Adrian Newey: The life and career of Red Bull's departing genius

Explore the life and career of Adrian Newey, the acclaimed mastermind behind some of F1's most iconic and championship-winning cars.

Newey is the Michelangelo of motorsport. Like the Italian wielding his chisel, Newey designs F1 cars with a 0.3 mm 4H pencil and a piece of paper.

He's arguably the greatest designer in F1 history, having sculpted his name into the sport through an incredible string of victories and championships.

From the dominant Williams of the 90s to the aerodynamic marvels of Red Bull's recent reign, his creations have blitzed through the competition, collecting an astonishing 12 constructors' championships and propelling legends like Nigel Mansell, Alain Prost, Damon Hill, Mika Häkkinen, and Sebastian Vettel to glory.

However, recent turmoil within Red Bull has reportedly cast a shadow over his future with the team, with Newey now on the verge of leaving.

READ MORE: Newey set to announce STUNNING Red Bull departure

Adrian Newey: Early life and career

Born on December 26, 1958, Adrian Newey hails from the birthplace of Shakespeare, Stratford-upon-Avon in England. His father worked as a veterinarian, while his mother worked as an ambulance driver during World War II.

From a young age, Newey's fascination with cars blossomed. By the age of 12, he was already putting pen to paper, sketching his own car designs. While attending Repton public school, alongside former Top Gear host Jeremy Clarkson, he took welding courses during summer breaks.

However, he got expelled from the school at the age of 16 after an incident happened during rock band Greenslade concert. Newey pushed up the band's amplifiers to very high levels, cracking the stained-glass windows of the school building.

Despite the hiccup, he later attended Southampton University and earned a first-class honours degree in aeronautics before starting his career in motorsport with the Fittipaldi and March F1 teams.

However, Newey found success in the United States, where his March sports car design won IMSA's GTP class in 1983 and 1984. His IndyCar project, the March 85C, also proved to be a success, winning both the CART Championship and the Indy 500. The successor, the 86C, won the CART title in 1986 and the Indy 500 in both 1986 and 1987.

Adrian Newey in F1: Williams Golden Era

Newey's arrival at Williams in 1990 ignited a legendary partnership. While the team finished fourth in constructors that year, 1991 saw them take a significant leap forward, securing second place in both constructors and drivers' championships behind dominant McLaren and Ayrton Senna.

In 1992, Williams dethroned McLaren, claiming both the constructors' and drivers' championships. It was a dominant season for the team, with Mansell securing his only F1 championship and teammate Riccardo Patrese finishing closely behind in second. Together, they amassed an impressive 10 wins out of 16 races, driving the legendary FW14B which featured active suspension, traction control, and a brilliant Renault V10 engine.

The team repeated the feat in 1993, winning 10 out of 16 races once again and bringing home their second consecutive constructors' championship, with Alain Prost winning his fourth and final drivers' title and Damon Hill finishing in third place, driving the FW15C.

Momentum didn't slow down in 1994. Though Hill lost the title by just one point to Michael Schumacher, the FW16 delivered another constructors' title to the team's name.

But at the start of the season, tragedy struck at the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix, the third round into Ayrton Senna's first year with Williams. Senna's fatal accident in the FW16 car led to accusations of manslaughter against Newey and others. While acquitted in 1997 and 1999, the case resurfaced in 2003 and was only fully resolved in 2005, concluding that material errors caused the crash.

Despite the legal outcome, this tragedy still haunts Newey. In his biography, Newey said: "What I feel the most guilt about, though, is not the possibility that steering column failure may have caused the accident, because I don’t think it did, but the fact that I screwed up the aerodynamics of the car, I messed up the transition from active suspension [in 1993] back to passive and designed a car that was aerodynamically unstable, in which Ayrton attempted to do things the car was not capable of doing."

After a brief dip, the team got back on track in 1996, winning another constructors' title and scoring double the points of runner-up Ferrari. Hill returned to championship glory driving the FW18, closely followed by Jacques Villeneuve in second.

The dominance continued into 1997 with the FW19 car. Villeneuve claimed the world title, while teammate Heinz-Harald Frentzen finished in second, securing yet another championship for the team in a season that marked the end of Newey's incredible run with Williams.

READ MORE: Why Adrian Newey is the BEST and WORST thing to happen to F1

Adrian Newey and McLaren

Friction with Williams management led design genius Adrian Newey to join McLaren in late 1997—a loss Williams is still suffering from.

But for McLaren, the move proved fruitful, as the team soared to victory the next year, securing both the constructors' and drivers' championships with Mika Häkkinen at the helm in the McLaren MP4/13 and teammate David Coulthard finishing a strong third.

1999 saw a near miss for the team, finishing second in the constructors' standings, only four points behind Ferrari. However, Häkkinen once again reigned supreme, clinching the drivers' championship in the McLaren MP4/14, while Coulthard secured a respectable fourth place.

The early 2000s saw Newey's genius deliver competitive machines for Häkkinen, Coulthard, and Kimi Raikkonen, but Ferrari's dominance proved insurmountable. McLaren dipped from second place in 2000 and 2001 to third in 2002 and 2003, then fifth in 2004, before a final surge to second in 2005 - marking the end of Newey's stint at McLaren.

Seeking new challenges, Newey made a risky decision, moving to the fledgling Red Bull team.

Adrian Newey and Red Bull: The beginning of a dominant era

In 2006, Newey took on a new challenge with Red Bull Racing, joining Christian Horner at the team one year after the drink giant made their debut in F1.

Under his meticulous hand, the team transformed from plucky upstarts to championship contenders and eventually to the dominant champions we see today.

Red Bull's early years saw flashes of brilliance, and then in 2009, at a rain-soaked Chinese GP, Sebastian Vettel secured their first win in the RB5, propelling them to second place in the constructors' championship.

The following season saw Red Bull emerge as a true force to be reckoned with. At the season finale in Abu Dhabi, and in one of the craziest title deciders in history, Vettel entered the race third in the drivers’ standings, 15 points behind championship leader Fernando Alonso and seven behind Red Bull teammate Webber.

But in a dramatic turn of events, Alonso and Webber struggled in the middle of the field, and the German managed to finish 10 seconds ahead of Lewis Hamilton, securing the first of his four championships in the RB6 and Red Bull's first ever constructors' championship, while Webber managed to climb the grid and finish in third.

In July 2010, Red Bull gifted Newey his own Red Bull RB5 from 2009 as a thank-you gift for turning them into a title-challenging team.

But this was just the beginning. Under the vision of Newey and the leadership of Horner, Red Bull and Vettel went on to win their second championships in 2011, driving the RB7 rocket ship of a car, which is one of the quickest in F1 history.

It's worth mentioning that this season was marked by significant regulation changes, such as the ban on the double diffuser. But Newey found the loophole that allows exhausts to blow inside the diffuser for more downforce.

Additionally, 2011 saw the introduction of the Drag Reduction System (DRS) and the return of Kinetic Energy Recovery Systems (KERS).

Although the car design raised eyebrows when it was first revealed, it has achieved 10 fastest laps, 12 wins out of 19 races, and pole position for all but one grand prix, with Vettel breaking the record for most pole positions (15) in a season - surpassing Nigel Mansell's 1992 record set in another Newey-designed car.

In 2012, the team snatched their third constructors' title with only seven victories and 14 podium finishes, while Vettel claimed his third world championship. Newey was then appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2012 New Year Honours for services to motorsport.

The following year, Red Bull and Newey continued their reign. In the final year of the V8 engines, they secured their fourth consecutive constructors' and drivers' championships, winning 50% of the titles during the eight-season V8 era. They finished the season with 596 points, with Vettel winning 13 out of 19 races.

However, the curtain soon fell on Red Bull's reign, and Mercedes emerged as a formidable force, dominating the sport for the next eight years.

But regulation changes in 2021 ignited a fiery battle between Hamilton and Verstappen, reaching its peak in the dramatic season finale in Abu Dhabi.

The Dutch clinched his maiden title and the team's first since 2013 in a controversial fashion, with Red Bull finishing second to Mercedes.

The following year, Red Bull finally dethroned the Silver Arrows, clinching their first constructors' title since 2013. They scored 759 points, finishing third on the all-time list for most points in a single season. Verstappen also dominated, winning 15 races and retaining his driver's title, while Sergio Perez achieved his best championship finish at the time, ranking third with two wins.

Moving into 2023, Newey crafted the most dominant car in F1 history, the RB19. The team secured their second consecutive constructors' championship with a staggering 860 points, the highest ever scored in a single season. Verstappen, already established as a force, won his third title in a row with a record 19 victories in 22 races - breaking his own record from 2022.

Perez also achieved his career-best result, finishing second with two wins and 285 points, marking Red Bull's first-ever one-two championship finish.

Despite Red Bull's continued dominance in 2024, cracks appear to be forming within the championship-leading team.

Following allegations of 'inappropriate behaviour' against Christian Horner earlier this year, which were ultimately cleared after an investigation, reports suggest Newey has decided to leave the team.

His next destination is still unclear, leaving a question mark over Red Bull's future technical prowess.

Adrian Newey book

In 2017, Newey penned "How to Build a Car," a personal and revealing look into his world. The book shares his journey in F1, from the cars he designed to the races he participated in and the drivers he worked with.

But it's not just about the machines and the tracks; Newey pulls back the curtain on the man himself, sharing the stories and experiences that shaped him into the mastermind he is.

And to sweeten the deal, the book is peppered with never-before-seen drawings, offering a peek into Newey's creative process.

Adrian Newey family

Married three times, Newey married his first wife, Amanda, in 1983, welcoming two daughters, Charlotte and Hannah, before their separation in 1989.

In 1992, he remarried Marigold, with whom he had son Harrison and daughter Imogen, but their marriage ended in 2010. He then found love again in 2017, marrying Amanda Smerczak.

Notably, Harrison has followed in his father's footsteps, carving his own path in various racing series, including Formula 3.

READ MORE: F1 Schedule 2024: Full calendar with all you need to know about every grand prix

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