After a first half of the season in which he had been ahead of Fernando Alonso in the standings, the Canadian ultimately capitulated in his head-to-head with his team-mate, finishing the year 23 points behind and comprehensively outmatched by the Spaniard both in qualifying and in race trim.

Speaking on Sky’s Backstage Boxengasse podcast, the former German driver didn’t mince his words: "Strictly speaking, that's no longer acceptable. Honestly, when I see how well the Formula 2 winner (Fornaroli) has done, he deserves to be in a car like that a thousand times more."

The young Italian driver clinched the F2 title at his first attempt, just as he had done in F3 the previous year, adding his name to a select group of drivers who have managed to win back-to-back titles in the junior categories.

Fornaroli, however, was unable to secure an immediate seat in Formula 1, instead joining McLaren as a test and development driver for next season.

Next season will mark the first opportunity to see the tangible impact of the legendary British designer, who is set to put his signature on the next generation of cars as well.

Aston Martin has all but written off this season in order to position itself among the leading contenders when pre-season testing gets underway in Bahrain, hoping that Newey’s genius will make the difference once again.