Red Bull Driver Blames Adrian Newey For Showing The 'Middle Finger' Following His Aston Martin Signing

Saajan Jogia | Sep 19, 2024

Adrian Newey - Aston Martin / Aston Martin Press Release

Former Red Bull driver David Coulthard revealed that Adrian Newey showed the "middle finger" to the Austrian team by signing with Aston Martin and visiting the rival team's factory ahead of the September 10 announcement, despite still being under contract with Red Bull.

The aero guru, who announced his Red Bull exit after 18 years as the team's chief technical officer, is slated to join the Silverstone outfit in March 2025 as managing technical partner and shareholder.
Coulthard believes that it was unprofessional of Newey to visit a rival team's base despite being a part of Red Bull. He found this conflicting.

Newey stepped back from Red Bull's Formula 1 operations in May. The 65-year-old remains heavily engaged in the RB17 hypercar project and has continued to attend races, though he is no longer expected to be a regular presence at F1 events with the team.

However, Coulthard stood by his words while conversing with Newey's manager Eddie Jordan, who played a crucial role in deciding the terms of his Red Bull exit and onboarding with Aston Martin. Speaking on the Formula for Success podcast, Coulthard said:

“It’s not unusual for announcements to come out of people moving, especially the drivers, and in sport – footballers are going to move to another team even when they’re playing.

“We’ve had it with Carlos, we know he’s going to Williams and he’s obviously done his little press statement on that.

“But what is unusual is someone under contract to be at the factory, doing the rounds."

The former driver continued:

“I have to be honest: I was in a situation when, when I was leaving Williams, I went to McLaren during 1995 season and sat down with the engineers towards the end of the season to give as much information as I could recall.

“I didn’t feel comfortable doing it, quite frankly, but I was asked to do it by Ron Dennis and I was young and it was where I was going to be for ’96.

“I remember sitting with Mario Ilien, who was behind the Mercedes engine, and he was asking about the Renault engine.

“It really did feel unprofessional – and there’s my admission.

“To see Adrian there with Aston, to be doing the press conference, to be walking around the factory when he’s still under contract with Red Bull – he’s still working there on the RB17, the road car, which looks exceptional – it just felt like a bit of a middle finger to the family that he’s now leaving.

“Adrian’s a friend. And therefore, when you speak about friends publicly, they may not like it, but there’s my truth.

“I’ve told you my truth and I didn’t like being in McLaren when I was still under contract at Williams.

“I expect Carlos will sit with James Vowles and, before the end of the year, he will be downloading, because how can you not?

“I made the comment earlier in the year that Lewis mentally is at Ferrari and, of course, some people who think I’m negative on Lewis would go: ‘You never won anything, what are you talking about?’

“It’s irrelevant what I’ve won or not won, but what is relevant is to know what it’s like to be one foot in your next relationship when you’re still in a relationship.

“And that doesn’t matter whether you’re in business or whether it’s a relationship in the purest term, people that have affairs and all the rest of it.

“You can’t give 100 per cent to two things. You’re going to give 100 per cent to one thing.”