Newey’s 2025 Red Bull exit confirmed
Adrian Newey will leave his position as chief technical officer of Red Bull in early 2025, after 19 years and 13 titles with the team.
The legendary designer has been with Red Bull since 2006 and has helped the team win seven drivers’ championships and six constructors’ titles in that time, including having a hand in its current dominance. However, after what RACER understands to have been a weakening of the relationship between Newey and team principal Christian Horner over the past 12 months, Newey will leave early next year.
While he hasn’t been full-time on Red Bull’s Formula 1 project for a number of seasons, Newey will continue to attend certain races in a trackside support role until the end of this year, while also focusing on final development and delivery of Red Bull’s first road-going hypercar, the RB17.
Newey had been under contract until the end of the 2025 season but has reached an agreement with Red Bull to then leave in the first quarter of next year, with much of the rest of the technical structure remaining unchanged after technical director Pierre Wache signed a multi-year contract extension in February.
A breakdown between Newey and Horner’s relationship is thought to be behind the former’s impending departure. Sam Bloxham/Motorsport Images
“Ever since I was a young boy, I wanted to be a designer of fast cars,” Newey said. “My dream was to be an engineer in Formula 1, and I’ve been lucky enough to make that dream a reality. For almost two decades it has been my great honor to have played a key role in Red Bull Racing’s progress from upstart newcomer to multiple title-winning team.
“However, I feel now is an opportune moment to hand that baton over to others and to seek new challenges for myself. In the interim, the final stages of development of RB17 are upon us, so for the remainder of my time with the team my focus will lie there.
“I would like to thank the many amazing people I have worked with at Red Bull in our journey over the last 18 years for their talent, dedication and hard work. It has been a real privilege, and I am confident that the engineering team are well prepared for the work going into the final evolution of the car under the four-year period of this regulation set.”
Although he references new challenges, Newey has not disclosed where his next move will take him, despite being linked with Ferrari, Aston Martin, McLaren, and Mercedes.
