Formula 1 Rumor: Cowell leaving Aston Martin after demotion

Fresh fuel has been thrown on the fire in the F1 paddock: Andy Cowell (pictured left) is on his way out at Aston Martin after a bruising demotion that has clearly left deep scars.

–by Mark Cipolloni–

Cowell joined the team in 2024 as a high-profile recruit from Mercedes, rising to CEO and Team Principal for the 2025 season. But the arrival of Adrian Newey changed everything. Late last year, Newey took the Team Principal title for himself ahead of the critical 2026 regulations, pushing Cowell into the newly invented Chief Strategy Officer role. What was spun publicly as a strategic realignment is now widely viewed inside the team as a straight-up demotion—one Cowell reportedly never embraced.

Adrian Newey, Managing Technical Partner of Aston Martin F1 Team talks with Andy Cowell, Team Principal and Group CEO at Aston Martin F1 Team during previews ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Monaco at Circuit de Monaco on May 22, 2025 in Monte-Carlo, Monaco. (Photo by Zak Mauger/LAT Images for Aston Martin)

Tensions over the direction of the 2026 car and overall leadership reportedly made the situation unsustainable. With Newey firmly in charge on both the technical and team-principal fronts, Cowell’s influence has been marginalized. Insiders say he is expected to depart the team completely in June 2026 after a limited handover period tied to the Honda and Aramco partnerships.

Cowell came from a successful position leading the Mercedes engine program that won many F1 titles, so his strength is on the engine side. When Aston Martin promoted him to Team Principal it did raise a few eyebrows here at AutoRacing1.com. What did an engine man know about running a Formula 1 Team? And the Team’s results in 2025 with him at the helm were quite underwhelming.

After his demotion, his new role at Aston Martin was to get the Honda engine integrated into the Aston Martin Chassis. However, he is said to have butted heads with Adrian Newey who moved him aside and the position was untenable.

The story took a sharper turn today. Aston Martin held its official 2026 livery reveal in Saudi Arabia — the first car shaped under Newey’s full control — and Cowell was completely absent from all press release photos and official promotional material released by the team. He was photographed in Tokyo a week ago with team co-owner Lawrence Stroll during the Honda media event.

One source close to the squad described the optics as “telling.” Another added, “If you’re still part of the leadership, you don’t get left out of the team’s press photos today. His absence speaks volumes.”

While the team continues to thank Cowell publicly for “laying the foundations,” the corridors at Silverstone are said to be icy. For a squad that has bet big on becoming a front-runner in 2026, losing the man brought in to lead that charge is a significant blow.

This one is moving quickly. Expect more clarity in the coming weeks.