Newey reveals 'crazy' reason for Red Bull exit

Adrian Newey has revealed that he had to leave Red Bull to remain "true" to himself, but admits he would have called his departure "crazy" 12 months ago.

The legendary F1 designer announced his departure from Red Bull on May 1 last year, before his switch to Aston Martin was confirmed on September 10. 

He will officially start working for the Silverstone-based team as its managing technical partner at the beginning of March, with the focus being on the outfit's car for the new power unit regulations in 2026. 

Many felt Newey would retire from F1 at Red Bull; however, the Briton felt he had to leave the Milton Keynes-based team. 

Once the decision was made to leave, he faced another big question: retire, work in another sport or join a different F1 team?

When asked by Auto Motor und Sport why he opted against leaving F1, Newey answered: "I think that [question] goes back slightly. So I think if you'd said to me 12 months ago, would I be leaving Red Bull and then now, ultimately starting again, I'd have said, 'No, you're crazy'. 

"But for various reasons, I felt I wouldn't be true to myself if I stayed at Red Bull. So the first difficult decision was exactly that, do I stay or not at Red Bull? 

"So obviously, I came to the conclusion that in being honest to myself, I couldn't. And then, having made that decision, it was then what to do next? And with my wife, Mandy, we discussed various things. One was, obviously, I'm in the lucky position that I don't need to work financially. 

"So it could have been simply retire and sit on the beach, or it could be to do something completely different, Americas Cup, or maybe work for one of the OEMs in road cars, or stay in racing. 

"And if I was going to stay in racing, then I might as well stay in Formula 1, assuming people wanted me."

Why Newey opted against retirement

For Newey, continuing in F1 was not a necessity, it was a choice made due to his love for the pinnacle of motorsport. 

The majority of his waking life has been spent in F1, working on title-winning cars. He has become the most decorated designer in the sport's history, yet has the desire to achieve even more at 66 years old. 

Newey accepts that he could have quite easily retired, but for him that was not an option because of how much he enjoys his profession.

"I feel incredibly lucky to have had that position where I kind of enjoyed my waking day, which, after all, let's say that your waking hours are 16 hours, then you should probably spend at least eight to 10, if not more, at work," explained Newey.

"So a big percentage of your waking life. And so to enjoy that is very lucky. So a long way of saying I really came to the conclusion that actually I did want to carry on working, that I'd get bored doing nothing. 

"And so if I was going to work, then why not continue doing what I've always wanted to do and have enjoyed doing?"