The F1 thread

Cols

Ye Gods.

For the question "Where next for Newey?", it's a tough call.  Realistically it'll be one of Ferrari, Aston Martin or McLaren.  I can't see Williams being an option - they would be a few years off winning at best, and Newey's already 65 years old.  So even if they could afford him (and I don't believe they can), he wouldn't fancy spending a few years watching his cars tooling around the midfield or scrapping for podiums.

My prediction is Ferrari.  He's undoubtedly already made his pile with Red Bull, where his starting salary in 2005 was $10 million.  Aston Martin could make him a 'blank cheque' offer, but my feeling is that the prospect of designing a Ferrari that returns them to championship-winning ways for the first time since 2007 is too great a lure.  

In a broader context, the impact of Newey's departure goes even further. 

Verstappen clearly has a break clause allowing him to leave Red Bull if Marko went.  Who would bet against him having a similar clause in the event of Newey leaving?  Marko gave Verstappen political cover in Red Bull, but Newey gave him all the tools to win races and championships.  Now Newey's going, Max has one more reason to open that letter from Mercedes and take a good hard look at it.

Next comes Ford.  They're already unhappy with Red Bull's handling of the Horner controversy and offended at how they were ignored when they asked to be consulted and informed.  Now that Red Bull are losing their star designer, will Ford also walk?

And finally, Horner.  The Thai faction in Red Bull protected him from the axe earlier in the year, but the loss of Newey - and possibly Verstappen and Ford along with him - would surely spell the end for him.

fretmeister

sweepy said:

Newey leaving RedeBull was leaked last yr, once again the press late to the party, why do you think Lewis went to Ferrari ?

It's been a rumour for at least 5 years.

I doubt we'll ever properly know when he made his decision.

Dontgiveupyourdayjob

I think the key thing here for the next year and a bit leading up to the new regs in 2026 will be who else from the Red Bull technical team follows him out of the door to wherever he ends up. 

I've always doubted how much influence just one guy truly has in terms of designing such an immensely complicated piece of engineering. Surely it's as much to do with the calibre of the hundreds of other engineers around him as much as it Newey himself? Not doubting at all that he's brilliant at what he does, but he ain't doing it all himself. 

People are talking as if Red Bull are toast just because Newey is leaving, but if they keep a hold of all/most of the rest of the top-level designers it might not have anywhere near as much negative impact as some people think. 

stickyfiddle

@Cols I fully agree and your points re Max & Ford are super-interesting. I'd love to see Max step into another team. It would be good for him and good for the sport. 

As for Newey, going to Aston or McLaren would be fun and challenging etc etc.  But Newey to build a Ferrari for Hamilton would be history-making and the chance to solidify one of the greatest legacies in sporting history. 

fretmeister said:

sweepy said:

Newey leaving RedeBull was leaked last yr, once again the press late to the party, why do you think Lewis went to Ferrari ?

It's been a rumour for at least 5 years.

I doubt we'll ever properly know when he made his decision.

I bet Marko tell us next weekend  

fretmeister

hahaha!

Probably - and then blame Horner for causing it all! 

Can't wait for Ted's notebook!  

Teetonetal

I wonder if Ferarri would be able to let Newey do it his way... would be very interesting to see.

stickyfiddle

Teetonetal said:

I wonder if Ferarri would be able to let Newey do it his way... would be very interesting to see.

I think Vasseur has convinced them to let him do whatever is needed. French boss, English technical lead, 7-time champ... it's a winning combo!! 

fretmeister

stickyfiddle said:

Teetonetal said:

I wonder if Ferarri would be able to let Newey do it his way... would be very interesting to see.

I think Vasseur has convinced them to let him do whatever is needed. French boss, English technical lead, 7-time champ... it's a winning combo!! 

The last time they were unbeatable it needed a German, an Englishman, and a South African.

So anything is possible.

RiftAmps

Further news (Craig Slater, Sky F1)

Contracted to RB until end of 2025, and would have to serve a 12-month gardening leave after that so wouldn’t be able to start with another team until Jan 2027, at the age of 67.

Whichever team he joins would have already designed their 2027 car at that point so the first car fully designed under him would be the 2028 car.

stickyfiddle

I can't understand how you would force him to stay till the end of next year AND enforce a gardening leave period after that. That feels hugely anti-competitive. You'd also wonder if he might have similar escape clauses as well

fretmeister

RiftAmps said:

Further news (Craig Slater, Sky F1)

Contracted to RB until end of 2025, and would have to serve a 12-month gardening leave after that so wouldn’t be able to start with another team until Jan 2027, at the age of 67.

Whichever team he joins would have already designed their 2027 car at that point so the first car fully designed under him would be the 2028 car.

A deal will be done. Otherwise it will end up in court and RB will not want Newey's private reasons for wanting to go out in the open.

It would be very easy to argue that with the next rule changes Newey can't actually take much of value with him.
He may even suggest going now to shorten any period, and to limit the chance of him seeing anything more than preliminary views of car design.

fretmeister

Redbull have just put out a statement saying they are unaware of any plans for Newey to leave!

The plot thickens!

TimmyO

I think if he intended for the contract to remain in place he'd not need to be announcing anything now.

Actually, has he? Where's the story coming from? 

Boromedic

Well with RB I wouldn't believe anything they say right now anyway.

skullfunkerry

fretmeister said:

sweepy said:

Newey leaving RedeBull was leaked last yr, once again the press late to the party, why do you think Lewis went to Ferrari ?

It's been a rumour for at least 5 years.

I doubt we'll ever properly know when he made his decision.

Maybe one day he’ll retire and write a proper no-holds-barred autobiography… fingers crossed, for that, and another one from Ross Brawn

fretmeister

TimmyO said:

I think if he intended for the contract to remain in place he'd not need to be announcing anything now.

Actually, has he? Where's the story coming from? 

A bunch of informed sources apparently. Verified separately by BBC / Autosport / German mags.

fretmeister

If the employment contact is under E&W Law then it's also worth remembering that nobody can force you to work for them. Obviously that approach opens up the employee to legal action or financial penalty for breach, but RB cannot actually force Newey to do anything other than turn up each day. He can sit on his arse if he wants to, and RB can decide to tolerate that to keep him away from other companies. It also doesn't affect any gardening leave clauses.

I doubt Newey or any new employer would pay any attention to any poor performance reviews he got over the next 12 months!

That being said - Newey clearly doesn't like drama at work. So if this is all true, he'll find a way to negotiate his way out.

fretmeister

ha hahahahahaha!

Boromedic

The BBC story has this paragraph, which is interesting if true:

"Newey’s contract with Red Bull lasts until the end of 2025 but he is said to believe he can negotiate an exit that allows him to work with another team from next season."

fretmeister

I just read that myself.

Interesting point too - from the Andretti (not happening) thing.

Andretti are not an F1 team and have just been rejected. So there's a real argument that Newey could make - that if he joined Andretti then they are not a competitor. Therefore - no gardening leave.

He won't go there, but it's an interesting though.