Adrian Newey suggests “lack of experience” led to Red Bull’s dip in form

F1 design guru Adrian Newey has suggested a “lack of experience” within Red Bull led to their dip in form last year.

After winning seven of the opening 10 races, Red Bull won just two of the remaining 14 events.

Max Verstappen’s brilliance ensured they claimed another drivers’ title, but they dropped behind McLaren and Ferrari in the constructors’ battle.

Red Bull’s form dropped off, with the RB20 becoming incredibly difficult to drive.

Not even Verstappen could salvage a big result, finishing a distant sixth at the Italian Grand Prix.

It was a similar story in Baku, as Verstappen finished fifth - which should have been seventh had it not been for a crash between Sergio Perez and Carlos Sainz.

Red Bull were able to cure some of their issues, but McLaren and Ferrari still often had an edge on raw performance.

Speaking to German publication AMuS, Newey admitted he was “concerned” about the direction Red Bull were going in - but those concerns weren’t felt by everyone inside the team.

“Obviously part of that was McLaren and Ferrari developing their cars, and doing a very good job with their cars,” Newey explained.

“I think Red Bull from what I could see… the car already, the ’24 car and through the very last stages of ’23 I would say, started to become more difficult to drive. Max could handle that if you like, didn’t suit him, but he could handle it. Checo couldn’t. Started to see more of a difference in performance between the teammates - Max and Checo.

“That carried into the first part of ’24 but the car was still quick enough to be able to cope with it. It’s something I was starting to become concerned about but not many other people in the organisation seemed to be very concerned about it.

“From what I can see from the outside, but I don’t know, the guys at Red Bull - this is no criticism - they just perhaps through lack of experience kept going in that same direction. The problem came more and more acute to the point that even Max found it difficult to drive.”

Newey gears up for new chapter at Aston

In March, Newey will start work with his new team, Aston Martin.

The 66-year-old will take up the role as managing technical partner, spearheading Aston Martin’s F1 efforts, focusing on 2026.

Team owner Lawrence Stroll hopes that Newey’s signing is the missing piece.

Stroll has appointed former Mercedes engine chief Andy Cowell as team principal ahead of the new campaign.

Enrico Cardille has joined from Ferrari, bolstering their technical structure.