Adrian Newey

Adrian Newey Is The Most Successful Designer In Formula 1

  • Last Updated: 4 weeks ago
  • 6 minute read

If Adrian Newey were a constructor, he would be the second-most successful after Ferrari in Formula 1’s history. Newey has stood behind most of the winning cars; eleven cars he designed for three teams won the F1 championship. Mercedes, Ferrari, and McLaren rushed to sign Newey, but he has been faithful to Red Bull for seventeen years. If not for the talented designer, F1 fans would never have seen thrilling dramas on racing tracks. Adrian Newey has revolutionized Formula 1. Racing has changed every time his creation appears at the circuit. His rivals call him an evil genius, and fans label him an outstanding talent. While Adrian Newey calls himself the last dinosaur in the industry, he is always ahead of time.

The Mastermind, or who is Adrian Newey?

Adrian Newey is an extraordinary person. Newey has been designing cars since 1983 and always uses a drawing board. He was born on 26 December 1958 in Stratford-upon-Avon, United Kingdom. 

In his teens, he attended the historic Repton public school. But Newey was forced to leave after he broke a school concert and blew out a stained glass window. However, the designer gained a National Diploma in engineering college in Leamington-Spa.

Newey gained extensive knowledge by studying Aeronautics and Astronautics at the University of Southampton. Completed education with a first-class honors degree, Adrian wrote a thesis on ground-effect aerodynamics. 

F1 cars’ porpoising..

In Formula 1, ground effects refer to aerodynamic phenomena. The F1 cars’ bodies are designed to create a low-pressure zone underneath the car. Such a layout generates downforce and improves cornering speeds.
In the 1970s, teams started experimenting with ground-effect aerodynamics to gain an edge over the competition. It was a vast area for science then because regulations allowed using wings and other details to increase downforce.  
So, Adrian Newey knows more about F1 cars’ porpoising than any other in the Paddock. 
Adrian Newey Red Bull Racing

Adrian Newey’s first experience in Formula 1 could have been more successful. He started his career at Fittipaldi Automotive as Chief Aerodynamicist on the F8 of 1980. Newey switched to the March team in 1981 as a race engineer and designed his first racecar project. His first creation – the March 82G GTP won the IMSA GTP title twice in a row!

IndyCar

Only some people know Adrian Newey designed cars in Indycar and Carts from 1984 -1986 before spending a season as a race engineer for Mario Andretti in 1987 and switching to Formula 1 racing again in 1988 with March (Leyton House).
He designed the March 85C, which won 10 out of 15 races and clinched the 1985 IndyCar championship. While the March 86C repeated success in 1986. It dominated the season, winning 14 out of 17 races, and fixed the 1986 IndyCar championship. 

In 1988 Newey revealed to the world his first-ever F1 car design. The March 881 for Leyton House finished on the Podium three times. The British genius had worked for the team for nine years in different roles before the scandal in 1990. The March driver Christian Danner asked if he could have another engineer because he believed the team’s car hadn’t been given enough fuel at one race. Newey was fired despite his being right, and the real problem was a fuel leak. 

Adrian Newey

“I was fired, but I’d already made up my mind I was going – because once a team gets run by an accountant, it’s time to move. Your self-confidence does suffer, but Williams had approached me.“

— Adrian Newey

Despite the defeat, he was hired by the Williams team as Chief designer. Adrian Newey designed his first winning F1 car; the Williams FW14 won the 1991 Mexican Grand Prix with Riccardo Patrese at the wheel. Adrian Newey, a self-confident individual who stands up for his ideas, is never afraid to do his part. That makes him nonordinary.  

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Adrian Newey still creates the best F1 car designs with a pencil. He will not exchange it for computer-aided design (CAD) systems because he likes the freedom of drawing and the ability to easily change things with a rubber.

The Game-changer

Almost every car that Adrian Newey designed for Formula 1 changed the game. Thus, new names in Formula 1 history came because his cars were ahead of time regarding the right mix of downforce and maximal speed. The engineers from other F1 teams needed to jump to a different universe to find how to make a car better than Newey’s and not violate the rules simultaneously. 

Aston Martin Valkyrie

It seems that Adrian Newey has contributed to every winning car in different racing series. Adrian Newey has contributed to every winning car in different racing series. In 2021 Aston Martin and Red Bull presented Adrian Newey’s designed Aston Martin Valkyrie (RB001). Newey was passionate about creating something close to a street-legal LMP1 racer. The 1,160-hp hybrid hypercar with a V12 engine that can rev to 11,400 rpm, Valkyrie claims the title of the fastest street-legal car in the world. 

Adrian Newey’s Most Successful Cars in Formula 1 History

McLaren MP4/13

#5. McLaren MP4/13 (1998)

Thanks to McLaren MP4/13, Mika Hakkinen took the F1 world championship title in 1998. With a 56% winning rate, McLaren’s car won nine of 16 races in 1998. The feat still stands as McLaren’s last constructors’ championship.

Williams-Renault FW14B

#4. Williams FW15C and Williams FW14B (1992-1993)

Alain Prost called Adrian Newey “the best” after the Williams FW15C helped Prost to claim his fourth championship in 1993. With a winning rate of 62,5%, FW15C won 15 of 16 pole positions. 

Exact numbers of winning rates for Williams FW14B – the father of  FW15C, which Newey designed for the team in 1992. Nigel Mansell won the championship title, thanks to Newey’s creation. 

Red Bull - Renault RB9

#3. Red Bull RB9 (2013)

In 2013 Adrian Newey already headed the Technical Officer at Red Bull. With a winning rate of 68%, Renault-powered RB9 helped Sebastian Vettel to find his third in-a-row championship title. The RB9 won nine consecutive races, and the wins record set by Vettel still stands today.

Williams Renault FW18

#2. Williams FW18 (1996)

That were golden years for Williams, and Adrian Newey founded it because he lifted the bar to a level that main rivals Ferrari and Benetton couldn’t stand. With a winning rate of 75%, Renault-powered FW18 won 12 of the season’s 16 races, and Damon Hill took the championship title ahead of teammate Jacques Villeneuve in 1996. 

Red Bull RB18

#1. Red Bull RB18 (2022)

Without exaggeration, Red Bull RB18 is the most successful car and the favorite one of Adrian Newey for a reason. After the long-term dominance of Mercedes, RB18 was the fight-back from Red Bull to Mercedes. With a winning rate of 77%, the team got their title back in 2022, but a year before, Max Verstappen became the youngest F1 champion. 

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Previously it was Vettel to hold this record, and of course, at the wheel of Adrian Newey’s car – RB6. When German Vettel became the champion for the first time in 2010, Newey became the only F1 designer to have won Constructors’ Championships with three different F1 teams.

Adrian Newey designs the impression

Red Bull Formula 1 team

A few people know that there was a time when Adrian Newey was halfway to leaving Formula 1. Austrian Dietrich Mateschitz persuaded Adrian to Join Red Bull after poor results in their debut in 2005.

Thus, the rumors that Newey would take the vacation had circulated since 2004. Despite the British genius agreeing to continue with Mclaren for the 2006 season, it was announced that he joined Red Bull Racing.  

With gradually improving, Red Bull started its domination after four years in 2010. The team won the Constructors’ and World Drivers’ Championships with Sebastian Vettel. 

They say, “You must have a fast car to win in Formula 1,” which is not the secret. But in some terms, Adrian Newey revolutionized the minds of F1 fans and drivers. Because of the 2010 season, people started believing the winning car was the fastest on the grid; however, that was the wrong opinion. 

Not each of Newey’s cars was the fastest, but it had unique features that allowed the vehicle to pass the turns fast and reach a good average speed. But Adrian Newey did his job; he designed the impression of invincibility of his cars. 

Driver or the car?

Adrian Newey

“The answer is you have to have the combination. There are three principal things: the driver; the chassis, or the car less the engine; and the engine itself.

The main performance differentiator on the chassis is the aerodynamics. So to win races, you’ve got to have a good driver, good aerodynamics, and a good engine. If you don’t have that combination, you might win the odd race, but you certainly won’t win championships.“

— Adrian Newey

 

Adrian Newey Red Bull Racing

What is the secret? Why is Adrian Newey so good?

First, Adrian Newey enjoys his job. Second is that he is professional in it: he is a great motorsport engineer. Third, he is brilliant in aerodynamics. Aerodynamics has been crucial to Formula 1 car development since the 1990s. He says that his route has always been to put aerodynamics first and foremost in the car’s design because that’s the most significant performance differentiator.

Gift for F1 fan book

“How to Build a Car”

In 2017, Adrian Newey released the book “How to Build a Car,” where you can find the story of his unrivaled 35-year career in Formula 1 through the prism of the cars he has designed and the drivers he has worked alongside. The book is a must-have for each one who chooses the engineering profession. 

The understanding of how F1 car racing works, the thunderous knowledge, and practice in aerodynamics make him no equal in Formula 1.

The money issue

 Adrian Newey is one of the most high-payed people in Formula 1.

In 2014, Ferrari tried to snatch the man behind The Red Bull Revolution and become the highest-paid engineer with a £20m salary, but Adrian chose to stay and renewed his contract. 

The F1 engineer’s annual salary ranges from $84,000 to $152,000. By different estimations, Newey earned $10 million a year at the Red Bull F1 team in 2022 and a net worth of about $30-90 million, but it is just numbers.

In 2023 Christian Horner confirmed Adrian Newey has signed a “longer-term” contract with Red Bull. Today Newey is the chief technical officer of Red Bull and heads more than 100 employees staff.

Conclusion

He has worked with such racing stars as Nigel Mansell, Alain Prost, Damon Hill, Jacques Villeneuve, and Mika Hakkinen.

Everything his pencil touches starts to racing and brings victory. Newey blended evolution with revolution and has brought progress to Formula 1

Adrian Newey says, “Motor racing is that blend of design and competition, and it is fascinating.” Newey is the best in design, and Red Bull is the best in the Formula 1 competition.