Max Verstappen breaks silence on impact of Adrian Newey’s exit on Red Bull’s 2024 campaign
Max Verstappen ruled out Adrian Newey's exit from Red Bull as the reason for the team's disastrous performance in the 2024 season.
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Adrian Newey and Max Verstappen (via IMAGO)
Adrian Newey‘s exit from Red Bull by the 2025 season and switching to Aston Martin came as a big shocker to everyone on the grid. The ripple effect of Newey’s exit has already started showing this season amidst the lack of development. However, Max Verstappen believed that Newey’s exit wasn’t the root cause of the team’s woeful performances this season.
Max Verstappen enjoyed the comfort of the most dominant chassis in the 2023 season under Adrian Newey‘s masterclass. Hence, the Englishman’s exit definitely was a big hit in personnel for the team. Regardless, Verstappen reckoned that the aero-genius’s exit wasn’t directly linked to the team’s declining performance. The reason for this was that updates were already planned for the entire season without Newey’s exit.
I would like to believe not, because the car was already designed and the updates already planned.
Max Verstappen told BBC.com
Verstappen also iterated that he had already cleared from the beginning of the season that he wasn’t happy with the chassis’s performance. As a result, trying to achieve the maximum from the chassis caused the team’s imminent downfall in performance. Red Bull could improve car speed significantly, but handling around the track suffered greatly as a result.
I already said from the beginning of the year that I was not entirely happy with how the car was handling. And then you have to try and risk more, you have to get more out of the car yourself and then you feel it is quite limited. At one point in the season, we realised what we had been putting on the car, yes potentially might make the car quicker but it’s very difficult to drive.
Max Verstappen added
Max Verstappen recalled the controversial 2021 season amidst Red Bull’s declining pace
The controversies created in the 2021 season continue to showcase the effect in the minds of the drivers and teams. Max Verstappen recalled the season and his experiences from it that proved that Red Bull was more or less out of championship contention. The Dutchman noted that the team couldn’t afford bad results or massive missed opportunities that ultimately cost the constructors’ championship.
With my experience since ’21, you just can’t afford bad results or massively missed opportunities that will at the end of the day really catch up with you in the championship.
Max Verstappen noted
Verstappen continues to focus on the game for the final three races of the season. The 27-year-old has a great chance of lifting the drivers’ championship trophy in Las Vegas amidst the massive 62-point lead. Hence, the Dutchman should now shift focus on the upcoming season and having to perform well under difficult conditions.
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Aditya Pandya
(1440 Articles Published)