High-Profile Arrivals
Lewis Hamilton boasts seven world titles and 105 Grand Prix victories between McLaren and Mercedes. Adrian Newey, meanwhile, has been behind 223 race wins, 12 constructors’ titles, and 15 drivers’ championships across Williams, McLaren, and Red Bull. With such remarkable track records, it was inevitable that their arrivals at Ferrari and Aston Martin would have significant impact—especially on methodologies and work processes. Both Hamilton and Newey have evaluated the structure and problem-solving approaches of their new teams by comparing them to their previous experiences with Mercedes and Red Bull.
What Hamilton Says
Calling Lewis Hamilton a “super-consultant” for Ferrari was a slightly sarcastic label, used to highlight how the British champion contributes in ways that go beyond the typical role of a driver. Speaking to Sky Italia at Imola, he said: “We have a fantastic simulator in Maranello, but since I arrived, I’ve suggested pages and pages of things I thought needed improvement. We’re working on it, constantly improving, and the team has already made progress. Also, the correlation between wind tunnel data and the track is very good—I’ve been in teams where that wasn’t the case, and in this area, Ferrari is well ahead.”
More recently in Montreal, Lewis Hamilton added:
“With the same package each weekend, I’m trying to challenge the team. I’m constantly questioning the engineers. They set things up and say, ‘We’ve always done it this way.’ And I respond, ‘But what if we tried this instead?’”
He also noted: “The current mindset is that many updates need to be introduced into the system. I wish I could tell you everything that’s happening—there’s a lot going on behind the scenes. So much I’d like to share, but I can’t give away too much. What’s happened this year, the problems we’ve had, and what’s going on inside the organization… My goal is to positively influence these changes so we can achieve long-term success. Because a lot of change is needed.”
What Newey (and Cowell) Say
Adrian Newey, now a technical partner and shareholder at Aston Martin, explained in Monaco:
“The wind tunnel is undoubtedly the best in F1, and the factory is the most advanced right now. But some of our tools are weak. The simulator especially needs a lot of work—there’s currently no correlation, and it’s a vital tool for next year’s car development and race preparation. For a while, we’ll be flying blind. It may take a couple of years to sort out the simulator.”
Newey’s influence goes beyond technical equipment—he’s also reshaping team dynamics:
“There are a lot of talented people individually, but we need to get them working together, maybe in a more structured way. A big part of the job is making sure everyone is settled and learns to extract the best from each other.”
Team principal Andy Cowell echoed this in an interview with The Race’s Jon Noble:
“It’s not just about having the factory and the tools, but also about having people who collaborate well. Adrian pushes everyone in engineering—he creates pressure and expects ambition. I don’t think he understands the phrase ‘this is the best we can do’—he wants constant improvement.”
He added: “We knew some areas needed improvement, but not how many. Adrian’s analysis gave us a clear direction. Now we ask ourselves: Have our engineers grown together as a team, or are we stuck in a siloed mindset? I believe we can do much more.”
Similarities and Differences
The words of Hamilton, Newey, and Cowell echo each other: all three have analyzed their teams’ structures and proposed changes, challenging engineers to adopt a more ambitious mindset. All encountered resistance—Hamilton mentioned the phrase “we’ve always done it this way,” while Cowell referred to a “siloed mentality.”
But there’s one key difference: Hamilton is “just” a driver—albeit an incredibly successful one—whereas Adrian Newey is a decision-maker. That means a driver’s feedback will never carry the same weight as that of a shareholder or technical director. If internal resistance becomes strong, Hamilton risks being sidelined—especially if teammate Charles Leclerc continues to outperform him on track. That’s something that’s unlikely to happen to Adrian Newey, who never faced such limits even during his tenure at Red Bull.
The real issue lies in how change is welcomed within the organization.
The Vettel Precedent
In his book Vettel, Cavallino senza fili, Alberto Antonini recalled Sebastian Vettel’s arrival at Ferrari in 2015:
“One of my earliest memories from my time at Gestione Sportiva was seeing a handwritten note on one of the key desks. It was a to-do list and at the bottom, it said: ‘Seb is a pain in the ass.’ Word for word. That note simply meant that at the beginning of the relationship, the new driver and the historic team were figuring each other out. Vettel was entering Ferrari on his own terms—stubborn as always—even if it meant stepping on some toes. I often heard him say: ‘At Red Bull, we didn’t do it this way.’”
It doesn’t take much imagination to see that the same thing may be happening with Hamilton now. His recent interviews clearly show how closely he’s analyzing Ferrari’s workflows and reactivity. His emotionally charged approach may not always be easy to interpret, but it underscores his demand for a cultural shift.
Yet when such change is requested by a shareholder, team principal or technical director, it carries one kind of weight—when it comes from a driver, even a champion, it’s something entirely different.
