Newey was made team principal at Aston Martin in November 2025, but speculation regarding his position is rife, with the Silverstone-based team looking at Jonathan Wheatley, recently departed from Audi, as a replacement.

Owner Lawrence Stroll moved to clarify the rumours surrounding Newey, whom it is believed would step away from the team principal role to focus more strongly on technical matters after a nightmare start to 2026.

Aston Martin are currently dead-last in the Constructors' standings after the opening two rounds, with Fernando Alonso retiring from the Chinese GP after he "began to lose all feeling” in his limbs due to recurrent, extreme battery vibrations in his AMR26.

Power unit suppliers Honda have said they have made "some progress" in reducing the vibrations, but admit they are yet to find the root cause prior to the Japanese GP.

Meanwhile, former Red Bull advisor Marko, who worked with Newey for 19 years at the Milton Keynes team, has said he has spoken with the Aston Martin boss following their poor start, but has not left a lot of room for optimism.

Marko told Austrian publication Oe24: "I’ve been in contact with him. He’s not doing well. There are problems with this project that won’t be solved quickly.”

At Suzuka, Honda boss Orihara previews another “tough” race at the engine supplier's home Grand Prix, given the circuit’s need for energy management, and the fact Aston’s performance is “not where we want it to be.”

Orihara also issued an update on the battery vibration issues currently plaguing the AMR26.

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