The path to bringing Adrian Newey to Maranello has become very steep. The latest rumors indicate Aston Martin and McLaren as the two possible future destinations for ‘Genius,’ with the former currently in a leading position.
When the divorce between Adrian Newey and Red Bull was announced on May 1st, a series of speculations about the British engineer’s destination began, with a substantial list of teams and Ferrari consistently at the top.
Some went further, claiming during the Miami weekend that a deal between Adrian Newey and Ferrari had already been signed, just before leaving for the United States. This is not the case. There were negotiations between Frederic Vasseur and the legendary car designer, which likely went beyond the classic preliminary conversation to a detailed proposal.
However, the negotiation with Ferrari was just one of many that Adrian Newey (assisted by Eddie Jordan) conducted, aiming to put all available options on the table. In parallel, Newey spoke with at least three other teams, including Aston Martin (with the first offer from Lawrence Stroll dating back to last March), McLaren, and Williams.
All of this was conducted with strict confidentiality, also due to Adrian Newey’s commitment to Red Bull not to disclose any information about his future before September. Among insiders, the rumors continued, leading to the latest scenario where the final choice seems narrowed down to just two teams.
Some saw Martin Whitmarsh’s departure, the CEO of Aston Martin, as a signal, as Adrian Newey did not particularly appreciate Whitmarsh due to the turbulent exit from McLaren in 2005. There is a well-known story in the paddock that Whitmarsh ordered McLaren security personnel to escort Adrian Newey from his office at the new Woking headquarters and through the technical department with all employees at work.
Rumors about Ferrari gradually faded and then disappeared completely. The latest reports from the Italian media indicated Ferrari executives’ firm stance, not willing to engage in a bidding war over the salary.
Enrico Cardile’s departure left the most important role in the technical department vacant, but it is not a space that a figure like Newey would occupy. Priorities might have changed at Maranello; the immediate need is to have someone at the head of the project, a priority figure compared to a (very special, of course) consultant who has made it clear for some time that he does not want to be involved in a daily presence program.
The quietest negotiation so far has been with McLaren. While Aston Martin’s case made noise with Adrian Newey’s visit to the new Silverstone headquarters (requiring all employees to leave for two hours), there are no signals indicating the depth of discussions with Zak Brown and Andrea Stella.
Some believe the negotiations have stalled, while others think that his former team might be the surprise ending to a saga that started three months ago and is set to continue for another two. But it could not have been otherwise, given that the focus is on the most successful engineer in Formula 1 history, a person who has been able to shift technical balances for over three decades.
