A Formula 1 steward has delivered an ominous warning to Aston Martin following their acquisition of design guru Adrian Newey.
The Brit stunned the world of motorsport last season after announcing he was to leave the team with whom he celebrated 13 world titles across two dominant spells.
Newey is widely regarded as the greatest engineer in the sport's history, and was linked with several teams - including Ferrari - as he pondered his next move.
The British outfit made its return to F1 in 2021, but despite showing glimpses of what they can do, have largely underachieved.
Despite boasting the talents of former world champion Fernando Alonso - and partner Lance Stroll - the team accumulated fewer than 100 points in 2024, leaving them some way off the likes of Mercedes, Red Bull, Ferrari, and McLaren.
Owner Lawrence Stroll hopes the addition of Newey to the staff can spark an upturn in fortunes, especially with the introduction of new regulations set to come in 2026.
Speaking to Casinoutanspelpaus.io, the F1 steward said: “Aston Martin have underachieved because they have not been able to quite get it together when they started very strong a couple of years ago and then it all sort of disappeared.
"Now a lot of things have changed but that's going to take a little bit of time before we see that come together.
"Aston Martin are the ones who probably have the biggest pressure on their shoulders because there's so much expectation with what Lawrence Stroll has done for the team and now they've got to be able to deliver.
“Fernando Alonso has been a little bit frustrated at times, which is what you always expect from him.
"And Lance Stroll has got to raise his game, because I think both of them have got to be able to feed off each other to be able to then push themselves and help the team move forward.
“I think Aston Martin are the ones that are probably going to be the most disappointing in 2025.
"But there is all that positive stuff with Adrian Newey, the new wind tunnel and all the infrastructure that's been put into place for it to happen.”