Adrian Newey to Aston Martin: Worst-kept secret finally confirmed

Jonathan Victoria • 11 Sep 2024 Features

A big 30-minute drive from his former employers…

Back shortly before the Miami Grand Prix this season, the Formula 1 world was rocked for seemingly the hundredth point by that stage already in the season when it was announced that Adrian Newey would be leaving Red Bull Racing with immediate effect.

While his association with the F1 team ended then, he agreed to see out the remainder of his tenure working at the Red Bull Technology Campus on the RB17 hypercar, which made its world debut back in July.

It was never confirmed where Newey would be going following his departure or if he was even staying in F1.

But after much speculation, with many favouring a move to Ferrari before Williams suddenly came into play, the legendary designer has confirmed that his next move will take him to the Aston Martin team.

Lawrence Stroll, owner of the team, has aimed to bring Aston Martin to the front of the grid ever since he took over back in 2020, and this latest acquisition is the latest move on the road to F1 domination.

Speaking to the world during their live announcement earlier today, Stroll said of Newey and the signing: 

“Adrian is the best in the world at what he does – he is at the top of his game – and I am incredibly proud that he is joining the Aston Martin Aramco Formula One Team.

“It’s the biggest story since the Aston Martin name returned to the sport and another demonstration of our ambition to build a Formula One team capable of fighting for world championships.”

Another step toward the top for AM

Details of the length of the deal haven’t been confirmed, although some sources have said it to be a five-year deal, with Newey expected to earn a basic salary of £20m, rising to £30m with bonuses.

He joins to become Aston Martin’s Managing Technical Partner as well as becoming a shareholder of the team.

Newey is the biggest name to be joining the team but isn’t the first poaching Aston has made, with the Silverstone-based outfit nicking Ferrari’s Head of Aero Development, Enrico Cardille and former Mercedes engine chief Andy Cowell.

They’ve also been able to acquire some top talents for their driver lineup since Stroll’s takeover. His son, Lance, has been a somewhat controversial mainstay since the acquisition - controversial due to the questions around his ability to deliver consisten strong drives in the car.

Nevertheless, Lance Stroll has partnered with two all-time F1 greats, first in four-time World Champion Sebastian Vettel and now currently drives alongside two-time champion Fernando Alonso, a driver that Newey has stated he has always wanted to work with (along with Lewis Hamilton, hence why Ferrari was heavily mentioned for Newey’s next destination after RB).

Along with new personnel, Stroll funded the build of a new state-of-the-art factory including a wind tunnel, along with a series of top engineers.

He also orchestrated Aston’s move away from being Mercedes engines and secured Honda as a works engine partner for 2026, a notable season as the rules will be changing once again as a new era - an engine-dominant era, it should be added - will be ushered in.

Aston Martin has already experienced one big jump forward, leaping from the back of the grid to the front last season as they got their first taste of what it is like to be a contender as they (or more Alonso) competed with the likes of Red Bull, Mercedes and Ferrari for podiums in the beginning part of the 2023 season, picking up seven in total.

Newey’s championship pedigree

Adrian Newey is one of the most legendary names in Formula 1 and as such in all of motorsport. He has been the mastermind behind some of the most dominant cars in F1 history, having an unteachable eye for aerodynamics that has seen him contribute to 14 Constructors’ titles and 25 championship titles in total.

Newey has been in F1 since 1988 (technically 1986 but full-time as a designer since ‘88) and showed his technical prowess from his first design, the March 881.

Williams

His first big move was to Williams, a legendary British team that at that time already had four Constructors’ titles and three Drivers’ championships to their name, having been strong throughout the 1980s.

Newey joined the team in 1991 and pretty much instantly started winning, lending his expertise to the car that won the Constructors’ title in 1992, 1993, 1994, 1996 and 1997.

By the time of their ninth overall championship in 1997, Williams held the record for most titles in F1 history (although they were beaten not long after in 2000 by Ferrari). 

But while these achievements were great and all, Newey wasn’t properly celebrating. In 1996, Williams lost both titles to Benetton, who just the year prior delivered a car and a driver in the form of a young Michael Schumacher that took down Williams.

These two seasons were enough for Newey to become disillusioned with the team, who wanted to return to a technical director role like he had when with the March team prior. He was placed on garden leave during the 1996 and part of the 1997 season.

McLaren

Newey moved to join McLaren during the 1997 season, and while his influence didn’t kick in for the car that year, it certainly did the following two years as the British team won back-to-back Drivers’ Championships in 1998 and 1999, failing to win the Constructors’ title in ‘99.

Unfortunately for the team, their period at the top was to prove short, as Ferrari came along at the turn of the millennium and commanded an unprecedented period of dominance that saw them win five straight double championships.

It wasn’t long into the Ferrari era for Newey to want out of McLaren. His first almost departure came in 2001, when he almost joined the Jaguar team but ultimately was convinced to stay.

He obviously held a good relationship with Jaguar though, as after much speculation in the 2005 season, he left to join them properly this time for the 2006 season, although by now they weren’t known as Jaguar, instead competing as Red Bull Racing.

Red Bull

Unlike every other team he had joined to this point, Red Bull did not suddenly become competitive right away. It took a couple of seasons but eventually, his influence and expertise came into practice when F1 introduced new regulations in 2009 that brought back an aerodynamics era.

Newey was utilised to his fullest, but while Red Bull narrowly missed out on the Drivers’ and Constuctors’ titles in 2009, it was clear to see who would be on top going forward, as the Milton Keynes-based team dominated the next four seasons with consecutive double championships from 2010-2013.

Red Bull then experienced a lull for the next generation as in 2014, the rules changed again and now engine power was the way forward, something which Red Bull didn’t seem to be great at.

While Mercedes dominated, Newey’s team was unable to properly compete, picking up a few wins here and there, but they were unable to challenge for another title. 

That was, until 2021 when they seemingly put it all together for one last season of the era and delivered a car that was able to help Max Verstappen “beat” Hamilton to the Drivers’ Championship - although they failed to win the Constructors’ in the process.

That was a sign of things to come though, as 2022 ushered in a new era, the ground effects era as it has come to be known, putting the emphasis on aerodynamics once again. 

And once again, Newey excelled. The 2022 found a slight challenge from Ferrari initially before running away with the title, while in 2023, they created undeniably the most dominant car in F1 history, winning all but one race that season.

2024 however has proven a bigger challenge. Something hasn’t clicked for the team this year, and after a tricky off-season for Red Bull, with allegations made against team boss Christian Horner and internal relationships breaking down, Newey made the decision to leave after 19 years with the team.

Aston Martin

A new chapter is set to be written from the 2025 season. Newey joining another legendary British outfit seems as though it will spell success for Aston, but you never know in Formula 1.

Like when he first joined McLaren in 1997, his influence on the car won’t come immediately. Instead, he will be looking at how to get the team in the best place possible for 2026, when everything becomes a level playing field again.

Aerodynamics won’t be the main order of play that year but it certainly doesn’t hurt to have a well-made car in that department. Newey’s genius will no doubt play a big part in whatever the future holds For Aston Martin, and we look forward to seeing what’s in store for them.