Adrian Newey role unchanged despite wild rumours about Red Bull F1 future

Legendary F1 car designer Adrian Newey’s role at Red Bull is not set to change despite recent wild rumours surrounding his future.

The Red Bull chief technical officer’s role remains “unchanged” and after skipping next week’s Australian Grand Prix he will return trackside at the Japanese Grand Prix in April, Autosport report.

It comes after suggestions emerged that Red Bull team principal Christian Horner was plotting to push Newey out of F1 amid growing tensions between the pair following the controversy around the former.

Horner was cleared of any wrongdoing ahead of the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix after being accused of inappropriate behaviour by a now-suspended female colleague.

At the start of this week Red Bull denied suggestions that Horner himself could be sacked before the next race in Melbourne.

Since then, new reports have surfaced claiming that Horner wants to move Newey solely onto the RB17 hypercar project, partly due to concerns relating to the F1 cost cap.

But Autosport sources have indicated that such speculation is “wide of the mark”.

Newey previously admitted that not working with Ferrari or Lewis Hamilton left him with some regrets “emotionally”.

The F1 tech mastermind is known to have turned down approaches from the Italian team on three occasions throughout his illustrious career.

Hamilton’s blockbuster move to Ferrari for 2025, coupled with recent turmoil and power battle at Red Bull, has prompted theories that Newey might be tempted to finally make the switch to Maranello.

But Newey is said to be “as motivated as ever to continue delivering in the championship” as he continues work on the RB20 alongside technical director Pierre Wache.

The RB20 has convincingly won both of the opening two races this season in the hands of Max Verstappen, with Sergio Perez sealing back-to-back Red Bull 1-2s in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.