Adrian Newey’s sensational move from Red Bull to Ferrari might not come true after all. The technical mastermind had met Ferrari TP Frederic Vasseur in London, discussing a potential contract for 2025 and beyond. Reports even claimed Newey was more interested in signing for Ferrari than Aston Martin, his other option. However, a new claim has halted such speculations, and the reason is believed to be Lewis Hamilton‘s presence at Ferrari. Instead, a Newey to Mercedes transfer might be now on the cards.
For 4 years, Newey has found immense joy in designing cars for Red Bull that Max Verstappen drove to 3 world championships. 2021 was the most grueling year for them in the championship battle against Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes. Emotions reached a tipping point only to finally witness F1 crown a new World Champion in Verstappen.
With the brewing tension in Red Bull, Newey has already left. Moreover, Mercedes TP Toto Wolff has offered Red Bull’s 3-time champion a $160 million contract. So even though Newey, in 2023, said that he missed the opportunity to work with Hamilton once, F1 Expert Jack Plooij believes that the RB mastermind will not join Ferrari to do so. Plooij declares that Newey will remain loyal to Verstappen and never forget the nerve-wracking 2021 season.
“If Newey ever goes to work somewhere, it will be together with Verstappen,” Plooij declares, as quoted by F1maximaal. “I don’t think he’s going to work anywhere to help Lewis Hamilton win a title. I think he gets so much joy out of Max. Are we still thinking about 2021? Who was crying on the pit wall? Newey!” he exclaimed. “Horner was just like, yes baby, yes baby! Newey was crying. That’s how happy he was with that. So I’m very confident that he’ll only go somewhere if Max is there,” Plooij concluded.
If Plooij’s gut feeling is right, Mercedes could be the fortuitous recipient of two world champion-winning geniuses. While other analysts and experts continue to give their opinions about Newey’s next destination, the unfortunate prospect of him retiring looms. But that possibility has been rubbished by McLaren CEO Zak Brown.
Zak Brown shuts claims around Adrian Newey’s retirement
After Red Bull’s official announcement about Adrian Newey’s exit, his manager, Eddie Jordan, made a shocking revelation. He said that the ex-Red Bull CTO would choose to take time off from F1 instead of joining another team. Elaborating on Jordan’s statement, Zak Brown has now ruled out the retirement possibility.
“It’s fascinating that he’s left (Red Bull) and let’s see what it is does,” Brown said on F1’s Beyond the Grid podcast. “He’s been doing this a long time. Eddie Jordan works with him and looks after him and said: ‘Look, don’t expect him to just jump into something new tomorrow.’ I take that at face value. I think Adrian is going to go and enjoy Monaco Historique next week and take some time to figure out what he wants to do.”
Brown concluded by saying that F1 fans need not worry about Newey’s retirement at all. “I think he’ll continue in F1,” the American added. “He loves the sport. I think he’s definitely not done.”
With Ferrari and retirement ruled out, Aston Martin and Williams remain as the two options for 2025. Helmut Marko too has hinted that Newey will be better off at Aston Martin than Ferrari. Will Newey team up with Fernando Alonso next year or will he prefer a reunion with Williams?
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