FILE PHOTO: Formula One F1 - British Grand Prix - Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone, Britain - July 7, 2024 Red Bull's chief technology officer Adrian Newey arrives ahead of the race REUTERS/Peter Cziborra/File Photo
LONDON (Reuters) - Adrian Newey, Formula One's star designer, is set to join Aston Martin in 2025 with the team expected to confirm the move next week.
Aston Martin have invited media to a press conference next Tuesday with senior leadership at the Silverstone factory. Sources, and media reports, have indicated Newey will be announced.
Eddie Jordan, who founded the team that after various changes of ownership and name now competes as Aston Martin, acts as Newey's manager but refused to comment when contacted by Reuters. A team spokesman also provided no detail.
Newey, 65, announced in May he was leaving champions Red Bull, saying he wanted to seek new challenges.
Cars designed by the Briton have won 25 drivers' and constructors' championships for Williams, McLaren and Red Bull. His 2023 Red Bull car was the most dominant in the sport's history with 21 wins from 22 races.
Red Bull are top of both championships but have lost performance in recent races and McLaren are now only eight points behind.
Aston Martin have made no secret of their desire to secure his services, while Ferrari and McLaren were also interested initially, with a new engine era and major rules revamp coming in 2026.
"If Red Bull still had Newey, 2026 is where his head would be going," former Jordan and Jaguar designer Gary Anderson wrote in the Daily Telegraph this week in analysing that team's current plight.
"He knows that anything you learn from the next two years will be valuable to put into the data bank to understand the 2026 solution even better."
The Daily Mail reported the deal would bring Newey 20 million pounds ($26.29 million) a year.
Owned by Canadian Lawrence Stroll, the team have 43-year-old double world champion Fernando Alonso and Stroll's son Lance as their drivers and an ambitious plan to get to the top.
Newey told the BBC last year that he regretted never having worked with Alonso.
Stroll senior has spent heavily on the team, expanding the factory into a new campus facility and bringing in top talent from rivals.
Former Mercedes engine head Andy Cowell was announced in July as new chief executive officer, replacing former McLaren boss Martin Whitmarsh. Aston have also recruited former Ferrari technical director Enrico Cardile.
Aston Martin, currently fifth in the standings, are starting an exclusive new partnership with Honda, Red Bull's current engine suppliers, from 2026.
(Reporting by Alan Baldwin, editing by Toby Davis)
