The race to sign Adrian Newey from Red Bull is about to go up a notch. On Tuesday, it emerged that he’d officially handed in his letter of resignation.
We’ve known since last week that Newey intended to leave the reigning world champions. But now there could be an announcement before the Miami Grand Prix this weekend.
His suitors will be moving into position. The leader of that group as it stands may be Ferrari, with Newey ‘seriously considering’ a move to Maranello.
Aston Martin owner Lawrence Stroll is also determined to land the legendary designer. He’s offered him a contract worth more than £400k per week, but insiders at the team expect him to favour Ferrari.
A return to McLaren could also be a possibility. Newey delivered two championship-winning cars for Mika Hakkinen at the end of his first spell with the team in the 1990s.
And then there’s Mercedes, who will also contend for his signature. One journalist has warned Toto Wolff that he’d be making his ‘biggest mistake’ if he let Newey join another team.
Adrian Newey not keen to work with one F1 team boss
According to nl.motorsport, Newey doesn’t view the idea of working for Mercedes particularly favourably. Part of the reason for that is concerns over the timeline.
He thinks it will take ‘too long’ to put the team back ‘on the road to victory’. That’s despite the fact that the 2026 regulation changes are on the horizon, offering teams the chance to make a jump.
Perhaps Newey sees Mercedes’ current problems as deep-rooted. A change in the profile of cars alone may not be enough for them to return to the front.
But beyond that, he doesn’t have ‘too high an opinion’ about team principal Wolff. Part of the reason he’s leaving Red Bull is that his relationship with Christian Horner has suffered.
All of this will be good news for Ferrari, Aston Martin and potentially McLaren. It’s hard to see how Mercedes have a chance of landing Newey in light of these concerns.
Toto Wolff has overseen a decline at Mercedes
Wolff joined Mercedes from Williams in 2013 and would soon steer the team to a period of historic dominance. Between 2014 and 2021, they won eight straight constructors’ titles.
It was an era that truly belonged to the Silver Arrows. But since the pivot to ground-effect cars in 2022, they have struggled.
Mercedes have only won one race in that period (through George Russell at the 2022 Brazilian Grand Prix) and have fallen further away from Red Bull than ever. Having finished as runners-up in the championship last year, they’ve slipped down to fourth.
It’s only the second time since their return to F1 in 2010 that they’ve failed to score a podium in the first five Grands Prix. Inevitably, their hugely disappointing form has led to questions over the senior leadership.
Ferrari and McLaren both look to be on an opposite trajectory to Mercedes right now under the leadership of Fred Vasseur and Andrea Stella. And perhaps Newey sees those as healthier environments at this late stage of his career.
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