British Formula One engineer Adrian Newey, currently the chief technical officer of Red Bull, was interviewed by The Race and talked about many interesting topics. Here are some of the key comments made by the British engineer, who also explained why he did not join Scuderia Ferrari back in 2012 (the year of the transition to the hybrid era) and shared his thoughts on the RB18 car and the new regulations for the 2022 Formula 1 season
On possibly leaving Red Bull and how he came close to joining Scuderia Ferrari ten years ago
“Back then I was pretty disillusioned with the whole thing to be honest in as much as … obviously I nearly joined Ferrari but didn’t, which was kind of [part of it]… but more than anything, although I felt happy at Red Bull and didn’t really want to move teams, the only thing that had pushed me towards even thinking about moving teams was that we were stuck with an uncompetitive engine. We had a supplier that seemed more interested in the marketing angle that came from being in Formula 1 than actually being competitive. If you have an engine partner who comes up with a power unit that’s below the competitors but shows a real desire and a will to fix it and go forward, then you accept it. But one that won’t recognise it’s behind and doesn’t seem to be interested in doing anything about it is altogether more difficult. So it caused me to lose motivation. I still enjoyed F1 but not like that. Equally, I didn’t want to change teams – and that’s really where the [Aston Martin Valkyrie] road car project came in. That kept me motivated and occupied for a bit and then once we’d signed the deal with Honda and it was clear that we had a partner that, OK, might not be quite there at that point, they definitely had the drive and motivation to get there, that changed things.”
On the RB18 car
“All F1 teams are big engineering teams but in terms of the involvement in meetings, I put my tuppence-worth in but it’s the guys who bat those ideas around and maybe come up with a list and go away and do the work. Specifically, on this car [the RB18] I did the front and rear suspension and a few other bits and pieces.”
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On the 2022 regulations
“I do enjoy reg changes but when I first saw these regs I was quite depressed by them. At first sight, they appear to be very prescriptive. But as you dig into it more then – particularly in the area of the sidepod and floor – there’s actually a reasonable degree of freedom. More than you first think. The chassis is near enough designed for you by the regulations, the front wing quite prescriptive. Front and rear suspension, although there is some prescription on the angles, in terms of layout there’s still some freedom. As we got into it and realised that, then I’m not surprised there’s been a reasonable diversity of shapes. I certainly didn’t see the Mercedes sidepod solution coming. The other cars, the broad differences in sidepod shape have not completely surprised me.”
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