Published Apr 28, 2026 10:20am UTC
Mark Hughes and Giorgio Piola examine the individual design features of Adrian Newey’s Aston Martin AMR26, highlighting the highly personal and unconventional choices that define the car. Their analysis focuses on the small, technical details that together illustrate a strikingly different approach to aerodynamics and packaging from Newey.
The April break between the Japanese and Miami Grands Prix provided a timely opportunity to study those elements up close. The summed effect of the AMR26’s design cues suggests Newey has taken a bolder direction than usual—arguably the most audacious of his career—but that ambition has not yet produced strong results on track. With Aston Martin’s difficulties in the opening part of the 2026 season well documented, the AMR26 remains an intriguing, extreme technical statement rather than a fully realized race winner.