separate combustion chambers (in fact they should have given the Nobel Prize if they had geometrically increased the ratio from 16: to 18:1 with only the thermal expansion and related problems). However, according to the rules, you must have a 16:1 ratio at all times. They wanted to be smart because there weren't sensors to measure the hot ratio and now maybe they want to install them. Basically, by regulation you can't do it, but no one can prove it without this sensor. But evidently some engineer leaked the solution (thank goodness, otherwise everyone would have been unaware). The bad thing is that they did it with the approval of the FIA which had allowed this without telling the others according to the rumours, one thing if it were true would be embarrassing.