Lawrence Stroll and Red Bull's legendary designer Adrian Newey met by chance in a hotel in Jeddah. But the owner of the Silverstone-based team made a multimillion-dollar offer to the famous designer.
The driver market in F1 is quite active, but it is not the only market that is active. Red Bull designer Adrian Newey is as coveted as Max Verstappen or Lewis Hamilton, and rumor has it that the number of offers Newey is receiving is getting closer to the level of the top drivers.
The last offer made to Red Bull's current technical director came from Aston Martin. This isn't the first offer Lawrence Stroll has made to Newey; The owner of the Silverstone-based team had previously put a very attractive offer on the table, but could not convince Newey to come to the team.
The final offer was made in Jeddah. A seemingly chance meeting took place between Newey and Stroll (they were staying at the same hotel) and an appointment was promised to discuss further.
Adrian is used to receiving good offers but no one has been able to persuade him to leave Milton Keynes in the last two decades.
Stability, ambition to win, great freedom and a salary to match always pushed him to reject tempting offers of millions of dollars.
However, today there are some variables that may have changed the scenario, so there is a possibility that Newey may make different decisions than in the past.
There will be an adjustment period following the recent events that have shaken Red Bull and it is not certain that the team structure will not undergo major changes.
If changes occur, Newey will consider how much of his comfort zone could be affected.
If the environment he expects does not work out, the possibility of ending his career at Red Bull is very real and joining the Aston Martin factory, which is only 30 kilometers away from Red Bull, is the most attractive offer.
Now is the right time to consider the 2026 project, which could be the last big challenge for the 65-year-old Newey. If he feels the need to make a change, Aston Martin is the best possible alternative.
Text and Photos: motorsport.com
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