Red Bull warned Adrian Newey could join Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes

Damon Hill has questioned whether Red Bull’s chief technical officer Adrian Newey could be interested in working alongside Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes in the not-too-distant future. Newey is widely regarded as one of the most successful car designers in F1 history after creating title-winning cars at Williams and McLaren before joining Red Bull, where he has remained since 2006.

The 64-year-old helped Sebastian Vettel to win four Drivers’ Championship titles in the early 2010s and has played a similar role in shaping Max Verstappen’s recent triumphs, although Hill believes that Newey could soon be angling for a new challenge by way of a move to struggling Mercedes.

“His success rate is unbelievable, every team he’s been to virtually he’s won a Constructors’ Championship, drivers’ titles, I’ve lost count how many, so he’s a key man and what he has to offer any team is invaluable,” Hill told the F1 Nation podcast before going on to explain how he was left intrigued by the way Newey made a point of checking out the Mercedes design on the grid at the Bahrain Grand Prix.

“I can’t help ignoring this thing he did in Bahrain, where he stood in front of the Mercedes on the grid, with his clipboard, and stood there for a long time looking at their front wings. Anybody who knows Adrian will go: ‘Wait a minute, he’s already got the most dominant car in F1, why’s he looking at the Mercedes front wings?’.

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“Was he really looking at the front wings? Or was he just standing in front of a Mercedes saying: ‘I’m interested’. Is that what he was really saying?”

The move to ground effect aerodynamics in F1’s latest technical regulations last year has allowed Newey to thrive in a particular area of his expertise, which could suit Mercedes down to the ground if he eventually makes the switch to the Silver Arrows. It was claimed on the same podcast that Newey’s contract will soon be up for renewal, opening up the possibility of a move elsewhere if he decides to seek a new challenge after spending 17 years at Red Bull.

Christian Horner fuelled the speculation about Newey’s long-term future at Red Bull earlier this year by revealing that he is no longer working for the team on a full-time basis as he juggles his F1 responsibilities with his role in the development of the cutting-edge Aston Martin Valkyrie sports car.

“Over the past few years, Adrian has moved away from day-to-day work in Formula One,” Horner told Auto Motor und Sport. “He now divides his time between cutting-edge technology and the championship. I believe we have the strongest technical staff we’ve ever had and that allowed Adrian to leave and take over the Valkyrie project.

“We still work with Adrian obviously, but not every day. I think 50 per cent of his time is devoted to Formula One. He’s in the office a couple of days a week, but when his help is needed the technical team can always bring him in.”

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