The 2024 Formula One season has been one which will be remembered by big departure announcements. First up Lewis Hamilton revealed pre-season he was leaving Mercedes for Ferrari, then Adrian Newey followed suit with his departure from Red Bull announced in May.

With no known destination for Newey, speculation has been rife as to his ultimate intentions. The Red Bull man of almost two decades claimed in an interview with Martin Brundle: “There comes a point where I just felt, as Forrest Gump said, ‘I’m feeling a little bit tired’.”

Hamilton was at the front of the line gushing about Newey’s achievements and even made a not so subtle pitch for the British design guru to join him at Ferrari. “Its absolutely at the top of my wish list,” said Lewis when asked by assembled media.

 

 

 

Newey demands to much freedom for Ferrari

Newey had recently just said to Beyond the Grid podcast that it “would have been fabulous” to work with Hamilton or fellow world champion Fernando Alonso at some point in his career. So it appeared to some as though the starts were aligned.

Yet as TJ13 revealed in recent days, it was Newey’s demands for complete autonomy in Maranello, with freedom to hire whichever engineers he wished and change processes he believed to be inefficient, who caused the senior leadership at Ferrari to ‘think again.’

“Ferrari’s engineering department is one of the most storied and established in the sport, with a rich history of success and a deeply rooted culture. The prospect of integrating a large group of Newey’s preferred engineers – potentially up to 20 additional staff – would have meant a significant disruption to this existing structure. Such a move could have been seen as destabilising, particularly in a team where continuity and tradition are highly valued,” TJ13 reported last week.

Aston Martin were then believed to be favourites to capture Newey’s services with a reported $100m deal in the pipeline and freedom for Adrian to change things however he sees fit.

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Alpine make audacious Newey bid

Now European publication F1-insider is reporting Alpine are making an audacious bid to get a deal with Newey across the line. Recently appointed F1 paddock ‘big dog’ Flavio Briatore has been tasked by Renault with turning around the fortunes of the Enstone team.

Gone will be Renault power in F1 as Alpine seek a deal with Mercedes and Briatore even attempted to lure Carlos Sainz to the French squad, such are his ambitions. 

“Renault CEO Luca di Meo and his new ‘firefighter’ Flavio Briatore have made contact with the British super brain,” claims the report. Again Newey is being promised the earth in terms of engineering staff and control over the car design process.

There’s romance to the idea given Newey and Renault’s journey together which has seen the pair win fifteen driver and constructor titles with greats like Nigel Mansell, Alain Prost and Damon Hill behind the wheel at Williams.

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Alpine’s five year plan in tatters

Yet Alpine are a team in significant decline. Carlos Sainz chose to avoid the works team opportunity they offered instead accepting the offer from Williams who are an independent outfit. There was a cull of senior management last season and then an array of mishaps under the management of Bruno Famin, who has no experience in Formula One.

The recent announcement that Oliver Oakes will replace the hapless Famin after the summer break will bring a much needed stability to the team based in Enstone. Yet the time to turnaround such a dishevelled F1 team, may be even for Newey – a bridge too far.

Alpine are currently ahead of Sauber and Williams but with just 11 points on the board after fourteen races, the fall from grace has been swift and devastating. Alpine’s five year plan to be winning races and championships lies in tatters as Briatore attempts to sort out the chaos reeked on the team from years of corporate Renault interference.

2022 saw the French owned team reach the zenith of its recent years performances when they came fourth overall in the constructors title race. Last year they slipped behind Aston Martin and McLaren while this year are also looking at the rear wing of the RB team ahead of them in the championship.

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Ocon claims Alpine don’t listen to drivers

Pierre Gasly has chosen to remain with Alpine next year but his team mate Esteban Ocon has had enough. He announced he would be leaving Enstone following a blue on blue in Monaco with Gasly – for which he was castigated publicly by team principal Bruno Famin.

Ocon in his fifth season with Renault/Alpine recently revealed his big gripe with the team in that “they ignored driver feedback for years.” Esteban will partner rookie Oliver Bearman next year as he moves from one challenging environment to another in the form of Haas F1.

Esteban Ocon won the only race for the team since they were bought back by Renault in 2016. His victory in Hungary 2021 aided by team mate Fernando Alonso who was defiant in keeping a rampaging Hamilton behind him until Ocon was clearly far enough ahead to win the race.

Soon to be aged 66 this year, Newey does not have the time nor presumably the energy for a start up project which is how the Alpine mess appears to the outside world. Aston Martin have spent over $200m on their new facilities in Silverstone and with the wind tunnel soon coming online, it is perfect timing for the big car design rule changes coming in 2026.

Newey finishes his contract with Red Bull during quarter one of next year. Given the teams are not allowed to build scale models or use wind tunnel time for the 2026 cars until January next, wherever Adrian goes he will just a few weeks behind the rest in turning his mind towards the challenges the FIA are setting for the next era of F1.

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Russell grasps “data” better than “immature,” Hamilton says former enginee

Lewis Hamilton is coming to the end of his career and the inevitable skeletons in the closet will begin to emerge. The seven times world champion is the most statistically successful F1 driver of all time and his inherited victory in Spa last time out takes his win count to 105 together with 201 podiums.

In his rookie year Lewis faced the daunting prospect of newly crowned double world champion Fernando Alonso as his team mate. With the new kid on the block at McLaren pushing Alonso all the way, tensions developed in the team which culminated in Fernando sitting in the pit box during qualifying in Hungary to prevent Hamilton changes tyres and making a final run.

Believing Ron Dennis favoured the young British driver, Fernando left after just one season which had seen Kimi Raikkonen exploit the warring McLaren garage and claim the drivers title by just one point. Lewis and Fernando finished level one point behind the Ferrari driver… READ MORE