Red Bull aero wizard Adrian Newey was reportedly sighted in Bologna, Italy, and it set the tongues wagging about a potential move to Ferrari. Those suggestions have certainly had cold water poured on them as the real reason behind Newey's sighting has been explored.
A few days back, German publication AMuS sent the rumor mill into overdrive when it reported that Adrian Newey had been seen in Bologna, Italy. With Red Bull in political turmoil at the moment, there have been suggestions that multiple teams have approached Adrian Newey.
There were rumors of Ferrari making a giant offer to the aero wizard, there were also reports of Aston Martin offering a lucrative amount, and then there were reports of Mercedes also trying to get a hold of the technical director. During all of this, when Adrian Newey was seen in Italy, rumors started flying that a possible move to Maranello could be on the cards.
According to reports from FormulaPassion, however, Adrian Newey was in Italy to participate in a race event in Mugello. The car designer is not only brilliant behind the desk, but also has a passion for racing.
His stopover in Bologna was a detour before he enjoyed a day at the Ferrari-owned Mugello circuit on March 25 in a free race event for cars organized by KR Motorsports. Does that mean Newey is certainly not coming to the Italian team? We cannot say that for sure, but it does put a damper on the enthusiasm that quite a few had earlier.
Red Bull's aero wizard not linked with Ferrari for the first time
The fact that Adrian Newey has been in F1 since the 1990s and has still not ended up at Ferrari should come as a surprise to everyone. This, however, is not due to a lack of trying from the Italian brand. Newey has been approached multiple times by the Italian team over the years.
The latest was during the turbo hybrid era. When Sebastian Vettel left Red Bull for the Italian team, even Newey was approached. With Renault's power unit working at a below-par capacity, there was certainly a temptation for Adrian to go to the Italian team.
In his book, however, Newey reveals that while the offer from Maranello was generous, he had been part of the building blocks at Red Bull and did not want to leave the team at that stage.
With the Austrian team going through political turmoil right now, it will be interesting to see if Newey's stance changes or if he continues to be a part of the team.