The race to sign Adrian Newey: Where will F1's greatest designer go in 2025?

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MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — One of the biggest stories heading into Miami Grand Prix weekend once again had nothing to do with the on-track action.

News broke Wednesday that renowned designer Adrian Newey, Red Bull Racing's chief technical officer, will leave the team next spring. A crucial detail concerning his departure is that he won't have to serve any gardening leave after that period, making him immediately available to any Formula One rival should he choose to stay in the sport.

The timing of Newey's exit is also noteworthy, given how the regulations will be overhauled in 2026. This should give teams essentially a clean sheet to try to challenge Red Bull, a team they hope will become easier to catch without such an influential design figure. Red Bull driver Sergio Pérez said Newey had been "tremendous" for the team but added that it was still "in a great place" with its technical team and that "we're just looking forward to the future."

Even before he confirmed his Red Bull departure, Newey had been attracting interest from rival F1 teams, which will only intensify in the coming months. Not only are Red Bull's rivals all at various stages of their rebuilds, but the fact that Newey can start work elsewhere a year from now also gives them hope he could accelerate that progression.

But where will Newey end up in 2025? As Williams team boss James Vowles said Friday, "​​I think anyone here would be foolish not to at least open some conversation with him at that stage."

Here is a rundown of the potential next steps for the greatest designer in F1 history.

Ferrari

Team principal Fred Vasseur has built a superteam driver line-up at Ferrari starting in 2025 with Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton. Could he do the same within the technical department?

"I think we are in a good place to attract the best people in the world," Leclerc said. "However, I have said it already. But we are a really, really good team already. And in the last seven to eight months, we've done incredible progress. But whatever, and whoever can come to make it even stronger is super important, and Adrian is one of those guys that can make a difference."

According to Italy's Gazzetta dello Sport, Vasseur met with Newey earlier this week before heading to Miami. Ferrari needs to build a consistent car to return to its championship-winning ways. Although Ferrari overhauled its design this year, only some of the 2023 kinks appeared to be straightened out. It has one win to its name this season, thanks to Carlos Sainz's Australian Grand Prix victory, and is 44 points behind Red Bull in the standings.

Ever since Newey joined Williams in 1991, his cars have secured 253 pole positions, 217 grand prix wins, 13 drivers' titles and 12 constructors' championships. Drivers and team representatives have praised the designer throughout the entire Miami Grand Prix weekend. As Leclerc noted, while stating how they have an "incredible team" right now, Newey "is one of those guys in the product that you hope to be working with one day in your career."

Even Lewis Hamilton, who is set to join the Maranello-based team next season, weighed in on the idea of Newey joining Ferrari, saying he would "very much" like that to happen.

"I think he would be an amazing addition," Hamilton added. "I think (Ferrari) have already got a great team; they're already making huge progress and strides forward — their car is quicker this year — but yeah, it would be a privilege to work with him."

Right now, the feeling is Ferrari is the favorite for his signature.

"I always wanted to work with him once in my life," Alonso said of Newey. (Gongora/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Aston Martin

Aston Martin's billionaire owner, Lawrence Stroll, has not shied away from being ambitious in creating the next great F1 team. He's made high-profile driver signings in Sebastian Vettel and, more successfully, Fernando Alonso. He's also brought in a number of senior designer figures and invested heavily in a new factory at Silverstone.

Signing Newey would surely add another coup to the list. Newey worked with Aston Martin to design the Valkyrie hypercar when the British manufacturer was associated with Red Bull. Still, he could be seen as the missing piece in the puzzle to help vault it to the front of the F1 grid.

There's a strong mutual respect between Newey and Alonso in particular. Newey said in an interview with the BBC last year that Alonso was a driver he regretted not working with — in fact, his car designs have denied Alonso at least two world titles, something Alonso said on Thursday meant Newey would forever be "part of my journey" in F1.

"I always wanted to work with him once in my life," Alonso said. He got as far as speaking with Newey when in talks over a move to Red Bull in the past, only for a deal never to come off. So, could they unite at Aston Martin in the future?

Alonso said it was a question for Lawrence Stroll and that the team was "very happy with our technical department," which includes former Red Bull aerodynamic chief Dan Fallows. Aston Martin team principal Mike Krack echoed this sentiment on Friday, expressing his faith in the team's existing setup. "We are quite happy with our technical team, and we continue with that," he said.

Newey would be a bold statement signing for Aston Martin. But that team does not seem to be making the same kind of all-out drive as Ferrari to get his signature.

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McLaren

If Newey wanted to be part of a project firmly on the upswing in F1, then McLaren might be of interest.

After making his name at Williams in the early 1990s, Newey joined McLaren in 1997 and played a role in Mika Hakkinen's back-to-back titles in 1998 and 1999. He worked with drivers including David Coulthard, Kimi Raikkonen, and Juan Pablo Montoya but left shortly before Alonso and Hamilton arrived in 2007.

Like Krack, McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown also stressed his faith in the existing technical team at McLaren, saying it would "stay the course" with all it has in place at Woking. When The Athletic noted that Newey would surely be additive to any team, Brown acknowledged that he was "going to add value to any racing team" but was "very happy with the trajectory that we're on."

"Never say never," Brown said. "But I'm very happy with the team, the technical leadership, the way Andrea (Stella) is running the racing team. We've got a plan, and we're going to keep our head down and, of course, always look for opportunities to make additive additions to the racing team."

Lando Norris said it would be "an honor for anyone to have Adrian on their team" given his success and a "great addition," but was on the same page as Brown about his happiness with the existing setup: "We're in a very good position now with who we've got, I'm very happy."

McLaren's technical department has undergone several adjustments in the past 18 months, and Stella remains heavily involved on the technical side, given his background as an engineer. Similar to Aston Martin, there isn't quite as strong a push from McLaren for Newey compared to Ferrari's clear interest.

Would Mercedes, in its current state, appeal to Newey? (JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images)

Mercedes

Mercedes' soft pursuit of Max Verstappen in recent months amid the turbulence at Red Bull has renewed tensions between Toto Wolff and Christian Horner. Could a swoop for Newey also play into that?

Mercedes has struggled to get to grips with the existing regulations as well as its rivals, leaving it still on the back foot in the third season of this rule set. It knows the overhaul in 2026 will realistically be the next chance to try and get back to its title-winning contention, especially leaning on the strength of its engine division.

But where would Newey fit? Mercedes brought James Allison, the technical director who led much of its success in the late 2010s, back to its frontline last year in a bid to turn its fortunes around, with Mike Elliott leaving last October. Mercedes already has a strong technical structure in place, meaning there is no obvious place where Newey would slot in.

Speaking at an event on Monday before confirmation of Newey's Red Bull exit, Wolff said he was "an iconic engineer in Formula One with a great track record" and that he was "just looking at it like a fan and watching that space" amid rumors over his next move. It gives the feeling that Mercedes is not seriously pursuing Newey as a future option, as appealing as his resumé may be.

Williams

There's a bit of romance to the idea of Newey possibly heading to Williams.

He joined the crew in 1991 and stayed through 1996 before heading to McLaren. During that span, Williams drivers secured 77 pole positions, 59 grand prix victories, four drivers' championships (Nigel Mansell, Alain Prost, Damon Hill and Jacques Villeneuve), and five constructors' titles.

Vowles confirmed Friday that he had "a light conversation" with Newey, adding "more than anything else, saying it can't have been an easy decision and fundamentally wanting just to have an additional chat about things."

Williams is one of the bottom teams at the moment, one of three without points heading into the Miami Grand Prix weekend. It is in the process of rebuilding itself to return to its former glory. As Vowles noted, that may appeal to the designer.

"We're a team without politics," he said. "It's a small team that's trying to make our way back to the front, and I think it could fit very perfectly for someone that wants to potentially dig into a challenge like that."

Newey and Damon Hill won the 1996 World Championship together at Williams. (ERIC CABANIS/AFP via Getty Images)

What Newey thinks

Newey arrived in Miami ahead of practice starting on Friday and was asked on Sky Sports about his decision to leave Red Bull.

"Formula One is all-consuming," Newey said. "I've been at it for a long time now. 2021 was a really busy year with the tight battle with Mercedes through the championship and, at the same time, putting all the research and development into the RB18, which is the father of this generation of cars.

"There comes a point where I just felt, as Forrest Gump said, 'I'm feeling a little bit tired!'"

Should he wish to do so, it would open the door for him to take some time away from F1 and still go down as one of the greatest minds in the sport's history. He admitted to being "very flattered" by Hamilton's comments about a possible Ferrari move.

"But at the moment, it's just take a little bit of a break and see what happens next," Newey said.

Top photo: MARTIN KEEP/AFP, Mark Thompson/Getty Images and HECTOR RETAMAL/AFP via Getty Images