Adrian Newey can certainly go down as one of the greatest F1 engineers and car designers in history. The Briton has designed 12 F1 cars that won the Constructors’ title to date. However, despite having such a glorious CV, Newey regrets not working with champions like Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton.
In a conversation on the F1: Beyond the Grid podcast, the Red Bull CTO said, “It would have been great to work with Fernando and Lewis. But it never happened. Sometimes it’s just circumstances, that’s life.”
Alonso reciprocated this love from the Red Bull genius. According to Motorsport-Total, the Spaniard said, “He is a legend in this sport. We’ve been close to working together a few times and talked about it. For me, he’s just an incredible person and I was lucky enough to work with him in the same environment.”
“Even though we never worked together, I’m glad that I’m living and driving in this time – when Adrian Newey is building Formula 1 cars.”
Newey started his career in F1 with the March team in 1988. After that, he witnessed a staggering rise in his career trajectory as he designed championship-winning cars for both Williams and McLaren in the 1990s.
However, the early 2000s period was tough for the Briton as his cars were not reliable at the Woking team. This led to him leaving McLaren in 2006, just a year before Hamilton and Alonso joined the team.
Newey would have got the chance to work with both champions in 2007, but it wasn’t to be. Regardless, Alonso has expressed his desire to work with the 64-year-old someday. The two-time champion may get this chance on the Aston Martin Valkyrie project, which Newey is a part of.
Adrian Newey hopes to see Fernando Alonso compete against Max Verstappen
Adrian Newey often comes off as a studious designer who is meticulous and focused on his primary goals. Newey designed the all-conquering RB19 and is quite satisfied with how it dominated in 2023.
However, even he would like to see some competition for Max Verstappen in his masterful machinery. On the Beyond the Grid podcast, the Briton stated,
“Max versus Fernando, or Lewis versus Fernando again, it would be interesting to see Fernando, with all the experience he has now, if he would be different to the driver he was in 2007 with McLaren.”
The Red Bull mastermind mentioned how Fernando Alonso has been one of the formidable competitors in F1. However, he acknowledged that the Spaniard had trouble dealing with teammates (the infamous 2007 season with Hamilton).
Yet, Newey believes ever since those days, Alonso has evolved and softened his stance in driving style and team dynamics. He said that it would be interesting for a veteran like him to take on a youngster like Verstappen.
Newey understands what Verstappen is capable of. He acknowledged that the Dutchman easily made Alex Albon and Pierre Gasly look bad with his incredible skills. Whether Alonso’s evolved and experienced skills are enough to beat Max is a big what-if. Although, Adrian Newey thinks it could be a great match-up.
