Ferrari drop another Adrian Newey hint with ‘Champions League’ reference
Adrian Newey.
Ferrari team boss Fred Vasseur, when pressed on what has happened to the Adrian Newey pursuit, referred to how PSG has never won the Champions League despite taking the best players.
After the shock announcement that F1 design guru Newey was leaving Red Bull – and is set to become a free agent early in 2025 – attention soon switched to which team he would pop up at next if he embarked on another F1 project. Initial rumours made Ferrari the clear favourites for his signature.
Ferrari boss makes Adrian Newey ‘Champions League’ reference
But recent reports have pointed towards Aston Martin as Newey’s next destination, with a deal worth $100million apparently signed.
Vasseur was asked what had happened with the Newey situation and explained that it is the team of people which generates performance. He likened it to how the free-spending French football side Paris Saint-Germain brings in the best players, but that ultimate prize of a Champions League win continues to elude the club.
“I have always said that the team comes first. That goes for the engineers, the drivers and everyone,” Vasseur told Corriere della Sera when asked what has gone on with Ferrari’s Newey pursuit.
“It is not the sum of talents that generates performance but the right combination of factors.
“PSG has always taken the best, yet they have never won the Champions League. We, on the other hand, are on the right track.”
Asked if that means the group counts more than the genius in his view, Vasseur replied: “Yes, it is a consequence of the budget cap.
“Before, Red Bull, Ferrari, Mercedes would spend without limits, now it is not possible and they have to be more efficient. Other teams, on the other hand, are used to moving with reduced resources. This is also a lesson and the result is a championship never seen where eight can win.”
Latest Adrian Newey Formula 1 updates
? Adrian Newey reaches Red Bull agreement amid $100m Aston Martin deal claim
? Revealed: What Adrian Newey is looking at on rival cars in F1 grid investigation
Indeed, the first half of F1 2024 produced a remarkable seven different winners from 14 races, both Ferrari drivers in Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz scoring a win each as part of that in Monaco and Melbourne respectively.
And Vasseur predicts more Ferrari wins to come in the remaining 10 rounds of the season.
“Sure, when you are two-tenths away, you can’t not expect them,” he said.
“The important thing is not to get emotional. It’s not a drama to finish a GP in sixth place, sometimes it’s just a question of operation and you don’t need revolutions.”
Ferrari are recovering from upgrades introduced at the Spanish Grand Prix which set the team back, but remain in the Constructors’ Championship fight with leaders Red Bull only 63 points up the road, with McLaren nestled between the pair of them.
Asked about Ferrari’s Constructors’ title ambitions, Vasseur said: “We discussed it in the summer.
“The goal is to grow and not lose any more points, because after that there will be races that are better for us on paper. We are 60 points behind, not a lot.”
Ferrari is going through an extended wait for fresh title success, having gone without since their 2008 Constructors’ Championship triumph.
Read next: Ferrari boss responds after Lewis Hamilton ‘second choice’ to Max Verstappen claim
