Adrian Newey is available for 2025 after handing in his resignation as chief technical officer at Red Bull. The race for his signature is already well underway.
The expectation is that Newey will walk out the Milton Keynes doors for the last time in February. That gives him plenty of time to influence a new team’s 2026 car design.
The 65-year-old managed to negotiate his way out of any gardening leave. In effect, he’s serving that now, with Christian Horner blocking his access to data and most team meetings.
But time is still of the essence for his suitors ahead of the sweeping regulation changes in a couple of years. Ferrari appear to be leading the race after Newey held talks with team principal Fred Vasseur in London last week.
While McLaren CEO Zak Brown has ruled them out of the running, Ferrari face competition from Aston Martin. Team owner Lawrence Stroll has offered the designer a massive £407k-a-week deal.
Elsewhere, Williams boss James Vowles has urged Newey to consider what would be a ‘perfect’, but unlikely, return to Grove. He won five of his 12 constructors’ titles during his stint with the team in the 1990s.
Mercedes now approaching Adrian Newey
According to German publication Auto Motor und Sport, Mercedes are now entering the race to sign Newey. Journalist Michael Schmidt ‘heard in Miami’ last time out that they had changed their minds.
The Silver Arrows were initially giving him ‘the cold shoulder’. But now they’re making ‘cautious approaches’ as they look to inspire second thoughts about a move to Maranello.
However, this development might have come too late. Ferrari’s talks with Newey have apparently reached an ‘advanced’ stage.
Mercedes are one of the most successful teams on the F1 grid with nine drivers’ titles, eight constructors’ championships and 125 race wins, but they’re currently floundering. After six races, they’ve scored just 64 points and no podiums.
Toto Wolff told to avoid his ‘biggest mistake’ with Adrian Newey
Given Mercedes’ current predicament, you might have expected them to be straight on the phone when they heard Newey was available. However, both sides had reservations.
Team principal Toto Wolff feared, for instance, that signing Newey would spark internal unrest. Indeed, some at Red Bull were ‘quite pleased’ to see him leave because they didn’t like his working methods.
Meanwhile, Newey himself hasn’t been overly keen on the idea of working with the Austrian. And he’s also concerned that it will take too long to right the Mercedes ship.
| ADRIAN NEWEY CONSTRUCTORS’ TITLES | TEAM |
| 1992 | Williams |
| 1993 | Williams |
| 1994 | Williams |
| 1996 | Williams |
| 1997 | Williams |
| 1998 | McLaren |
| 2010 | Red Bull |
| 2011 | Red Bull |
| 2012 | Red Bull |
| 2013 | Red Bull |
| 2022 | Red Bull |
| 2023 | Red Bull |
Now it appears that Wolff has dropped his own misgivings and is trying to win the designer over. They were seen in discussions in the Miami paddock, though the Brackley chief was naturally tight-lipped.
One journalist has previously warned him that he’d be making his ‘biggest mistake’ if he didn’t seriously pursue Newey. He felt that it would improve his chances of landing world champion Max Verstappen.
It’s previously been claimed that Verstappen is likely to follow the Englishman if he leaves Red Bull. He has doubts over Mercedes’ lack of competitiveness, but Newey could help put those to bed.