The Temptation for Red Bull’s Men
There is no doubt that Red Bull has proven to be the best team at interpreting the new aerodynamic philosophy of ground-effect single-seaters introduced by Formula 1 at the beginning of the 2022 championship.
After last season’s driver and constructor’s double victory, the Anglo-Austrian team seems well on track to repeat its success, and many are wondering if Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez will be able to win all the races on the 2023 Formula 1 calendar after the initial streak of seven consecutive victories, the most recent being scored last weekend at the Circuit de Catalunya in Spain.
It is now common knowledge that Red Bull’s technicians are the most sought-after in the market, with Pierre Waché and Enrico Balbo recently linked to Scuderia Ferrari, and Rob Marshall set to move to McLaren in early 2024 “for a salary three times higher” than what he was earning in Milton Keynes, as reported by the Swiss outlet Blick.
Horner and Newey, Ferrari was close to hit the jackpot
In a recent interview with Sky Italia, Adrian Newey, the brilliant designer of Red Bull, confirmed what had been rumored for a few years: Ferrari’s courting of him. The British engineer admitted to carefully considering Maranello’s offer “in 1993 and 1997,” but declined it due to family reasons and the prospect of moving to Italy.
The specialized website Blick also collected Helmut Marko’s version of the story: “The then head of Ferrari, Luca Cordero di Montezemolo, was already celebrating in the paddock and wanted to announce the agreement with Adrian. But that evening, we managed to change Newey’s mind.”
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It’s a bit of a replay of what happened in 2022, this time with Christian Horner as the protagonist, and once again, it is Helmut Marko who reveals an unknown behind-the-scenes detail: “It took me a whole night to convince Christian Horner to stay at Red Bull and not go to Ferrari. And it cost us a few million!” – Helmut Marko explained in reference to the contacts between the British team principal and the Prancing Horse for the post-Mattia Binotto position, with French manager Frederic Vasseur being eventually appointed as Ferrari team principal in January.
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