Ford issues first statement since Adrian Newey's departure from Red Bull

Ford has issued its first statement since Adrian Newey's departure from Red Bull and reaffirmed its commitment to the team. The ace designer has been part of the team since 2006 and has achieved a lot of success over the last two decades with them.

During this time, the squad went on a four-year title-winning streak from 2010 to 2013. After getting sidelined by a poor power unit, the team bounced back in 2021 to win the title.

It did, thus, come as a surprise to many when it was announced that Adrian Newey was leaving the team. The reasons are still not entirely clear. There have been reports of Newey not being happy with Christian Horner giving credit to the rest of the team for the success that Red Bull had achieved.

There was even speculation of a complete breakdown of the relationship between Newey and Horner. The answer is still not clear, as Adrian has maintained he was just tired of the grind.

Newey's loss is a big blow to the team and future power unit partner Ford was questioned about the possible impact suffered by the team. The American brand continues to back Red Bull, as the Brand's motorsport CEO, Mark Rushbrook. In an exclusive with Motorsport.com, he said,

"We have enormous respect for Adrian's career and for all the things he has achieved at various teams in Formula 1, of course, especially for the past nineteen years at Red Bull Racing. We have nothing but admiration and respect for Adrian and wish him all the best for whatever he does in the future."

He added,

"But our focus is and remains entirely on the engine project for 2026. That remains completely unchanged, even after the news. We are still going full throttle together."

Ford admits Adrian Newey's loss will be felt at Red Bull

Rushbrook was further questioned on what he felt would be the impact of losing Adrian Newey. The Ford CEO held a similar view that the Austrian team had about Newey's departure. He admitted that the loss hurt the team but felt that the team has a great pedigree and would be in a strong position to respond if it came to that.

Touching on how a succession plan is always a key aspect for any organization, Rushbrook felt that Red Bull had one in place and that Newey's departure would not hurt the team adversely. He said,

"Without answering that question directly, I would like to say that continuity was already discussed in the very first conversations I had with Christian Horner. My question to him was: how will Red Bull remain successful in 2026 with a completely new regulation?"

He added,

"Such as with every good company or with every good racing team, there must always be a solid plan for the succession of certain people. You always try to train people internally and let them grow within the organization. That was no different in this case. I certainly don't mean this to be disrespectful to Adrian, because he is fantastic, but every team has a succession plan."

Ford will join the sport in 2026 as a partner of Red Bull Powertrain. The American brand will be entering the sport, trying to piggyback on the Austrian brand's excellence and expertise to achieve instant success.