“We’ve got tremendous strength in depth. It’s not like he’s not going to be
about any more. It’s great for the team and Red Bull and it’s exciting for
Adrian as well.”
Newey, 55, possess almost legendary status in Formula One. He is renowned for
his use of a 4B pencil rather than complex computer programs when he makes
initial sketches of a car’s design. After some early reliability trouble,
Newey’s latest effort as far as the chassis goes is one the finest if not
the finest in the field, but it has been left down by Renault’s underperforming
engine.
It seems that Sunday’s news marks the gradual move of Newey away from the day-to-day
design of the F1 team, although until further announcements he retains the
title of Chief Technical Officer.
There has been recent speculation that Red Bull are planning to build a technology
close to its Milton Keynes headquarters, and that Newey could be brought in
to work on projects from aircraft to racing machinery. He has previously
expressed a desire to pursue interest outside F1, including the America’s
Cup.
Last year he told Telegraph Sport: “I’m 54 now and there are lots of other
things I would like to be involved in. At some stage, I’m not exactly sure
when, I do feel it will be time to become involved in other things.
“Formula One is such an all-consuming sport, I think it’s very hard to be involved
in it properly and also be involved in something else at the same time.”
Newey, who joined Red Bull in 2006, has also expressed misgivings about the direction
F1 has taken this year, with its adoption of hybrid engines. For now, his
focus for this season is on catching Mercedes.
Horner has maintained that they can be caught, but the rivalry is increasingly
throwing up some amusing proxy battles. After reports in the German press
that Red Bull had bumped Mercedes VIPs out of their hotel for the Austrian
Grand Prix – staged by the drinks giant – Horner brandished a piece of paper
to show Mercedes had in fact cancelled their booking.
This after Niki Lauda offered the team a cake as a peace offering following attempts
to have Red Bull banned for three races over the fuel-flow controversy,
which was summarily thrown in the bin.