Max Verstappen F1 News: Adrian Newey reveals terrifying details of 2021 incident

Verstappen, Newey, social — Photo: © IMAGO

Max Verstappen

Newey reveals terrifying details of Verstappen 2021 incident

Max Verstappen crashed at the 2021 British GP

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Sunday 12 January 2025 14:56 Updated: 17:00

Outgoing Red Bull legend Adrian Newey has revealed terrifying details about Max Verstappen's crash at the 2021 British Grand Prix.

F1 design legend Newey has left the Milton Keynes outfit following 19 highly-successful seasons with the team, where they managed to claim eight constructors' championships and six drivers' titles since his arrival in 2006.

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One of those drivers' titles was achieved following a fiercely-contested championship battle between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen in 2021, when the Dutchman came out on top following an overtake on the last lap of the last race in Abu Dhabi.

The season was defined by a series of stunning battles for race victories between the pair, as well as several collisions, including at the Italian, Saudi Arabian and British grands prix.

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Verstappen's crash on the opening lap of the British Grand Prix at Silverstone was a huge blow to the Dutchman's title ambitions, with Hamilton going on to claim his eighth Silverstone F1 victory, and close to within eight points of Verstappen.

The race started with Verstappen on pole but, after a great Hamilton getaway, the pair were jostling for position for the majority of the first lap.

As Hamilton went for an overtake on Verstappen heading into Copse corner, the pair came together, with their tyres touching at high speed, sending Verstappen flying off the track and into the barriers.

While Verstappen was helped out of his car and appeared to be okay despite the hefty impact with the barriers, Newey revealed the concerns of the Red Bull team amid the terrifying collision.

Adrian Newey reveals terrifying 2021 British GP crash details

"I think Max’s one at Silverstone was the last one where we thought, ‘Is he okay? Is he badly hurt in there?,’" Newey revealed on the High Performance podcast.

"And then when he did come on the radio, because he was so badly winded, he was just grunting, and you don’t know what that means.

"He was very sore. He had a quite nasty concussion. He was very sore for a week after, but he was okay.

"So those sorts of accidents still can happen, and do happen. The one at Spa in the Formula 2 race with Anthoine [Hubert], was horrific, and it’s never going to be 100 per cent safe."

F1 Red Bull Max Verstappen Mercedes Adrian Newey British Grand Prix