Red Bull Racing design guru Adrian Newey, whose vehicles have dominated Formula 1 for many years, will go away the squad within the first quarter of subsequent yr – and he’ll spend his remaining months with the agency ending its deliberate RB17 hypercar.
The 65-year-old joined the power drinks large’s Formula 1 squad in 2006 and has been instrumental in its rise to turning into one of many sport’s main outfits. During his 19 years with Red Bull, the squad has claimed seven drivers’ championships, six constructors’ titles and 117 victories.
Newey is not immediately employed as a part of the Red Bull Racing operation however has been chief know-how officer of the Red Bull Technology Group, and since 2014 his transient has been widened to incorporate different initiatives outdoors of F1. That job shift was, partially, to fend off a serious push for Newey’s providers from Ferrari.
As a part of his Red Bull Technology Group position, Newey was concerned within the improvement of the Aston Martin Valkyrie hypercar and has since begun work on Red Bull’s first hypercar, named the RB17. That automobile, resulting from be revealed this yr, is a 1250bhp V8 delicate hybrid with a claimed £5 million value and is designed primarily for track-day use.
In a launch asserting Newey’s departure, Red Bull Racing stated he would “step back” from his F1 duties to “focus on final development and delivery” of the RB17 and he’ll “remain involved in and committed to this exciting project until its completion”.
In an announcement, Newey stated it had been “a great honour to have played a key role” in Red Bull’s F1 success, however he added: “I feel now is an opportune moment to hand that baton over to others and to seek new challenges for myself.”
Since becoming a member of Red Bull, Newey has designed a string of title winners for Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen. His 2023 automobile is probably the most dominant in F1 historical past. Before becoming a member of the squad, he beforehand designed F1 race and title winners for Williams and McLaren.
Team boss Christian Horner stated: “When Adrian joined Red Bull, he was already a superstar designer. Two decades later, he leaves as a true legend.” Horner added that the RB17 will “be a fitting testament and legacy to his time with us.”
German title Auto Motor und Sport first revealed Newey’s plans to depart Red Bull final week, which the BBC has subsequently reported to be linked to the controversial state of affairs surrounding misconduct allegations in opposition to Horner. Earlier this yr, an investigation cleared Horner of any wrongdoing, though the complainant has since appealed that call.
The state of affairs with Horner is claimed to have sparked an influence wrestle inside Red Bull that has left Newey sad.
Subsequent reviews earlier than Newey’s departure recommend that latest negotiations have targeted on the size of his ‘gardening go away’, though it’s unclear if Newey will pursue one other job or just selected to retire from F1 and give attention to different initiatives and pursuits.