How does Williams want to lure Adrian Newey back to Grove?

Williams team boss James Vowles is sure that his team would be a perfect fit for Red Bull's star designer Adrian Newey, explaining that the British engineer could work in an environment without politics.

F1 star designer Adrian Newey announced his shock departure from Red Bull last Tuesday. The British engineer stays at Milton Keynes until the first quarter of 2025, but he will slowly scale down his involvement in the team's F1 project, and will relocate his focus on Red Bull's hypercar project instead.

While reigning world champion Max Verstappen stressed that Red Bull has a clear plan to fill the void left by Newey in the future, his team-mate Sergio Perez conceded that the star designer will be greatly missed, and the British engineer will have "an immediate impact" on any Formula 1 team he may switch to after he leaves Red Bull.

Unsurprisingly, it has since emerged that several outfits are interested in the services of Newey. While Aston Martin had been a hot candidate even before Newey announced his departure from Red Bull, the Silverstone-based team's boss Mike Krack indicated that Newey will not join his outfit. Since then, Ferrari has been mentioned as Newey's potential workplace, but Williams confirmed at last weekend's Miami Grand Prix that they have held talks with the British engineer too.

Speaking of how high he regards Newey, Williams team boss James Vowles said: "I mean, almost word for word what I was going to say. He's an incredible character that has huge accolades behind him in the sport, well known for being the best designer really in his field. And that will have an impact, there's no doubt about it. How much he was involved in Red Bull or not, I couldn't say. We're not buried within there. But what I can say is it will have an impact. Of course it will, someone of his character and his strength.

Newey started working in Formula One in 1988, joining the March team. His first F1 design was the 1988 March 881 was far more competitive than many expected. Two years later, the March team became the Leyton House Racing, and Newey gained promotion to the role of technical director. However, he left the team in summer, and joined Williams the next season.

The now 65-year-old engineer spent seven seasons with the Grove-based outfit. His stint at Williams ended with his cars winning 59 race victories, 78 pole positions and 60 fastest laps all from 114 races and four drivers world championship titles while the team secured a total of five championship titles.

"I mean, it was a light conversation more than anything else, saying it can't have been an easy decision and fundamentally wanting just to have an additional chat about things. But from a Williams perspective, obviously, that's where Adrian really cut his teeth for the first time. And I think we're a team without politics. It's a small team that's trying to make our way back to the front.

"And I think it could fit very perfectly for someone that wants to potentially dig into a challenge like that. More than that, I mean, what is great about Williams is that it has retained the family feel to it.

"We're not driven by an OEM. We're driven by just a group of individuals that want to be there. And it's all about really racing. And hopefully some of that plays to his strengths. And then finally with Adrian, you have someone with his accolades, with his touch.

"There's not a team he hasn't been to – and that includes McLaren, ourselves, Red Bull – where he hasn't made a significant difference. And I think anyone here would be foolish not to at least open some conversation with him at that stage," Vowles said.