Red Bull’s Aero God Recalls Sebastian Vettel’s ‘Stingy’ Exploits That Made Him Dread Glorious Podium Celebrations

F1 during the early 2010s had something in common with the current scenario – the Red Bull domination. This meant that for Chief Technology Officer Adrian Newey, going up to the podium to receive the winner’s trophy for his team was quite the norm. However, Newey revealed that he had to be extra careful on the podium due to the way Sebastian Vettel sprayed his prize drink.

The history of celebrating with champagne after winning a race goes back to the late 1960s when it was started off accidentally in Le Mans. And even though the champagne has been replaced with sparkling wine as of late, drivers leave no stone unturned while celebrating with their drinks on the podium.

Third place = 15 points
Fastest lap = one point
Champagne trickshot… what do we think? 😜🍾#AustrianGP 🇦🇹 #F1 @LandoNorris pic.twitter.com/4LeVxOydMr

— Formula 1 (@F1) July 5, 2020

One can expect to get fully soaked in champagne/sparkling wine if they are present on the podium during the after-race celebrations. As for the fans, their favorite drivers spraying champagne on the podium, with music playing in the background, is one of the most satisfying moments of a Grand Prix weekend.

However, when the champagne gets into the eye, it can be quite a stingy experience for the people on the stage. When naughty drivers like Sebastian Vettel were added to the mix, Adrian Newey was forced to come up with a funny, but effective idea to protect himself during the podium celebrations.

Sebastian Vettel’s antics on the podium

Newey was a very familiar face on the podium whenever Red Bull won a race during the early 2010s. His team requested his presence on the podium more often than not, because it was his technical brilliance, which led them to those wins.

Majorly, Sebastian Vettel was the one to accompany him. Vettel was at the peak of his form during that time. In his book ‘How to Build a Car‘, Newey explained that Vettel, being the person he is, loved getting the drink into Newey’s eyes, which obviously stung a lot.

#F1:On this day 6 years ago, Adrian Newey came prepared to the podium celebrations in Korea https://t.co/jpEw4wFHuT pic.twitter.com/2tIG4uGyIj

— theUsher13 (@theJudge13Twts) October 14, 2018

To save himself from this, Newey had to start wearing protective goggles on the podium. And even though it was a really funny look, the goggles were effective in protecting his eyes from the drinks.

Newey’s goggles became the talk of the town when his famous picture from the 2012 Korean GP went viral. It showed him wearing the goggles of a mechanic, standing straight while Vettel sprayed emptied a bottle of champagne on him.

Adrian Newey- The Aero God

Just because Newey hated getting champagne in his eyes does not mean that he resented being on the podium. Newey has designed some of the most dominant cars in F1 history. And even at the age of 64, he is helping Red Bull and Max Verstappen achieve lofty heights in Formula 1.

Newey is considered to be the ‘god of aerodynamics’ because of the way he can work around the aerodynamic components of a car through extremely minute detailing and impeccable skills. The British engineer has been the brains behind the achievements of various greats like Damon Hill, Alain Prost, Mika Hakkinen, and Nigel Mansell.

Newey is so confident of his skillset that he once went against conventional standards to design a component of the RB7, Sebastian Vettel’s challenger for 2011. And unsurprisingly, Newey ended up creating one of the most dominant cars of its era.

The Red Bull Engineer is back at his best once more. He has already helped Max Verstappen claim two World Championship titles in 2021 and 2022. With the way things stand right now, Red Bull, Newey and Verstappen could well emerge victorious once again.