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Adrian Newey on why he left Red Bull Racing

Newey felt no longer needed at Red Bull: 'It's a mature team'

10 September at 12:13
  • Sandy van Wijngaarden

Adrian Newey will be part of the Aston Martin team from 2025. His departure from Red Bull Racing came rather unexpectedly. During the announcement of his move to Aston Martin, he shared some more details about his choice to leave the Austrian racing team.

Newey has shares in the Aston Martin team and a new role as Managing Technical Partner. He spent a long time as Chief Technical Officer at Red Bull Racing and was responsible for the design of several championship-winning cars.

The Briton revealed that he had previously endured a difficult period at Red Bull. "It's well known that in 2014, with the hybrid engine, we were in a position where we didn't have a very competitive PU with no light at the end of the tunnel. That's when I felt I needed something else to be involved in which of course became Valkyrie," the designer said.

With the arrival of Honda, things went a lot better for the Austrian team. "Once we got the Honda PU, then we were in a very different position and so then I got back involved on the Formula One side with RB14, 15, 16, 16B and then the 18 and so forth."

Newey was looking for a new challenge

Newey now feels that the team can continue even without him. "It's now a very mature team so once we got through the peak of the research and designing the 2022 car with the bigger regulation change, I felt able to step back a little bit. This was because the 2023, and this year's car, are very much evolutions of that first 2022 car," Newey added.

"But this is something different. It's that fresh challenge, that new stimulation. I always do what I feel is needed for the best of the team," said Newey.

This article has been created in collaboration with Matt Gretton

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