The RACER magazine hitting mailboxes and inboxes right about now is our annual Great Cars Issue, but it could well have been called The Adrian Newey Issue, such is the Formula 1 design geniusโs presence in it.
We take a look at some of his groundbreaking cars from three decades of F1, but weโre also looking forward to the next chapter of Neweyโs still-cutting edge journey.
With Formula 1โs 2014 turbo-hybrid revamp and its 2022 ground effects redux as Exhibit A and B, itโs fair to say that when new rules come into play, you only get one chance to crack the code or youโll be a long time playing catchup.
Which is where Newey comes in…
In 2014, Mercedesโ dominant W05 Hybrid was the total package, a car and power unit in harmony. But Neweyโs Red Bull RB10 was arguably the better chassis/aero combo — one only let down by Renaultโs lackluster PU.
In 2022, with Honda power supplanting the previous weak link, Neweyโs RB18 was the class of the field. It remained so through two more iterations and into 2024โs RB20, until McLarenโs in-season revamp of its MCL38 finally unlocked Red Bull-matching — and now Red Bull-beating — performance.
Coming next, thereโs another major F1 rules reset in 2026 — prime Newey territory. Which explains why Aston Martin has made F1โs enduring design trendsetter an offer he couldnโt — and didnโt — refuse.
The terms of Neweyโs Red Bull contract put him out of play until next spring — too late to have a significant bearing on Astonโs 2025 car. But for 2026, with the playing field leveled and another opportunity for its new Chief Technical Officer to find the right answers at the first time of asking, expect Aston Martin to shine.
The โNewey Effectโ has already produced title-winning F1 cars at Williams, McLaren and latterly Red Bull — albeit with an ever greater and more complex matrix of technical talent around him — but for this issue of RACER weโre going all the way back to his first F1 design, 1988โs March 881. With its naturally aspirated engine an obvious second best to the still-dominant turbos, it didnโt win a championship, or even a grand prix, but it did redefine F1 aero thinking in ways that still resonate today.
And 35 years on, weโre still wondering where Newey can take F1 next. Thatโs staying power.
Continuing the Great Cars theme — and moving it outside of Adrian Newey territory — we recall the early years of one of rallyingโs most evocative cars, the Subaru Impreza (with Colin McRae at the wheel, power down and sideways, of course), and we tell the fascinating story of 1994โs Dauer 962LM, the race-to-road-to-race car that provided Porsche with a last-minute, left-field — and winning — solution to the question, what are we doing for the 24 Hours of Le Mans this year?
Also in this issue, we sit down with 2024 NTT IndyCar Series champ Alex Palou as he continues to forge a Hall of Fame career in double-quick time, find out how the storied Williams team is putting the pieces in place for a return to F1โs sharp end, and check out Tyler Reddickโs upward-trending NASCAR Cup Series arc. On two wheels, we meet a second-gen Deegan — as in, Haiden — as he unleashes a breakout year in motocross.
We enjoyed putting this one together, and we hope you enjoy it, too. Oh, and thanks for the storylines, Adrian Neweyโฆ
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