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Adrian Newey Drops Bombshell on Red Bull’s 2024 Decline: Did Cost Cap Chaos and Internal Disagreements Lead to His Exit?

Carl Smith by Carl Smith
February 9, 2025
in Motorsports
Reading Time: 5 mins read
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Adrian Newey Drops Bombshell on Red Bull’s 2024 Decline: Did Cost Cap Chaos and Internal Disagreements Lead to His Exit?

ABU DHABI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - DECEMBER 08: Max Verstappen of the Netherlands driving the (1) Oracle Red Bull Racing RB20 makes a pitstop during the F1 Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi at Yas Marina Circuit on December 08, 2024 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images) // Getty Images / Red Bull Content Pool // SI202412090763 // Usage for editorial use only //

Adrian Newey—the mastermind behind Red Bull’s dynasty in Formula 1—isn’t leaving Milton Keynes quietly. The legendary designer, who is set to join Aston Martin in 2025, has now shed light on what really went wrong at Red Bull in 2024, and his comments paint a picture of internal discord and a team that refused to listen.

As McLaren out-developed Red Bull to steal the constructors’ title, Newey reportedly became “concerned” about the team’s development direction. Now, he’s calling out his former team’s mistakes, and the fallout could have massive implications for the 2025 season.


Red Bull Ignored Newey’s Concerns—And Paid the Price

Newey, speaking candidly about Red Bull’s struggles in 2024, revealed that he saw the warning signs early—but nobody took them seriously.

“From what I could see, the car was—already the ’24 car and through the very last stages of ’23—starting to become more difficult to drive.”

This issue exposed a growing gap between Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez.

“Max could handle it—it didn’t suit him, but he could handle it. Checo couldn’t. Through 2023, you saw the difference between them grow. That carried into the first part of ’24, but the car was still quick enough to cope with it.”

However, as McLaren and Ferrari closed the gap, Red Bull’s handling issues became unmanageable, and by the second half of 2024, even Verstappen struggled to extract performance from the RB20.

“I was starting to become concerned, but not many people in the organisation seemed to be very concerned about it.”

Could this fundamental disagreement over the car’s direction be one of the reasons Newey ultimately decided to leave?


Was Red Bull’s Decline Caused by Inexperience—or the Cost Cap?

While Newey suggested Red Bull’s leadership lacked the experience to address the car’s issues, former Red Bull and Force India engineer Blake Hinsey fired back, saying the real problem lies in Formula 1’s cost cap restrictions.

🔹 F1’s $135-million budget cap was designed to create parity, but it has become a major roadblock for top teams.
🔹 Salaries for engineers (excluding the top 3 personnel) are included in the cap, making it harder to attract and retain top talent.
🔹 As a result, elite engineers are leaving F1 for higher-paying opportunities in IMSA, WEC, and Formula E.

“Unless the team bosses and FIA sit down and have a chat about the cost cap, Formula 1 is in trouble,” Hinsey warned.

He also criticized Red Bull’s spending priorities, suggesting that the team was forced to choose between upgrading the car or paying its engineers competitive wages.

“If you’re an F1 team in the cost cap, how are you spending your money? Paying for upgrades or upgrading salaries? (This isn’t really a question).”

With the cost cap set to rise to $215 million in 2026, will teams finally be able to reward their engineers properly, or will F1 continue to bleed top talent to rival series?


What’s Next for Red Bull? Can They Fix the RB20’s Issues?

🚨 Newey believes Red Bull’s problems won’t be solved with just setup changes.

“Setup can mask problems to an extent, but the problem is still there. To me, setup is simply optimizing the characteristics of the car. The underlying issue remains.”

🚨 McLaren and Ferrari have closed the gap—and Red Bull enters 2025 on the back foot.

🚨 Sergio Perez’s continued struggles cost Red Bull the constructors’ title in 2024. With his contract set to expire after 2025, could this be his final year with the team?

🚨 Red Bull’s ability to attract top engineers may be compromised unless F1 restructures the cost cap rules.


Did Red Bull’s Internal Drama Push Newey Out?

Newey’s decision to leave now seems less like a retirement move and more like an escape from internal dysfunction.

“The guys at Red Bull, this is no criticism, but I think they just perhaps through lack of experience kept going in that same direction, and the problem became more and more acute.”

With Newey now joining Aston Martin, Red Bull’s long-term dominance could be at risk.

👉 Did Red Bull’s cost cap struggles and inexperience cause their 2024 downfall?
👉 Can Verstappen carry the team without Newey’s design genius?
👉 Will Red Bull bounce back in 2025, or has McLaren permanently overtaken them?

One thing is certain: without Newey, Red Bull faces its toughest test yet.

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