Adrian Newey has “rejected” a big-money offer to join Aston Martin, it has been claimed.
F1 analyst Peter Windsor insisted he’s heard on the Formula 1 grapevine that Newey will not join the Silverstone-based team.
The car design genius has rocked F1 with news that he is set to quit Red Bull, the team he helped to dominate the sport by creating some of the best cars ever.
Windsor said via YouTube: “He’s got plenty of options.”
He responded to whether Fernando Alonso signed a new Aston Martin deal because he was promised that Newey would follow.
“It’s possible,” Windsor said. “I think Alonso would have signed the deal anyway even without this promise.
“Because it’s a team where he’s found a home, he’s got good backing, the Strolls like him, he’s doing a good job for Lance, it’s going to get better and better, they have great facilities.
“They all want to have Adrian Newey. That’s a point that needs to be made.
“Ferrari, Mercedes, Aston Martin would all want Newey, for sure.
“My understanding is that he’s already been offered a lot of money by Aramco, and Aston.
“And he has turned it down. That is my understanding of what the Aston situation is.
“It doesn’t surprise me. He doesn’t need the money. Money isn’t a motivation for him.
“It’s racing. It’s whether he enjoys it, whether it fits with whatever he wants to do, other things in life.
“Throw a billion pounds at him now? It won’t make a lot of difference.
“It might have 10 years ago, or eight years ago. Now? I don’t think so.
“My understanding is that he’s already rejected that.
“So I’d be surprised if he goes to Aston. Of course, it is still possible.
“The next one is Mercedes. They will offer him a lot of money, I’d imagine.
“He’ll think Mercedes or Ferrari ‘which one do I want to go to?’
“They are two big, political teams. They have won races recently, he knows he could do a good job recently.
“My gut feeling is that he’d rather go to Ferrari, of those two.
“He probably has a lot of faith in Fred Vasseur.
“But it brings with it a lot of drama. Politics, pressure…”
Red Bull insisted on Thursday that they were unaware of Newey quitting.
He is on a contract until the end of 2025, the team confirmed.
But it has been reported that Newey has told senior colleagues at Red Bull about his intention to exit.