Lawrence Stroll is working on a Formula 1 sensation and wants to poach star designer Adrian Newey from Red Bull and recruit him for his Aston Martin project
The Formula 1 driver carousel has been spinning faster than ever since Lewis Hamilton announced his switch to Ferrari. But in the slipstream of the negotiations for the best cockpits, another sensation is on the horizon: As reported by Motorsport.com Italy as a sister publication of Formel1.de and on the Motorsport Network, Aston Martin is working on signing Formula 1 star designer Adrian Newey.
Aston Martin boss Lawrence Stroll is said to have made Newey an offer to this effect on the sidelines of the second Formula 1 race of the season in Saudi Arabia. Stroll and Newey met informally: they were accommodated in the same hotel. Further talks are to follow soon.
This is not the first time that Stroll has expressed concrete interest in Newey. He has already tried once to lure Newey away from Red Bull and win him over for Aston Martin, but was rebuffed – like so many others who would have liked to have Newey but didn’t get him. For example, Newey turned down Ferrari several times and has remained loyal to Red Bull since 2006.
Is the Red Bull turbulence causing Newey to change his mind?
Now, however, the signs are perhaps different than before: the turbulence surrounding Christian Horner is unlikely to have left the Red Bull team unscathed. And if even Max Verstappen is questioning his future in the energy drink racing team, perhaps the same applies to Newey. Especially as it is currently unclear who will emerge victorious from the internal power struggles and what this means for the future of the team.
Newey could therefore be open to an offer from Aston Martin. He would not have to change his location: There are just around 30 kilometers between Red Bull’s Formula 1 factories in Milton Keynes and Aston Martin’s in Silverstone. That’s half an hour’s drive by car. Newey, on the other hand, had always shied away from moving to Ferrari in Italy
What role does the drive partner play for Newey?
And there is something else that could warm Newey to the idea of switching to Aston Martin: the prospect of continued cooperation with Honda, the power unit manufacturer that has made a significant contribution to Red Bull’s recent successes in Formula 1. This is because Aston Martin will enjoy exclusive works status with Honda from 2026 and therefore practically have the same starting position as Red Bull had with Honda.
Newey has therefore had good experiences with Honda in the recent past. And the Japanese manufacturer could be the supposedly safer choice for the development of the new Formula 1 powertrains for 2026 compared to Red Bull’s own product, which is being developed in collaboration with Ford.
Williams, McLaren, Red Bull and soon Aston Martin?
One way or another, Newey may also be asking himself how he wants to shape his medium-term future. At the age of 65, the new Formula 1 regulations from 2026 could mean one last big challenge for him to compete for victories and titles with another team in this new era. If he wants to embark on another adventure, Aston Martin could offer him that adventure.
Newey has already changed teams several times in his long Formula 1 career: After great success at Williams, he moved to McLaren, where the cars he designed also won several world championship titles. From there, Newey moved on to Red Bull. Not only did Sebastian Vettel’s world championship cars bear his signature, but also the race cars in which Max Verstappen is rushing from victory to victory
