Red Bull senior advisor Helmut Marko has admitted the team is “missing” its former Chief Technical Officer Adrian Newey, amid a tough start to this year’s Formula 1 season.
The renowned design guru was with the team for all but one of its 20 seasons as a constructor, and formally joined Aston Martin early last month, having announced his switch in September last year.
Having helped the team to eight Drivers’ titles and six Constructors’ titles, Newey’s absence was always going to be a seismic one that was felt hugely across the whole team.
Whilst Max Verstappen, a prime beneficiary of Newey’s technical expertise, has previously said the team “should [not] think about” the situation too much, Marko has opened up about his departure.
“Of course, we’re missing a man like that. A Newey is a Newey,” Marko told OE24, but added that the team has made the provisions for future success with the personnel that remain.
“But we are a team of almost a thousand people,” he said. “The crew behind him was gradually built up.”
Red Bull hopeful of RB21 improvements to help keep Verstappen
The hole left by Newey has been filled by Pierre Wache, the team’s Technical Director, who has designed the current challenger – the RB21.
The car has faced significant struggles already, with Verstappen hauling it to second place in Australia, followed by third in the China Sprint, and fourth in the Grand Prix.
Focus has, however, of course been centred around the second seat, with Liam Lawson now swapped with Yuki Tsunoda after just two weekends.
Wache admitted after pre-season testing the car was not where it hoped it would be, and whilst Marko believed it would be part of a potential four-horse race with McLaren, Ferrari and Mercedes, it appears significantly short of being a winning car in normal race conditions.
Marko has also said that Red Bull is aiming for the summer break to be used as a period of leeway in which the team can hopefully tie Verstappen down to a longer future.
Ongoing speculation suggests Verstappen may be tempted away to reuniting with Newey at Aston Martin, or potentially heading to Mercedes, with George Russell’s contract up for renewal at the end of the year.
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