Written by Owen Bradley
Credit: Clive Mason
Formula One's Greatest designer, Adrian Newey, will leave the Red Bull Racing Team at the start of the 2025 season. Newey will step back from Formula One in 2024, setting his sights on completing the RB17 Hypercar project
Rumours that Adrian Newey was unhappy with a power struggle at Red Bull Racing between Christian Horner, Helmut Marko and members of the Red Bull brand have seemingly come true, with Newey opting to leave the Austrian outfit at the end of 2025, after first signing with the team for the 2006 season.
12-Championship winning cars designed, Adrian Newey has cemented himself into motorsport history as one of, if not the single greatest car designer in the world, and the most successful F1 designer of all time. Newey has worked with a few different teams since his first full season back in 1980 with the Fittipaldi Automotive Team.
Newey was the Chief Designer behind the 1992 FW14B which used active suspension. This innovation helped Nigel Mansell to his first and only World Championship, and certainly ensured that Adrian Newey would be known as one of the most innovative designers of all time.
Credit: JEAN-LOUP GAUTREAU
But Newey didn't stop there either, he went on to deliver a constructors championship-winning car to Williams in 1993, 1994, 1996 and 1997. Alain Prost would win the drivers' championship in 1993, and with momentum on Williams' and Newey's side, it convinced the triple champion of Ayrton Senna to leave McLaren to join Williams. Whilst that partnership was abruptly ended because of the tragic death of the Brazilian icon, Senna's efforts would not go unrewarded, with Williams taking the 1994 Constructors championship, with many praising Newey's intellect.
Williams would go on to win the drivers' and constructors' championships in 1996 and 1997, won by Damon Hill and then Jacques Villeneuve. Newey would then depart the successful Williams team, to immediately leave to McLaren for 1998.
Credit: Mark Thompson
In just his first season with McLaren, as their Technical Director, Newey's McLaren MP4/13 would take both Drivers' and Constructors' championship glory, with Mika Hakkinen scoring his first of two world titles.
With Ferrari's resurgence and Michael Schumacher's domination, Newey would continue with McLaren, and whilst unable to deliver any further titles, between 1998-2005 McLaren would achieve 41 Grand Prix Wins.
Credit: Mark Thompson
When he joined Red Bull, it was a move that many people thought would be career suicide. However, after just a few short years, Red Bull took their first Grand Prix Win at the Chinese Grand Prix in 2009, followed up by Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull taking their first drivers' and constructors' championships in 2010.
Another dominant period between 2010-2013 for Newey, resulting in 41 Grands Prix Victories and 4 World titles for both Red Bull as a constructor, and for Sebastian Vettel as a driver - Newey would scale back his efforts with the team, after such a long dedicated period in the sport. In 2021, Newey and Red Bull would win the Drivers' championship with Max Verstappen, before going on another dominant string of championships between 2022-Present with the Dutchman Verstappen, at the helm.
Newey and Red Bull Team Principal, Christian Horner had struck up a fantastic relationship, with many members inside the Red Bull team working like a well-oiled machine, delivering many successes to the Milton Keynes based team.
However, devastatingly for Red Bull and for the wider Formula One world as a whole, Christian Horner would be accused by a Red Bull employee of inappropriate misconduct. Whilst these are simply accusations - the Red Bull dynamic had shifted despite their stoic run of results and PR.
Credit: Rudy Carezzevoli
Rumours would circulate that there was a major power struggle inside the team, mainly between Christian Horner, Helmut Marko and some Red Bull bosses and board members. After such a long time with the team, Newey has taken the decision to leave Red Bull in a shocking move to the F1 community.
Newey has been linked with the Maranello-based team of the Scuderia Ferrari, earlier in the year Newey revealed that he "regrets not working with Fernando Alonso, Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari". With Lewis Hamilton also shocking the world, by announcing his move to the Scuderia Ferrari from 2025 - Newey has also been linked with Ferrari heavily, especially after being seen reportedly in Bologna, near Maranello.
Credit: GIUSEPPE CACACE
Aston Martin F1 are also one of the associated links for Adrian Newey, who has worked with the Aston Martin brand before with Newey being the designer behind the Aston Martin Valkyrie. The Aston Martin Valkyrie will also be racing in the World Endurance Championship from 2025.
However, whilst rumours circulate and fans begin to theorise, one thing is for certain - Adrian Newey is leaving the dominant powerhouse of Red Bull Racing, after nearly 20 years with the team.
But what do you think about this news? Where would you like to see Newey go, will it be Ferrari, Aston Martin or somewhere different? Let us know in the comments below!
Lots of options but reckon it's AM. No need to relocate to Italy and he is quite a patriotic chap actually so would work, also the Alonso piece. However, big caveat on this... is he not on a big non compete type contract, I have heard its 2027 at the earliest he can join someone else, even if he leaves in 2024/25. Its a long time to wait for both team and Newey to be out of action, plus he would then be nearing 70. To add to the F1 credits, did awesome work in the US. Great engineer in Indycar before F1 fame.