Former McLaren mechanic Marc Priestley has warned Aston Martin that just "one individual" is not enough to become a winning team, even if that person is Adrian Newey.
The former Red Bull chief technical officer will officially join the Silverstone-based team on March 1 2025, on a long-term deal.
His immediate focus will be Aston Martin's car for the 2026 F1 season, when the new power unit regulations will come into play.
Many are expecting an immediate improvement from the British team with Newey onboard; however, Priestley does not view it that way.
Newey is regarded as one of the most successful individuals in the F1 paddock and the greatest designer the sport has ever seen.
The 66-year-old is responsible for designing all of Red Bull's title-winning cars, with the Austrian outfit having claimed 14 titles since securing its first in 2010.
Several teams swooped for Newey when his services became available; however, Aston Martin team owner Lawrence Stroll defeated the competition.
Stroll views Newey as key to Aston Martin becoming title contenders, although Priestley has urged for caution.
"Adrian Newey is a fantastic engineer and has a brilliant mind, but one individual does not guarantee success when developing a new F1 car," Casino Uden Rofus.
"I'm not saying that Aston Martin don't have a great team, but we've seen evidence that they have been pretty unsuccessful in designing a good car and then developing that car throughout the season.
"Newey is joining a team with very limited success, but Aston Martin have just attained new state-of-the-art factories and the team is growing rapidly."
Also interesting:
Join RacingNews365's Ian Parkes, Sam Coop and Nick Golding in the final episode of the year, as Ian and Sam battle it out in the RacingNews365 Big Fat F1 Quiz of the Year! Join in the fun by yourself or with other people to test your 2024 F1 knowledge!
Rather watch the podcast? Then click here!
Most read
In this article
Join the conversation!