F1 legend reckons Aston Martin chief is hiding a massive secret

The British team became the sole user of Honda power units for the 2026 season, and anticipation was at fever pitch as Newey's first design was announced to the world, the first machine he designed since leaving Red Bull in 2024.

However, just 66 laps were completed during the week-long test in Barcelona. This was followed by a three-day test in Bahrain, where Aston Martin was well below the expected pace, with Lance Stroll saying the team needed to find four more seconds.

As a result, there is plenty more work to be done before the Australian Grand Prix opens up the 2026 season on March 8, but Montoya believes there is a bit of sandbagging going on from Aston Martin.

“Apart from the Aston, you look at every car, they all look the same, so it means either nobody figured it out, or everybody’s sandbagging because they have figured something out,” Montoya stated while speaking to Vision4Sport.

Newey replaced Andy Cowell as team principal at Aston Martin for the 2026 season, and there has been a huge change in dynamics since that move was made.

Plenty of work will have to be done if Newey's team is to reach the heights many predicted before the 2026 season got underway, and Montoya knows that is how the master designer likes to operate.

“When he built the Red Bull that won every race a couple of years ago, he didn’t think they had such a great car, and he won 90 per cent of the races," continued Montoya.