Alonso celebrates surprise appointment of Newey as team principal

Fernando Alonso on Thursday celebrated the surprise news that technical guru Adrian Newey will be Aston Martin's team chief next year, and admitted he was just as surprised as the rest of the Formula One paddock by the announcement.

The two-time world champion said he was given no prior notification of the team's decision to make Newey team principal in a reshuffle that will see current boss Andy Cowell become chief strategy officer.

Newey has designed title-winning racing cars for Williams, McLaren and Red Bull across a career in which he has become widely regarded as the sport's greatest and most innovative designer.

Speaking in Qatar ahead of this weekend's Qatar Grand Prix, Alonso described the move as "good news".

"It is great for the team to have Adrian, with all his expertise and knowledge about everything that a team should need to compete at the highest level," the Spaniard said.

"Andy is taking different responsibilities in the area he knows best so it seems like it's a logical change and I'm happy with that."

The veteran Alonso warned, however, that being team principal meant other demands too.

"I think Adrian has all the skills, to be honest, to make a fast car. The role of team principal is a bit different nowadays and you have to deal with other things -– media, commitments, sponsors," he explained.

"I hope Adrian doesn't have to do all of those and can concentrate on the more important stuff."

For Alonso, Newey's new role could also act as a magnet for attracting even more talent to Aston Martin.

"He knows how to operate a team and how everyone should focus in one direction so he's a great leader," he said.

"Everyone would like to work with Newey and learn from him. Being our team principal, I'm sure we will have even more people dreaming of joining the team, so that's good news for us."