Max Verstappen shares what he said to Adrian Newey after he announced his departure from Red Bull

Max Verstappen recently shared what he told Adrian Newey after his exit from Red Bull was officially announced.

After the Chinese GP, several rumors from reputed sources emerged about Newey leaving the Austrian team. These rumors continued to bubble up till Red Bull themselves announced his exit from the team on May 1, just a few days before the 2024 F1 Miami GP.

Adrian Newey and Max Verstappen have enjoyed a lot of success in recent history. Newey and his team designed some of the most dominant cars between 2021 and 2024, which allowed Verstappen to bag three consecutive driver's championships.

Speaking about Adrian Newey's departure to Sky Sports, Verstappen initially stated that he would have preferred if the aero wizard stayed at Red Bull. The Dutchman further shared that he told Newey to do whatever felt the best for him and his family.

"I would have preferred, of course, for Adrian to stay. But at the end of the day, and that's what I also said to Adrian, 'You have to do what you think is best for yourself', because at the end of the day, F1 is a bit of a shark tank. And I think it's very important that you do think about yourself, that you make the right decisions for yourself and your family," Verstappen said.

Max Verstappen added that he does not blame Newey for leaving Red Bull and pursuing other goals in life.

"So I also don't blame him. If someone wants to leave, you go and pursue other goals or things in life, so that's absolutely fine," he added.

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Christian Horner showers praises on Adrian Newey after his departure from Red Bull was announced

Red Bull team boss Christian Horner had nothing but praises for the chief technical officer, Adrian Newey, as he announced his departure from the team.

Speaking for the official Red Bull statement about Newey's departure, Horner hailed the aero wizard's massive role in the team's success story. He added that his talent helped the team rise to heights even the late Red Bull GmbH co-founder Dietrich Mateschitz would not have imagined.

"All of our greatest moments from the past 20 years have come with Adrian’s hand on the technical tiller. His vision and brilliance have helped us to 13 titles in 20 seasons," Horner said.

"His exceptional ability to conceptualise beyond F1 and bring wider inspiration to bear on the design of grand prix cars, his remarkable talent for embracing change and finding the most rewarding areas of the rules to focus on, and his relentless will to win have helped Red Bull Racing to become a greater force than I think even the late Dietrich Mateschitz might have imagined," he added.

As of now, Adrian Newey continues to be part of the Milton Keynes-based team, but will mostly be detached from F1 operations. He would be allowed to leave the team after the first quarter of 2025.