Adrian Newey will become Aston Martin team principal in 2026

Coyle has been moved from his current leadership role, as revealed by BBC Sport on Saturday, after disagreements between the two over team management and the design of the 2026 car, according to sources familiar with the matter.

The statement added that Newey, who joined Aston Martin as managing technical partner in March, will direct the technical team, including trackside car operations.

The move was made possible by the realization that Newey’s experience and experience – having won 12 Drivers’ Championships and 13 Constructors’ Championships with Williams, McLaren and Red Bull – made him the de facto authority on the team.

In this case, appointing him as team manager is a logical step. Newey will be Aston Martin’s fourth team principal in four years, after Otmar Szafnauer, Mike Crack and Cowell.

“Andy Coyle has been a great leader this year,” team owner Lawrence Stroll said in a statement. “He has focused on building a world-class team and getting them to work well together, as well as fostering a culture that puts the race car back at the heart of what we do.”

“This change in leadership is a mutual decision we have reached for the benefit of the team. We all look forward to continuing to work with him in his new capacity.”

Stroll added that Newey’s new position “will enable him to make full use of his creative and artistic experience.”

Newey said: “Over the last nine months, I have seen great individual talent within our team.

He added: “I look forward to taking on this additional role as we put ourselves in the best possible position to compete in 2026, where we will face a completely new position with an Aston Martin team that is now a works team, as well as the significant challenge of new regulations.”

“Andy’s new role, focused on the integration of the new power unit with our three key partners, will be pivotal in this journey.”

Stroll has been considering a change of leadership for some time, and has reached out to a number of senior figures in Formula 1, including former McLaren and Sauber boss Andreas Seidl, current head of the Audi Formula 1 project Mattia Binotto and former CEO Martin Whitmarsh.

Former Red Bull team principal Christian Horner is seeking a role at Aston Martin and wants shares.

Team sources say Horner, who is free to work with another team from next summer after being sacked by Red Bull in July, will not be given a role at Aston Martin.

However, Newey is said to have given his former Red Bull teammate a tour of the Aston Martin factory under the cover of darkness on Tuesday night.

Cowell, a former Mercedes Formula One engine director, “implemented much-needed structural changes to support the transition to a full works team in preparation for new regulations in 2026,” the statement said.

Cowell said in the statement that “having laid the foundations” for Newey, it was “the right time for me to take on a different role.”