Helmut Marko weighs in on Adrian Newey’s Red Bull exit

After seemingly hinting that Adrian Newey will join Aston Martin, Red Bull senior advisor Helmut Marko brushed that off and instead gave a new prediction for which team he believes Newey will sign for.

Newey will become a free agent after the first quarter of 2025 following the shock announcement of his Red Bull exit, though it is no surprise that a host of teams are being linked with moves to keep Newey – the designer of Formula 1 cars that have claimed a combined 25 titles – in the series especially with a huge regulatory reset coming for 2026.

Helmut Marko hints Adrian Newey heading for Ferrari

Newey has not closed the door on extending his F1 career into that new era, when sweeping chassis and power unit changes are introduced. And Marko admitted to oe24 – in reference to Newey – that he is “afraid he’ll be with a rival team” by that stage.

And with his “great colour like green” hint, it seemed Marko was teasing Aston Martin as Newey’s next destination.

However, he now says he was “misunderstood”, following that up with a fresh suggestion that Newey would end up at Ferrari, as has been heavily speculated.

“I was obviously misunderstood,” said Marko when his Aston Martin suggestion was brought up. “I would rather guess red.”

Could Adrian Newey finally make that move to Ferrari?

The overall stance from Red Bull has been to play down the impact of Newey’s exit and rather talk up the senior staff structure which has been readied to cushion this blow.

But, while Marko similarly sees the Red Bull technical team in good health, he talked up the value of the “legend” Newey, especially when it came to getting the best out of regulation changes.

“Newey is a legend. He is the best F1 designer and he was at his best when the regulations were changed, because he always knows how to best utilise the new interpretations,” said Marko.

“And with Newey you have a figurehead. With him on board, it was much easier to get young engineers because it was an honour for them to work with him.

“On the other hand, our technical team is very broadly based with a mixture of experienced people like [technical director] Pierre Waché and younger people. When there were problems, Newey was often the first to come up with a solution.”

Newey’s expert knowledge of ground effect aerodynamics has been a pivotal factor in Red Bull’s domination of this F1 era, leading to speculation over whether Red Bull can maintain this level without him. On the flip side, others at Red Bull are reportedly pleased to now have the opportunity to take their deserved credit with Newey out of the picture.

But while the Newey mystique is now gone for Red Bull, Marko does not fear them falling into a slump.

“With Newey, the myth will go, but I don’t think we’ll have a technical slump because of it,” said Marko.

“Now we have to concentrate on the World Championship and get the team back on track.”

Red Bull look well set to claim a further title double in F1 2024, with Max Verstappen leading the Drivers’ Championship and the team atop the Constructors’ standings.