Why a long-time Adrian Newey trend will end with Max Verstappen

With the Adrian Newey era officially underway at Aston Martin, Red Bull now face their first Formula 1 season without the Englishman since 2005.
Adrian Newey, Max Verstappen, Red Bull, Formula 1
Adrian Newey, Max Verstappen, Red Bull, Formula 1 | Clive Mason/GettyImages

Adrian Newey has been extremely successful throughout his Formula 1 career. The engineer has contributed to either a driver or constructor world championship with every team he has been a part of, except for Leyton House.

The Englishman moved on from the most successful period of his career, during which he won eight driver titles and six constructor titles at Red Bull, and his tenure at Aston Martin officially began just a few days ago.

A lot of questions persist regarding how Red Bull will do without the famed motorsport car designer. The team have only experienced one season without Newey in their history, and it resulted in a seventh place finish in the constructor standings.

Newey has designed a championship-winning car for six Formula 1 champions, including Nigel Mansell, Alain Prost, Damon Hill, Jacques Villeneuve, Sebastian Vettel, and Max Verstappen. However, none of the first five won another title after working with the English engineer.

Will Max Verstappen be the first to break the trend?

Max Verstappen has put himself in the conversation as one of the greatest drivers in Formula 1 history. While the Dutch driver has won championships with the fastest car, he has proven that he can still be victorious against strong competition, with the 2021 and 2024 seasons being prime examples.

Verstappen’s success is largely attributed to his high standard, and he has shown that even without having the outright fastest car, he can still win. As we look forward to the 2025 season, takeaways from preseason testing suggest that Red Bull are in the running for having either the second or third fastest car.

If McLaren's Lando Norris and Ferrari's Charles Leclerc are not able to maintain consistency throughout the season, the four-time defending champion can easily take over and lead the championship in a half-decent car. However, no guarantees can be placed just yet on any potential outcomes this year.

Looking beyond the 2025 season into the next era of Formula 1 regulations, Verstappen may not stay with Red Bull for more than two years. At that point, it would practically become a foregone conclusion that every team on the grid would do anything for his signature.

Assuming Verstappen leaves Red Bull ahead of the 2027 season, chances are he will look to sign with a contending team that have attained a strong grasp on their car’s concept and design from the start of the new era.

Nevertheless, Verstappen has achieved such a high status in the sport over the last few years, and it will put him in an advantageous position quite soon. That advantage will allow the Dutch driver to break a long-time trend among drivers who have won championships in cars designed by Newey.