McLaren’s CEO, Zak Brown, has stated that the team will not be pursuing the highly regarded Formula 1 designer, Adrian Newey, after his departure from Red Bull in 2025. Despite being courted by multiple teams, Brown affirms that McLaren will not be vying for his services. Brown expresses contentment with the current team and believes they have the capability to succeed without Newey.
Ferrari and Aston Martin were at the forefront of the pursuit for Newey, with the former having made previous attempts to secure his talents. Fred Vasseur, the Team Principal of Ferrari, was rumored to have delayed his arrival at the Miami Grand Prix in order to make an offer to entice Newey to Maranello. However, it seems that Aston Martin is now leading the race, as owner Lawrence Stroll provided Newey with a tour of the factory and has reportedly offered him a four-year contract worth $100 million. Stroll has already made significant investments in new staff, including the addition of Andy Cowell as Group Chief Executive Officer and Enrico Cardile as Technical Director.
Newey has a successful history with McLaren, having joined the team in 1997 and helping them secure their first World Championship in six years. During his time with McLaren, Newey’s designs came close to winning several titles, with Mika Hakkinen narrowly missing out on a third consecutive crown in 2000, and Kimi Raikkonen also coming close in both 2003 and 2005. However, Newey made the decision to leave McLaren at the end of 2004 and joined Red Bull Racing for their debut season in 2005. Since then, Red Bull Racing has achieved significant success, winning the Drivers’ Championship seven times and the Constructors’ Championship six times.
After years of dominance, Newey has decided that it is time for a change and announced his departure from Red Bull Racing in May. Speculation about internal issues within the team, including the recent announcement of Sporting Director Jonathan Wheatley’s exit to lead the new Audi F1 project, has fueled rumors of off-track turmoil.
Photo from McLaren Instagram
