Rumors
'Ferrari did not want a bidding war with Aston Martin and left Newey deal'
- Ludo van Denderen
As GPblog reported on Tuesday, the deal between Adrian Newey and Aston Martin is complete. With that, the British thus trump several teams, including Ferrari. Shortly after it was announced that the top designer would leave Red Bull Racing, it became clear that Ferrari could be one of the contenders signing the Briton, but in the end, a deal did not materialise with the Italians. Motorsport.com believes it knows why not.
Ferrari's interest reportedly died down after Aston Martin made Newey an offer. Motorsport reports from sources that the Italians did not want to get into a bidding war with Aston Martin. As a result, team principal Frederic Vasseur is said to have decided not to go for Newey and to set up the technical staff in a different way. Incidentally, it is questionable whether Ferrari would have taken a chance on Newey at all.
Newey was not keen on Ferrari
According to rumours, the Briton would receive €30 million a year at Aston Martin. It is extremely uncertain whether Ferrari had even come close to that number. Moreover, Newey was not keen on a move to Ferrari. For instance, he would have had to travel to Italy more often than he liked. Working for Aston Martin, he would not have to leave Britain, as the team have their base at Silverstone.
Also, the form of work Ferrari had in mind did not match what Newey was looking for. Ferrari wanted him to work full-time, while Newey prefers to work as a consultant (as he did at Red Bull Racing). At Aston Martin, he is likely to get such a role, although nothing is officially confirmed about that matter.
This article was written in collaboration with Kada Sarkozi
Want more Formula 1? Then follow GPblog on our various social media channels!