What happened: Aston Martin sits second from last in the 2026 constructors' championship after seven rounds, with just a single point on the board. The team trails the entire field except Cadillac, the brand-new project widely expected to struggle in its debut campaign. The slow start lands despite heavy anticipation around Adrian Newey steering the team into its new era.

Why it matters: The result is a stark gap between expectation and reality for a team that built its offseason narrative around Newey's arrival. Finishing ahead of only a first-year outfit raises pointed questions about how quickly the design and performance gains can materialize. For a championship-minded operation, a near-empty points tally this deep into the season is a setback that compounds with each round.

What to watch: Watch whether promised upgrades begin closing the gap in the coming rounds, and how much patience the team shows as the points deficit grows.