Unexpected F1 team enter chase for Adrian Newey and vow “we have the finance”

Alpine have entered the hunt to recruit the in-demand Adrian Newey.

The battle for his signature has long been predominantly between Aston Martin and Ferrari but it seems he has additional options too.

Newey has held “pretty extensive” talks with Flavio Briatore, who recently joined Alpine as their executive adviser, BBC report.

Newey is “evaluating his options”, the report says, which include an offer on the table from Aston Martin and interest from his former team Williams.

But the addition of Enstone-based Alpine adds a fascinating new layer to the future of F1’s most coveted individual.

Newey will leave his job as Red Bull chief technology officer early next year, meaning he could join a new F1 team in enough time to influence their 2026 car.

That means Newey could yet be influential in the upcoming F1 regulation change, with prospective employers hoping he could turn them into the sport’s dominant force.

Briatore, the F1 veteran who has worked alongside Michael Schumacher and Fernando Alonso when they won championships, has dropped hints about Newey.

“Who is that?! He’s too cheap for me,” he joked to F1.com.

“As well, you are in the market, you are in the business, you are talking people.

“Alpine was a little bit in the corner, nobody was talking about Alpine anymore, you know what I mean?

“Now we are there, we have the finance, we have the support from the chairman, we have a big group behind us and should something happen that’s a good possibility we do it, as simple as that.

“But only if it’s good for the team.

“And then it’s not an ego trip, I take this engineer, I take this engineer, because one man is not changing the team; we have plenty of examples like that when people buy everything.

“You don’t buy the culture; the culture to win you don’t buy, you buy whatever you want.

“We have plenty of people who buy, buy, buy but the result is not really in proportion with what you buy.”

Briatore was asked if signing Newey was possible.

“Everything’s possible in life,” he responded.

Alpine, in addition to bringing in Briatore, have added Oliver Oakes as team principal.

They will give rookie driver Jack Doohan a chance in 2025 alongside Pierre Gasly.