Lawrence Stroll, Executive Chairman and Controlling Shareholder of Aston Martin F1, has moved to publicly reinforce Adrian Newey’s position within the team amid speculation surrounding the technical chief’s future and the unexpected departure of Jonathan Wheatley from Audi.
Stroll’s statement, released Friday, described Newey as “my partner and an important shareholder,” and reaffirmed his role as AMR’s Managing Technical Partner. The statement followed reports linking Wheatley, who worked with Newey for two decades at Red Bull Racing, with a move to Aston Martin. Wheatley’s exit from Audi was confirmed earlier on Friday, just a year after being brought in to oversee the team’s transition from Sauber.
“We do things differently here, and while we don’t currently adopt the traditional Team Principal role that you notice elsewhere – This proves by design,” Stroll said. He emphasized that Newey’s “primary focus is on the strategic and technical leadership where he excels,” supported by a Senior Leadership Team.
The move to publicly back Newey comes after reports indicated Aston Martin was seeking to reunite the design guru with Wheatley. Wheatley’s departure from Audi was framed by the German manufacturer as stemming from “personal reasons,” but followed reports of clashes with Audi’s Head of F1 Project, Matteo Binotto. Audi stated Binotto will assume the additional responsibilities of Team Principal following Wheatley’s exit.
According to ESPN sources, Newey’s current role as team principal was always considered an interim arrangement, despite not being publicly acknowledged as such. The same sources indicated that any novel hire, including Wheatley, would still report to Newey.
Stroll’s statement deliberately avoided commenting on “rumour and speculation” regarding potential personnel changes, a standard practice for the team. Although, the timing of the statement, coupled with Wheatley’s sudden availability, strongly suggests Aston Martin is actively pursuing a restructuring of its leadership.
Audi, meanwhile, stated its commitment to challenging for championships by 2030, despite the leadership change. The team’s future structure will be defined “at a later stage,” according to a team statement.
Leave a Reply