McLaren’s CEO Zak Brown has declared that the team will not be in the running to acquire esteemed Formula 1 designer Adrian Newey upon his Red Bull exit in 2025.
The technical guru, who is leaving Red Bull in March 2025, is thought to have been courted by several teams, but Brown insists that the Woking-based squad will not be in the hunt for his signature.
“We’re not going to sign Adrian,” Brown told BBC Sport.
“I’m very happy with the team. Adrian is a great friend, huge talent, resume [CV] second to none. But with what we have in place here, I couldn’t be happier. We can get the job done.”
The quest for Newey’s services were led by both Ferrari and Aston Martin, with the Italian giants having attempted on other occasions to sign him. Team Principal Fred Vasseur was also rumoured to have delayed his arrival at the Miami Grand Prix in order to make an offer to lure Newey to Maranello.
However, it appears that Aston Martin are now leading the race, with Newey given a factory tour by owner Lawrence Stroll. Autosprint has also reported that Stroll has offered a four-year deal with $100m.
Stroll has already heavily invested in new backroom staff, with Andy Cowell, formerly of Mercedes, joining as Group Chief Executive Officer, and Enrico Cardile linking-up with the team as Technical Director.
The 65-year-old can boast a successful history with McLaren amongst his achievements. Joining the team from Williams in 1997, it won its first World Championship in 6 years, winning 1998 Constructors’ and Drivers’ Championship with Mika Hakkinen at the wheel, the Finn going on to repeat his triumph in 1999.
A number of Newey’s other challengers with the team would come close to title success, with Hakkinen narrowly missing-out on a third successive crown in 2000, and Kimi Raikkonen similarly close in both 2003 and 2005.
Newey would choose leave McLaren at the end of 2004, joining the nascent Red Bull Racing for their debut season in 2005. The Milton Keynes team have enjoyed prolonged periods of domination in that time, winning the the Drivers’ Championship seven times and the Constructors’ six times.
However, Newey decided that it is time for a change, announcing in May that he would leave the team early next year, amid whispers and rumours of off-track turmoil within the team’s ranks, including the recent announcement that Sporting Director Jonathan Wheatley will also be exiting the team to head-up the new Audi F1 project as its Team Principal.
