Otmar Szafnauer believes that the problems faced by Aston Martin in the 2026 Formula 1 season are a consequence of decisions made several years ago. The former team principal in the category stated that the pursuit of immediate results compromised the stability necessary to build a winning project.
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The analysis was made during participation in the High Performance Racing podcast. According to Szafnauer, despite the investments made by the Silverstone team in infrastructure, the partnership with Honda for power units, and the hiring of prominent names like Adrian Newey, Aston Martin still faces major difficulties in 2026.
When asked when the current problems began, the former executive was direct in pointing out the origin of the situation: “I think Lawrence (Stroll, team owner) has been leading the team for eight years. You have to go back five years,” he said. For him, the main mistake was trying to achieve success in a very short time frame.
“The problem comes from wanting success too quickly in Formula 1. When you want to win too fast and have no patience, you end up promoting personnel changes very frequently. And the most successful teams are precisely those that have stability,” explained Szafnauer, who led the team during the Force India and Racing Point phases before leaving the position at the beginning of 2022 to join Alpine.
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Next, the former executive cited examples of teams that, in his assessment, achieved success thanks to the continuity of their professionals: “This is what Toto Wolff and Mercedes have today, personnel stability. That’s what Red Bull Racing had when they were winning, and Ferrari also experienced this situation during Ross Brawn’s time,” he added.
Even after bringing a comprehensive update package to the Hungarian GP, Aston Martin remains far from its rivals. The team is in tenth place in the constructors’ championship with only one point scored, earned by Fernando Alonso at the Monaco GP, in a race marked by penalties for several drivers. The British team appears only ahead of the newcomer Cadillac and is ten points behind Williams, in ninth place.
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