Adrian Newey’s dream of working with Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari has gotten a step closer. The Red Bull technical mastermind, who has officially quit the team, has already met with Ferrari Team Principal Frederic Vasseur. With his gardening period of 12 months starting immediately, this private meeting hints toward a potentially legendary Newey-Hamilton-Ferrari partnership in 2025.

As it stands, Newey has 2 offers on his table – one from Aston Martin, and the other from Ferrari. The Red Bull CTO, however, is reported to have no interest in pursuing Lawrence Stroll’s offer. Instead, Ferrari, who has approached Newey twice, in 1993 and 2014, is very close to proving the phrase – ‘Third time’s the charm’.

Interestingly, the British Engineer also has an unfulfilled dream of working with Lewis Hamilton. “Working with Fernando (Alonso) and Lewis (Hamilton) would have been fabulous, but it never happened”. These were his words on the Beyond the Grid podcast in 2023. His disinterest in the Aston Martin offer rules out the possibility of him working with Alonso. But the Hamilton-Ferrari option is still on the cards.

As per Gazzetta Dello Sport, Newey has had a private meeting with Frederic Vasseur in London. This report came out only hours before Red Bull released an official statement about his exit.

This fresh development, along with Mercedes and McLaren bosses declaring no interest in Newey, indicates Ferrari is the favorite to secure the Red Bull mastermind in 2025.

McLaren and Mercedes show no interest in signing Adrian Newey

Adrian Newey is the most sought-after technical genius in F1, at the moment. Mercedes, who has been struggling to make head or tail of the current regulations, is in desperate need of a revamp. McLaren, contrastingly, led by engineering genius Andrea Stella, has changed its fortunes around. However, neither team seems interested in boosting their performance.

“Adrian is a good friend and clearly the most successful designer of all time,” McLaren CEO Zak Brown told the BBC. “However, we have a plan in place at McLaren, and I am extremely happy with our technical leadership team and the progress we’re making to get back to the front of the grid.”

Mercedes TP Toto Wolff seconded Brown, highlighting how “iconic” Newey has been in F1. But he made his intentions clear, saying the Silver Arrows have no plan of making an offer to Newey. “I’m just looking at it like a fan and watching that space,” Wolff emphasized.

Theoretically, nothing is stopping Newey from joining Ferrari in 2025 with other rival teams out of the picture. Unless the F1 Legend chooses retirement over this highly anticipated move, the 2026 season, with the regulations reset, could witness tectonic shifts in the pecking order.