More unrest at Red Bull? Brain behind fast cars Verstappen may be steering towards departure

Dhe usually well-established German motorsport site Auto, Motor und Sport threw the bat into the woods on Thursday. “Adrian Newey leaves Red Bull,” read the message above, which BBC Sport confirmed shortly afterwards based on its own sources. Newey himself has remained silent for the time being and Red Bull says it knows nothing. However, that says little, as experience in Formula 1 shows. The teams almost always deny rumors about personnel changes until the formal announcement.

A possible departure of the technician considered by many to be a genius would be a major loss for Red Bull. If only because of the reputational damage. The loss of a ‘big name’ like Newey is a negative signal. It would reinforce the already created impression that Red Bull’s leadership is no longer on the same page.

The 65-year-old Newey, an expert in aerodynamics, is considered the best car designer Formula 1 has ever known. In his long career he was at the origin of Formula 1 cars that won a total of 25 drivers’ and constructors’ world championships.

Since 2006 he has worked for Red Bull, which became world champion thirteen times under his technical leadership. Newey is therefore the best paid technician in the highest racing class. His annual salary would be more than 12 million euros.

Consequences of the Horner affair

Newey would want to leave Red Bull for two reasons. The first is the sordid affair surrounding team boss Christian Horner, who has been accused of sexual harassment by his personal assistant. Horner was cleared of these allegations after an internal investigation, but the woman in question has appealed. She not only worked for Horner, but also for Newey. He is said to be of the opinion that Horner gets off too easily.

The second reason for Newey’s dissatisfaction is that his influence within Red Bull may be waning. Horner would gradually maneuver the aging chief designer to the sidelines in favor of a younger generation of engineers. Designing a racing car is always teamwork, but Newey is said to feel that his contribution to Red Bull’s current success is not being appreciated internally.

The young Red Bull engineers would have had enough of operating in the shadow of the great Newey. They believe that he gets too much credit as the figurehead of the design team, while, according to Horner, Newey only spends 50 percent of his working time on Formula 1. Technical director Pierre Waché is now said to be the real brain behind Verstappen’s super-fast cars.

Road car as fast as a Formula 1 car

Newey spends a lot of time on his favorite project, building a racing car for public roads that can go as fast as a Formula 1 car. That hyper car, the RB17, will enter the test phase next year and should go into production in 2026.

If Newey really wants to leave, that will probably only be possible after next season. He has a contract until the end of 2025, which Red Bull can keep him to. He will then probably have to wait twelve months before he can start working for a competing team, because Red Bull wants to prevent him from taking his technical knowledge about the Red Bull cars to Ferrari or Aston Martin.

Those two F1 teams are said to have already waved large bags of money to tempt Newey to make the switch. If they succeed, they will only be able to use his services from 2027.

New adventure at Ferrari

If Newey is looking for a new challenge, it will probably be at Ferrari. The Briton turned down offers from that racing stable three times in the past; decisions that he later regrets. Newey also said last year how unfortunate he is that he never worked with seven-time world champion and fellow countryman Lewis Hamilton. Hamilton has just signed a multi-year contract with Ferrari, so Newey can make up for his two ‘misses’ one time if he wants to move to Italy.

The question is whether Max Verstappen will be very sad about Newey’s departure. During the recent race weekend in China, he was tight-lipped about his possible exit and emphasized that designing the car is a team effort.

At the same time, Verstappen has repeatedly shown that he is not looking for more unrest in the tent. If he no longer likes it at Red Bull, the Dutchman can always switch to Mercedes. Team boss Toto Wolff will welcome him there with open arms. The latest rumor is that Verstappen and his manager will negotiate such a switch with Wolff next weekend in Miami.