Media claims that Adrian Newey might be parting company with Red Bull, unsurprisingly seem to be wide of the mark.

For a tale that has already featured more twists than a cheap fire hose in a pretzel factory, one of the strangest - and there is serious competition - is that the Christian Horner saga could see Adrian Newey part company with Red Bull.

That's right, not Horner, the man who has guided the team since its inception, not Helmut Marko, who has acted as consultant and Lord High Executioner, not Max Verstappen, who appears to be on his way to his fourth title, not Jos Verstappen father of the aforementioned who is alleged to have been one of the biggest sh*t-stirrers since the saga became public, but Adrian Newey.

That's right, Adrian Newey, the man who designed the Red Bull cars that saw Sebastian Vettel claim four titles and Max Verstappen three... the same Adrian Newey that designed title winning cars for McLaren and Williams, the Adrian Newey whose cars have won 12 constructors' titles and thirteen drivers' championships for seven different drivers. Oh, and let's not forget his success in IndyCar.

That Adrian Newey.

Earlier this week, amidst claims that Newey was likely to leave Red Bull, Germany's Auto Motor und Sport reported that the Briton was in fact considering moving away from F1 to concentrate on the RB17 Hypercar.

Without doubt the most successful designer in the history of the sport, arguably the greatest achiever in the history of the sport, was quitting simply to design a glorified sports car.

Earlier this year, Newey admitted that one of his only regrets was that he never got to work with Ferrari, though not for want of trying as far as the Maranello outfit was concerned.

"Ferrari came hard for him," said Horner, referring to an approach made by the Italian company in 2014, albeit in terms of a road car. "They promised him the world. 'You can have a Hollywood lifestyle, fly into the factory from Monaco every day and you won't pay any tax and you can design a road car and this, that and the other'. I managed to persuade him to stay by saying: 'We'll do a road car. If you want to do a road car, we'll do a road car'."

It was claimed that moving Newey on to the Hypercar project would assist Red Bull in terms of compliance with the budget cap, whilst also removing him from the current soap opera surrounding the Austrian team.

It has now been confirmed that Newey will be with the team at Suzuka and that he remains as committed to Red Bull as ever, albeit in the Marko/Verstappen camp as opposed to Horner's corner.

Fact is, allowing Newey to slip through your fingers would be wanton madness, unless one has the means to ensure he is confined to his garden for the next ten years.

All that aside, a move to Ferrari alongside Lewis Hamilton would be serious box office.

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READERS COMMENTS

1. Posted by Spindoctor, 29/03/2024 12:02

"@raimon_d
That would certainly make for an interesting season in 2025 & even more so in 2026! Personally I doubt it, but then I never thought I'd see Hamilton go to Ferrari (that's looking smart, so far).

The issue of "Gardening Leave" is probably not that relevant. As the most successful F1 designer I doubt Newey would have allowed his options to be constrained by such a clause.

Can the "silly season" (a bit early innit?) get any sillier?"

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2. Posted by NS Biker, 18/03/2024 2:56

"It is not realistic that A. Newey could get away from Red Bull without some serious Gardening Leave. This alone is going to cut into his value for wherever he goes, assuming he actually does go somewhere.
From his perspective, to give up a year or a full design cycle would be catastrophic. Not likely to happen.
The dream scenario is he gets the boot or slips out of Red Bull as a result of a complete implosion of the current team, and shows up at Aston Martin the following month.
Is this likely .... about as probably as me setting foot on the moon. But, dare to dream. "

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3. Posted by raimon_d, 16/03/2024 0:04

"We all can think whatever we wish, letting the other know Adrian and his thoughts about it all. But in Italy, they say (and assume) that he will join Ferrari and that the Agreement was closed weeks ago. The announcement would be around the end of June/early July ... Personally, as always, I will believe whatever when it is released officially. Until then, I do not assume anything."

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4. Posted by BrightonCorgi, 15/03/2024 12:47

"Aston Martin has a new wind tunnel with Newey's name on it."

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5. Posted by kenji, 15/03/2024 1:16

"Anyone who follows F1 seriously knows that Adrian Newey is his own man. If in doubt then read 'How to Build a Car'. His future path will be his decision after weighing up the pros and cons rather than the fictions promoted in the media."

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6. Posted by KKK, 14/03/2024 19:09

"Media Liberty and tge FUA should step in and kill it once and for all. Its bringing F1 in disrepute. F1 is becoming a laughing shock, more like a Garry and Megham circus"

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7. Posted by FIRSTINTO 1, 14/03/2024 18:14

"I haven't seen this much B.S. and hot air being presented since the O.J. Simpson trial. I like Red Bull and Horner but how about some truth and clarity here."

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8. Posted by Chester, 14/03/2024 17:23

"More fog. Has it come to this?"

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9. Posted by rnorm, 14/03/2024 14:58

"Adrian Newey should be getting paid about double what Horner makes, which as I understand it is $8 million a year."

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10. Posted by Spindoctor, 14/03/2024 14:42

"It'll be interesting to see if any of the *real* reasons behind all this argy-bargy ever appear in public. I'm surprised that Newey appears to have sided with the Verstappen\Marko axis, but I'm sure he has good reason."

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11. Posted by Editor, 14/03/2024 13:02

"@ Burton

Or he is at present but they wish to remove him.

On the other hand, does the cap cover alimony payments?"

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12. Posted by Burton, 14/03/2024 12:57

"The budget cap compliance angle implies Adrian isn't one of the cap-exempt top earners, which would be preposterous."

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The Newey nonsense

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