For most Formula 1 fans, Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen are the sport’s most prominent figures. But for those inside the paddock, both names have taken a backseat this season to that of a quiet and unassuming Red Bull engineer: Adrian Newey.
The 65-year-old Brit is not your typical race engineer. He focuses less on the week-to-week issues and more on big-picture concepts, using his immense knowledge of physics and aerodynamics to design—from the ground up—some of the most dominant race cars of all time. In other words: he’s the key mathematical genius who makes his team’s cars go faster than all the others.
“Do you know how some people can see sound as color?” asks longtime F1 writer, and frequent Drive to Survive commentator, Will Buxton. “Adrian is like that, but with air—he can visualize how air travels over a solid surface in his mind’s eye. Every team has incredibly complex simulations tools, but Adrian doesn’t need them. His brain does all that. That is the level of genius this man possesses.”
Since beginning his career in Formula 1 in 1980, Newey has designed cars that have won an eye-popping 13 World Drivers’ Championships and 12 Constructors’ Championships. For a handful of years in the ’80s, he even came Stateside, designing cars that won two IndyCar (then known as ‘CART’) titles and two Indianapolis 500s. Everywhere he goes, he wins. “There has never been a designer in Formula 1 history who has so consistently designed the cars that have been the benchmark,” says Buxton. In his forthcoming book, Grand Prix: An Illustrated History of Formula 1, Buxton chronicles the sport’s 74-year history—and Newey, he says, stands atop that history as a singular force.
“His genius and input have spanned decades,” Buxton explains. “He’s been the guy that everyone has wanted to have designing their cars for the past 30 years. He’s simply one of a kind.”
That’s why the Formula 1 world was turned upside down in early May when Newey announced he’d be leaving Red Bull at the end of this season—a bombshell revelation that, for some, seemed even more seismic than Lewis Hamilton’s decision to join Ferrari months prior.
The Newey news wasn’t a complete surprise, with rumors at the time speculating there was friction between him and Red Bull’s other alpha males, Christian Horner and Dr. Helmut Marko. Those tensions only grew in the aftermath of troubling harassment allegations made against Horner. In the weeks since, Newey has become arguably one of the hottest free agents in sports history, with every team on the grid eyeing him, knowing that he could quickly lead them to glory.
His decision on which team to join next could change the entire trajectory and landscape of Formula 1 for years to come. Here’s why.
Throughout his career, Newey has had an uncanny sense of timing: Formula 1’s rules (the so-called “formula”) change about every five years or so, and Newey has a track record of designing cars that find immediate success. When a full slate of new regulations was implemented in 2022, for example, his Red Bull hit the ground running, dominating the competition and helping Max Verstappen easily secure two world championships. (In fact, last year’s RB19 became the most dominant car in Formula 1 history, winning 21 of 22 races.)
With new regulations once again hitting the sport in 2026, Newey could have an immediate impact on any team—even a current back marker, such as Williams Racing, could see an instant turnaround.
“Any team that he joins in early 2025 will have a full 12 months of Adrian’s genius behind the scenes going into that car before it hits the track in 2026,” says Buxton. “They’ll be in one of the best places to take advantage of any of the nuances, the loopholes, the unseen possibilities that exist in those regulations. Adrian will find them and he will exploit them.”
History backs this up: When Newey joined Red Bull in 2006, the team was firmly middle-of-the-road but very quickly became a perennial contender, going on to win six constructors’ championships and seven drivers’ championships since then. When he joined McLaren in 1997, he quickly got that team back to speed, winning championships in 1998 and 1999.
So just about any team on the grid views Newey as a potential kingmaker—a cheat code to instant success.
Even from a financial perspective, Newey’s addition would be a gamechanger.
“You sign Adrian Newey and your share price skyrockets,” Buxton laughs. “It will more than pay for his salary 10 times over.”
Although drivers are the stars of the show, Formula 1 is very much a team sport—the best designers want to work with the best drivers, and vice versa. Over the past 30 years, Newey has been able to work alongside some of the most accomplished drivers of all time, including Mario Andretti, Nigel Mansell, Alain Prost, Sebastien Vettel, and most recently Max Verstappen. And he’s worked for storied teams such as McLaren and Williams.
There are two notable names, though, missing from his resume.
“Adrian was asked once, ‘Do you have any regrets?’ and he pointed out that he’d never worked for Ferrari—and he’d never worked with Lewis Hamilton,” Buxton says. “So imagine if he could tick both of those boxes with one move. For Lewis, and Ferrari’s fan base, that would be tantalizing.”
Other teams, though, are vying for Newey’s attention and make a compelling case. Aston Martin, with deep pocketed Lawrence Stroll as its boss and Fernando Alonso under contract, is rumored to be making a strong push, while Williams Racing—with the highly respected James Vowles calling the shots as team principal and Alex Albon on a long-term deal—is also firmly in the mix.
“Will Adrian fulfill the one great missing piece of his CV and work at Ferrari, or might he be attracted to help an Aston Martin lift themselves up the grid?” Buxton asks. “Or might he go back to where his run of championship success started at Williams, who are currently second bottom, and help return them to the days of glory? Adrian being Adrian, I’m sure he will take the project that is the most attractive to him personally. It’s not about the money.”
Newey not only brings a wealth of his own talent with him to any team he joins, but he’ll also attract other top engineers and personnel eager to learn from him.
“Other than the top drivers, Adrian is one of those magnetic people who will draw the very best,” says Buxton. “People will want the honor of working and learning from his genius.”
The addition of Newey, then, could also weaken other teams, poaching talent from within the paddock as up-and-coming engineers seek to work alongside a living legend.
Of course, after such a storied career, Newey could also choose to simply walk away from the sport. He recently designed the Red Bull RB17 hypercar, which he unveiled at this month’s Goodwood Festival of Speed, and has designed other high-end road cars in the past. He could easily focus on those types of projects, walking off into the Formula 1 sunset.
But Buxton finds that hard to fathom.
“At 65, he has won more world championships than anyone in history,” Buxton says. “He could go and retire right now and live off his fortune for the rest of his days—but I simply don’t believe Adrian wants to do that.”