'I am 100% convinced' - Former Red Bull driver makes key Newey claim

Former Red Bull driver Christian Klien is "100% convinced" that Adrian Newey will ultimately deliver F1 success to Aston Martin in the future.  

The renowned technical guru started as managing technical partner of Aston earlier this month after a success-laden spell at Red Bull, with six constructors' and eight drivers' titles his haul from nearly two decades in Milton Keynes.

Aston Martin has invested in a new state-of-the-art factory, and has poached senior technical figures from rival squads - including Enrico Cardile from Ferrari, although he is yet to start work.

The team has started 2025 on the back-foot with the AMR25 machine proving off the pace in testing, with much of the team's attention placed on the regulation reset coming in for 2026, when it will also unite with Honda in a works engine programme. 

Since joining Williams in the early 1990s, every team Newey has been at he has delivered title success to, with former Red Bull racer Klien believing Aston Martin success will be added to the glittering CV.

"This year's Aston Martin doesn't seem to be good, but it remains to be seen if Newey can do something for the car right away, I don't know, but I do think he will come up with something. However, it is not clear if he can implement them for this season, especially with the focus on 2026, which will be his main focus," Klien told RacingNews365.

"Aston Martin has done incredibly well in bringing Newey in, I am 100% convinced he still has it in him, and I remember how he made Red Bull a top team. 

"He succeeded because he knew who to work with and created a fantastic team around him and built it step-by-step, but it did take a few years.

"Even at Red Bull, he needed some time to let everything fall into place, and in my view, a perfect process takes about five years. 

"The question therefore is whether he has come in time for Fernando Alonso (who will turn 49 in 2030). They will become a top team, but it is difficult to say in what time frame that will happen. 

"It is not easy to gather a good team of people, and you have to take them away from other teams, and then also deal with gardening leave, but it is definitely not a 'one-man team' with Newey.

"One of his great strengths is that he knows exactly who to sign, that is why he is absolutely the right man for Aston Martin, he will be a success story."