SUMMARY
- Manchester United continue to struggle after Alex Fergusan left the team.
- Christian Horner does not believe Red Bull will struggle after Adrian Newey leaves the team as the entire team continues to evolve.
Red Bull has had one of their most successful seasons in F1 history. During the 2023 season, the team broke several records. Most of this was thanks to Max Verstappen. However, Christian Horner believes that Adrian Newey is one of the key reasons for the team’s success.
Adrian Newey has been with the team since the 2006 season. Since then, Red Bull has had an upward slope in terms of development. From 2010 to 2013, the team won 4 consecutive Championships. Even before Red Bull, Newey built several Championship-winning cars for McLaren and Williams.
Christian Horner compares Red Bull to Manchester United
In an exclusive interview with Autosport, Christian Horner compared Red Bull to his favorite soccer team, Manchester United.
“I was always a big fan of Manchester United, not as a Man United fan, but of Alex Ferguson, they had [Eric] Cantona and then they just evolved.”
“Red Bull is a team that, we’re stronger for having Adrian with us, but of course, the rest of the team is evolving.”
Horner has likened the process of not relying on Newey’s genius with Manchester United
“I was always a big fan of Manchester United, not as a Man United fan, but of Alex Ferguson, they had [Eric] Cantona and then they just evolved.”
“Red Bull is a team that, we’re stronger for… pic.twitter.com/ZlOdE1vnyr
— RBR Daily (@RBR_Daily) January 3, 2024
Back when Alex Ferguson was the manager, Manchester United saw a lot of success in the Premier League. However, since Ferguson retired from his role, the team has not been able to win another Premier League title. Christian Horner believes that this will not happen to Red Bull. With Adrian Newey’s help, Red Bull has been able to win 7 Championships so far. Horner believes that this success will not fade away if Adrian leaves the team.
Although Newey is vital to the team, Horner thinks that the team as a whole is evolving. They will always look to be competitive as long as Red Bull stays in the sport. There is no doubt that Newey is helping the team as they evolve. There are a number of employees in Red Bull who will benefit from Newey’s experience and success in the sport.
Will 65-year-old Adrian Newey retire from F1 soon?
Adrian Newey is currently 65 years old. Any person at this age will start thinking about retiring. However, as it stands, it doesn’t look like Newey wants to retire. In 2023, the car designer signed a contract extension with Red Bull. Although it wasn’t announced how long the contract was, Christian Horner did mention that Newey would stay with the team for years to come.
While Newey will work with the team for years to come, he could slowly start taking a step back. As it stands, he attends most of the races and is very involved in the car’s development. However, he could start reducing his hours in the coming months.
🚨 | BREAKING :Adrian Newey has agreed on a contract extension with Red Bull
“The team and Newey have moved quickly to sort out the details of a new arrangement that will see them work together for many more years to come.”
[https://t.co/3nPpLtRFkJ] pic.twitter.com/cF7S3H4KXR
— RBR Daily (@RBR_Daily) May 1, 2023
This will allow the other employees at Red Bull to step up to prove themselves under Newey’s wing. This will allow the Austrian team to remain successful in the long term, There are not a lot of car designers that can be compared to Newey. However, Ross Brawn and James Allison do come close.
Ross Brawn was the Technical Director for Ferrari when Michael was racing for the team. He was also the technical director for Benetton when they won the Championship in 1994 and 1995. He went on to form his own team called Brawn GP in 2009 which one the Championship in its debut season. Mercedes went on to buy Brawn GP after the 2009 season.
James Allison joined Mercedes in 2019 and is highly credited for developing the monster that dominated the 2020 season. He also designed Renault’s R25 that helped Fernando Alonso win the Championship in 2005 and 2006.