Aston Martin relishing 'no question' Adrian Newey F1 culture shift

Aston Martin is relishing working under the new leadership culture Adrian Newey is bringing to the team, despite its troubles in pre-season testing. 

The AMR26 suffered from myriad problems with its new Honda power unit in Bahrain, after only getting out on track late on day four of the Barcelona shakedown, with Lance Stroll only completing six slow laps, none of which were timed, on the final day after Fernando Alonso suffered a failure the day before.

This prompted major investigations at the team's Silverstone base and Honda's Sakura facility, with the battery identified as the major area of concern. 

Owing to the lack of running in Bahrain, the team has been unable to complete set-up work and begin exploring the performance of the radical Newey-penned car, the first he has designed after joining from Red Bull.

The most successful designer in F1 history, Newey cars have won 12 drivers' and 14 constructors' titles, and a total of 223 grand prix victories, or 19.40% of the 1,149 world championship grands prix to date. 

With his track record of success, Aston Martin team ambassador Pedro de la Rosa has explained how Newey's word is unimpeachable in directing the team. 

"I don't think the team has changed that much; we are the same people," de la Rosa told media, including RacingNews365. 

"It is the fact that since Adrian arrived, his leadership is unquestionable, so the biggest difference is that after a difficult day in Bahrain, he called into the technical debriefs, and his leadership is so strong that the entire team knows exactly what they have to do.

"This is very different from previous years, where everyone could have their own theory about things, and Adrian is very clear about what has to be done, and no one raises their hand to question him.

"Therefore, you have a massive amount of resources working in a single direction, and I know it might not sound convincing, but believe me, sitting there and listening to his comments was very inspiring for all of us, especially when things go wrong.

"When things go right, we don't need a leader. It is when things go wrong.

"It is a turning point having Adrian in the team."