BBC F1 journalist shares precise Adrian Newey Red Bull exit date he’s heard

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Ahead of the Miami Grand Prix, Red Bull released a statement to confirm that Adrian Newey was leaving the team. It was becoming a poorly-kept secret after the stories broke last week and continued to intensify.

Red Bull’s statement simply says that Newey will leave ‘in the first quarter of 2025’. His contract originally ran until the end of next year, but he was able to negotiate an early exit.

The exact timing of his departure is particularly significant. The Englishman won’t have to undergo a period of gardening leave, so he can start work with a new team straightaway.

And the 2026 season will see some of the biggest regulation changes in F1’s modern history. The exact specifications of the chassis have yet to be finalised, but we know that the new engines will be far more reliant on battery power.

As such, you’d imagine Newey’s suitors are desperate to get him through the door in time to have a significant input on their 2026 machinery. At the moment, Ferrari are the favourites.

Team principal Fred Vasseur has already managed to acquire the sport’s most successful driver in Lewis Hamilton. If he can pair him with one of the all-time great designers, that could give the Scuderia a clear edge over their competitors at the start of F1’s new era.

Newey and Red Bull mastered the 2022 regulations, producing perhaps the most dominant series of cars the sport has ever seen. His new team will bank him on doing the same again and adding to his haul of 25 career titles.

When will Adrian Newey leave Red Bull?

Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live’s Chequered Flag podcast, journalist Andrew Benson offered some more clarity on the timing of Newey’s departure. He’ll apparently be able to have a ‘big impact’ on a team’s 2026 concept.

He’s likely to leave at some point in a two-week window between the middle and end of February. He won’t be present at the very start of the design process, but he’ll arrive ‘early enough’ to guide it.

“I think it’s around mid-to-late February time, I’m told from my sources, when he’ll able to leave Red Bull – that kind of period,” Benson said. “Yes, they’ll have started – whoever he joins – on their new car, but it’s early enough that he can make an impact.”

What impact will losing Adrian Newey have on Red Bull?

As much as Newey would be a huge coup for Ferrari or indeed whichever team he joins, he’ll also be a loss for Red Bull. They will have to face the jeopardy of a rules reset without a legendary figure who’s been there nearly 20 years.

Predictably, the team are playing down the significance of his departure. Max Verstappen didn’t stand in his way, and he apparently has faith in technical director Pierre Wache to step up.

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There are even some members of the design team who are ‘quite pleased’ to see him go. That’s because they didn’t approve of his working methods, nor the fact he was the centre of attention.

But David Croft is unconvinced by Red Bull’s narrative. And Newey himself feels he’s even more influential than Christian Horner is prepared to acknowledge.

The Bulls may already be on the backfoot heading into 2026 amid ‘rumours’ that their engine isn’t on the same level as their rivals. That could make mastering the chassis more important than ever, and if they can’t reach their former heights, it may only enhance Newey’s reputation.