‘I’m not saying they will crash but…’ – Red Bull called out on ‘no problem’ to Adrian Newey exit attitude
Christian Horner and Adrian Newey, Red Bull
From Williams to McLaren and today to Red Bull, teams may state there is “no problem” when it comes to Adrian Newey leaving, but Christian Danner says it is anything but.
Red Bull announced in the build-up to the Miami Grand Prix that this season would be Newey’s last full year with Red Bull as he will leave the team in early 2025.
‘This is the beginning of the end of Red Bull Racing’s dominance’
The acclaimed design guru, who has 25 championship titles to his name with an additional two set to follow this season, has stepped away from Red Bull’s Formula 1 operations and will instead focus on the RB17 hypercar as he works in his gardening leave.
But while team boss Christian Horner has downplayed Newey’s exit, adamant he leaves behind a well-oiled technical department, Helmut Marko says it is a “huge” loss for Red Bull.
Former F1 driver Danner agrees with the Austrian.
He even went as far as to predict that this is the “beginning of the end” for the double World Champions.
“This is the beginning of the end of Red Bull Racing’s dominance,” he told Avd Motorsport magazine.
“I’m not saying they will crash, but the dominance is over with the departure of Adrian Newey. In every team Adrian worked for, when he left they always said: No problem!
“He is still the man with the overview and the man who has the matter under control.”
Red Bull have won the last three Drivers’ Championship titles and the last two Constructors’, including a 1-2 in the 2023 Drivers’ standings.
What’s next for Adrian Newey and Red Bull?
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While Williams won 59 Grand Prix with a Newey-designed car, they’ve won just 11 since. As for McLaren, while they initially had success after Newey left in 2006, they’ve won just two races in the last decade.
Danner downplayed Horner’s claims that Red Bull’s personnel were up to the task of winning titles having learned from the maestro himself.
“If it were that easy, all the Adrian Newey students who would have built a winning car,” said Danner. “This is a far more serious departure than anyone would like to admit.
“Whenever things didn’t go well at Red Bull, what happened? Adrian had to come to the track.”
He also warned Red Bull that talk of retirement or being burned out would only continue for so long and then Newey, with his championship-winning record, would move onto pastures new.
“That sounds good, now a sabbatical…But then Adrian is bored to death,” he added.