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MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — One of the biggest stories heading into Miami Grand Prix weekend once again has nothing to do with the action on the track.
News broke on Wednesday that renowned designer Adrian Newey, technical director of Red Bull Racing, will leave the team next spring. A crucial detail about his departure is that he will not have to take gardening leave after this period, making him immediately available to any Formula 1 rivals should he choose to stay in the sport.
The timing of Newey’s exit is also notable, considering how the regulations will be revised in 2026. This should essentially give teams a clean sheet to try to challenge Red Bull, a team they hope will become more easy to catch without such an influential design figure. Red Bull driver Sergio Pérez said Newey had been “great” for the team, but added that she was still “in a great position” with her technical team and that “we are looking forward to the future”.
Even before confirming his departure from Red Bull, Newey was attracting interest from rival F1 teams, which will only intensify in the coming months. Not only are Red Bull’s rivals all at different stages of their rebuild, but the fact that Newey could start working elsewhere in a year’s time also gives them hope that they can accelerate that progress.
But where will Newey end up in 2025? As Williams team boss James Vowles said on Friday, “I think anyone here would be stupid not to at least start a conversation with him at this stage.”
Here’s a look at potential next steps for the greatest designer in F1 history.
Ferrari
Team principal Fred Vasseur has assembled a super-team driver line-up at Ferrari from 2025 with Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton. Could he do the same within the technical department?
“I think we are well placed to attract the best players in the world,” Leclerc said. “However, I have already said it. But we are already a very, very good team. And over the last seven to eight months, we’ve made incredible progress. But it doesn’t matter, and whoever can come and make it even stronger is extremely important, and Adrian is one of those guys who can make the difference.
According to Italy Gazzetta du Sport, Vasseur met with Newey earlier this week before traveling to Miami. Ferrari must build a consistent car to return to its championship winning ways. Although Ferrari overhauled its design this year, only some 2023 issues appear to have been resolved. He has one victory to his credit this season, thanks to that of Carlos Sainz at the Australian Grand Prix, and is 44 points behind Red Bull in the standings.
Since Newey joined Williams in 1991, his cars have claimed 253 pole positions, 217 Grand Prix victories, 13 drivers’ titles and 12 constructors’ championships. Drivers and team representatives praised the designer throughout the Miami Grand Prix weekend. As Leclerc noted, while stating that they currently have an “incredible team,” Newey “is one of those product guys that you hope to work with one day in your career.”
Even Lewis Hamilton, who is expected to join the Maranello-based team next season, has weighed in on the idea of Newey joining Ferrari, saying he would “very much” like it to happen.
“I think he would be a great addition,” Hamilton added. “I think (Ferrari) already has a great team; they are already making huge progress and moving forward – their car is faster this year – but yes, it would be a privilege to work with him.
At the moment, there is a feeling that Ferrari is the favorite for his signature.
Aston Martin
Aston Martin’s billionaire owner, Lawrence Stroll, has not hesitated to be ambitious in creating the next great F1 team. He signed top drivers with Sebastian Vettel and, more successfully, Fernando Alonso. He also brought in a number of top designers and invested heavily in a new factory at Silverstone.
Signing Newey would surely add another coup to the list. Newey worked with Aston Martin to design the Valkyrie hypercar when the British manufacturer was associated with Red Bull. Yet he could be seen as the missing piece of the puzzle to help him move to the top spot on the F1 grid.
There is a strong mutual respect between Newey and Alonso in particular. Newey said in a BBC interview last year that Alonso was a driver he regretted not working with. In fact, his car designs denied Alonso at least two world titles, which Alonso said on Thursday meant Newey would always be “part of my journey” in F1.
“I always wanted to work with him once in my life,” Alonso said. He went so far as to speak with Newey during discussions about a move to Red Bull in the past, but a deal was never reached. So, could they unite at Aston Martin in the future?
Alonso said it was a question for Lawrence Stroll and that the team was “very happy with our technical department”, which includes former Red Bull aero chief Dan Fallows. Aston Martin team principal Mike Krack echoed that sentiment on Friday, expressing confidence in the team’s existing setup. “We are very satisfied with our technical team and we continue on this path,” he said.
Newey would be making a bold statement by signing for Aston Martin. But this team doesn’t seem to be making the same kind of effort as Ferrari to secure his signature.
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McLaren
If Newey wanted to be part of a growing F1 project, then McLaren could be of interest.
After making his name at Williams in the early 1990s, Newey joined McLaren in 1997 and played a part in Mika Hakkinen’s back-to-back titles in 1998 and 1999. He has worked with drivers including David Coulthard, Kimi Raikkonen and Juan Pablo Montoya, but left shortly before Alonso and Hamilton arrived in 2007.
Like Krack, McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown also stressed his confidence in the existing technical team at McLaren, saying they would “stay the course” with everything they have in place at Woking. When Athleticism noted that Newey would surely be an addition to any team, Brown acknowledged that he “was going to add value to any racing team” but was “very happy with the trajectory we are on.”
“Never say never,” Brown said. “But I’m very happy with the team, the technical leadership, the way Andrea (Stella) runs the racing team. We have a plan and we’re going to keep our heads down and, of course, always look for opportunities to make further additions to the racing team.
Lando Norris said it would be “an honor for anyone to have Adrian on their team” given his success and a “great addition”, but he was on the same page as Brown on his satisfaction with the existing configuration: “We are in a difficult situation. very good position now with who we have, I am very happy.
McLaren’s technical department has undergone several adjustments over the past 18 months, and Stella remains heavily involved on the technical side, given her engineering background. Like Aston Martin, McLaren does not put as much pressure on Newey as the obvious interest from Ferrari.
Mercedes
Mercedes’ soft pursuit of Max Verstappen in recent months amid turmoil at Red Bull has reignited tensions between Toto Wolff and Christian Horner. Could a move for Newey also play a role in this?
Mercedes has struggled to get to grips with the current regulations as well as its rivals, consistently leaving it behind in the third season of this set of rules. It knows that the planned overhaul in 2026 will realistically be the next opportunity to attempt to return to its title contention, notably drawing on the strength of its engine division.
But where would Newey fit in? Mercedes brought James Allison, the technical director who drove much of its success in the late 2010s, back to the front line last year in a bid to turn around its fortunes, with Mike Elliott leaving last October. Mercedes already has a strong technical structure, meaning there is no obvious place where Newey could fit in.
Speaking at an event on Monday before Newey’s departure from Red Bull was confirmed, Wolff said he was “an iconic Formula 1 engineer with a great track record” and that he “just looked at him as a fan and was monitoring this space” amid the rumors. on his next move. This gives the feeling that Mercedes is not seriously pursuing Newey as a future option, as attractive as his resume may be.
Williams
There’s a bit of romance in the idea of Newey eventually heading to Williams.
He joined the crew in 1991 and remained there until 1996 before joining McLaren. During this period, Williams drivers achieved 77 pole positions, 59 Grand Prix victories, four drivers’ championships (Nigel Mansell, Alain Prost, Damon Hill and Jacques Villeneuve) and five constructors’ titles.
Vowles confirmed Friday that he had “a light conversation” with Newey, adding “more than anything else, saying it must not have been an easy decision and basically just wanting to have a further discussion about things.”
Williams is currently one of the bottom teams, one of three without points heading into the Miami Grand Prix weekend. It is in the process of being rebuilt to regain its former glory. As Vowles noted, this might please the designer.
“We are a team without politics,” he said. “It’s a small team trying to get back to the front, and I think it could suit someone very well who potentially wants to take on a challenge like that.”
What Newey thinks
Newey arrived in Miami ahead of training which begins on Friday and was asked on Sky Sports about his decision to leave Red Bull.
“Formula 1 consumes everything,” Newey said. “I’ve been working on it for a long time now. 2021 has been a very busy year with the close battle with Mercedes throughout the championship and, at the same time, putting all the research and development on the RB18, which is the father of this generation of cars.
“There comes a time when I feel, like Forrest Gump said, ‘I’m feeling a little tired!'”
If he so chooses, it would open the door for him to move away from F1 for a bit while still remaining one of the greatest minds in the history of the sport. He admitted he was “very flattered” by Hamilton’s comments about a possible move to Ferrari.
“But right now it’s just about taking a little break and seeing what happens next,” Newey said.
Top photo: MARTIN KEEP/AFP, Mark Thompson/Getty Images and HECTOR RETAMAL/AFP via Getty Images