Aston Martin’s Formula 1 journey has seen more difficulty than Lawrence Stroll might have anticipated. Since their fourth-place finish in 2020, as Racing Point, Aston Martin haven’t finished higher than fifth in the constructors.
However, with Adrian Newey as the team principal for 2026, Aston Martin aim to climb the grid. The 2026 regulations create an opportunity for the British team, but what does the future of their driver academy look like?
Their former reserve driver, Felipe Drugovich, left the team for a Formula E seat before the end of last season. With the FE season has already underway, the young Brazilian is well into his duties for Andretti.
Jak Crawford is Aston Martin’s current reserve driver, and will be targeting an F1 opportunity in 2027. Meanwhile, Spaniard Mari Boya is the next academy talent through the door.
Who is Mari Boya?
Boya is not a name to be sniffed at.
In 2023, Boya made his Formula 3 debut for MP Motorsport, immediately taking the step up from Eurocup-3 like a duck to water. His best result came in Monza after a long battle with his teammate and current Alpine driver, Franco Colapinto. While he did lose out to Gabriel Bortoleto in the last laps, Boya still secured the podium – his first in F3.
The following year, while continuing to race in other series, the young Spaniard finished 15th place in the F3 standings with Campos Racing. But 2025 was his year to shine.
Boya finished the 2025 F3 season in third place with 116 points. Despite not picking up any points in their first weekend, Boya played a crucial role in securing Campos Racing the constructors’ Championship. Across the season, the 21-year-old picked up one win and five podiums in his final F3 season.
For 2026, Boya will make the step up to Formula 2 for PREMA Racing. In preparation for his promotion, Boya featured in the post-season test for his new team, following his second-place finish at the Macau Grand Prix.
On Day 2 of the test, he told Formula 2: “I am feeling good. My first time in the car, and my first impressions have been really good. I am enjoying a lot this time, doing the thing I like the most in my life, which is racing. I say that all the time, and now with a bigger car it is more fun.
“I am really proud, and thankful to all the people who have been helping me. It is going really well, we are testing many things, and we need to take all the positives. I am really excited, so let us see what 2026 brings.”
Boya prepares for Formula 2
More recently, Boya has explained why he felt it was important to complete the post-season testing. “One of the reasons I went to these rounds was to be better prepared for the tests and to know everyone a bit more,” said the Aston Martin academy driver.
“I think it’s really important and with the little mileage we do, we need to try to extract the maximum.
“It’s a new category, so it’s a big change. You work with more people, especially engineers, but the Italians are very similar to Spanish. They are nice, and I really like it, so let’s hope for a good 2026.”
F2 represents a different challenge compared to F3. When asked about the differences, Boya said: “One of the biggest changes, the carbon brakes, you need to warm them, and when you cool down the tyre, you need to have the brakes ready, so it’s a big difference.
“In F3, you just focus on the tyres, here you need to focus on more things and also you have to adapt to the power of the car, the clutch, starts, and pitstops, everything is new but excited for it, and I feel I am ready.”
Main photo: Zak Mauger/LAT Images (Aston Martin F1 Media Portal)
