The news was launched by the German website Auto Motor und Sport and was also confirmed by Formula One: Adrian Newey will leave Red Bull after almost 20 years with the Anglo-Austrian team. Not a bolt from the blue, but a well-thought-out choice by the English designer and the result of discontent which culminated in internal problems within the team that began in February and are still ongoing, although at the top levels of the Austro-Thai giant it was agreed to keep the prices low tone in the statements released to the press.
Adrian Newey has decided to leave Red Bull, Horner is not worried because he has bet on Wache and Balbo
The situation that erupted at the beginning of February, which involved Christian Horner and, indirectly, the Verstappen family, has destabilized the upper levels not only of the world champion team but also those of the ownership giant (majority) Thai. With the death of Dieter Mateschitz, the political framework within the team had in fact changed: Horner had moved to the Thai side, with the strong interest of being able to enter as a shareholder of the team, while Yoovidhya, who holds 51% of the company, he never trusted Mateschitz’s successor, Oliver Mintzlaff, causing the Austrian side to significantly lose power. A war emergedat first darkthen, with the outbreak of the Horner case, a lot more evident and with no holds barred. There has been a lot of talk about it, also and above all about the internal investigation involving the current Team Principal of the world champion team, according to some sources, ‘piloted’ by the Thai side to protect Horner. Precisely this controversial situation surrounding Christian Horner’s allegations of misconduct made Adrian Newey decide to leave Red Bull. However, the team denies that its designer has already announced his farewell
Although the British engineer has often been considered the architect of the design of Milton Keynes’ latest cars, especially for the RB20 project had already been put on the sidelines, with the importance of Pierre Wache, but also Enrico Balbo, which has been growing strongly as the months have passed. It is also for this reason that Christian Horner, in recent months, did everything he could to retain the almost 50-year-old French engineer and the 44-year-old Italian engineer, who were often compared above all to Ferrari but then both renewed due to that strong desire for technical continuity. It is no coincidence that Horner, in the chaos that has hit him in recent weeks, has considered Adrian Newey as no longer so essential, instead giving full powers to Pierre Wache.
Many possible options for Adrian Newey but (yet) no certainties
What will become of the genius of Formula 1? An engineer considered by all to be the greatest expert in ground effect cars, who will also continue to be used in the next generation of cars (2026), it seems practically impossible to think that he will remain without a team, if not for his strong will which, still today, would seem not be there. There are mainly three teams that have their eyes on him: Ferrari, Aston Martin and Mercedes. However, his farewell from Red Bull will certainly bring other offers to the English engineer, who will turn 66 in December. We already talked about the Ferrari offer a few weeks ago. The offer is there, the team has not denied it, even if his arrival in Bologna at the end of March was not linked to discussions with the men from Maranello but to a track test with Maserati at Mugello.
Then there is Aston Martin which, in recent weeks, through Aramco, has presented a very important super offer to the English designer, with a technical role also outside the F1 team, on projects linked to Le Mans, for example . Mercedes is also interested in Newey, in what Toto Wolff has defined as a “strategy” that he cannot reveal and which, according to what has been learned, also wants Helmut Marko to be interested in order to convince Max Verstappen. The Austrian team principal, after Lewis Hamilton’s farewell, is still very ambitious and even more aggressive, looking and hoping for a strong coup. To bring the Red Bull men to Brackley, Mercedes would be willing to do anything from an economic point of view.
There is therefore no shortage of offers for the almost 66-year-old English designer. Many rumors give the Ferrari and Aston Martin options as more likely but it is understood that a decision regarding his immediate future has not yet been made by Adrian Neweystill having to discuss the terms of the mandatory gardening, as well as the exit (early, if the team allows it) from the contract that binds him to Red Bull until the end of 2025.
