Verstappen reveals what he said to Newey before confirmation of star designer’s Red Bull exit

Max Verstappen has admitted that he “would have preferred” Adrian Newey to remain with Red Bull into the future, but the reigning world champion “doesn’t blame” the legendary F1 designer for deciding to move on.

Newey was at the centre of the news heading into this weekend’s Miami Grand Prix thanks to confirmation that his time at Red Bull will be coming to an end in early 2025, following a period of almost two decades onboard.

READ MORE: Horner concedes Red Bull will be ‘very sad’ to see Newey leave as he hints at what star designer will do next

During his lengthy stint at the Milton Keynes operation, Red Bull have gone from points scorers to a championship-winning force, with Newey contributing to six constructors’ titles and seven drivers’ titles over the years.

“I would have preferred, of course, Adrian to stay, but at the end of the day also… and that’s what I said to Adrian, you have to do what you think is best for yourself,” Verstappen told Sky Sports F1, when asked for his take on the development.

“F1 is a bit of a shark tank, you know, and I think it’s very important that you do think about yourself, that you make the right decision for yourself and your family.

“I also don’t blame him… If someone wants to leave, [and] you [want to] go and pursue other goals or things in life, that’s absolutely fine.”

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In a separate interview with F1 TV during the build-up to the Miami race weekend, Verstappen was asked if Newey’s impending exit has made him question his own future at Red Bull.

“No, not at the moment,” he replied, also batting away questions about what he would do if rival teams came in with big offers – stressing that “it’s not about money for me”.

“Like I said before, I think it’s important to always have the quickest car, because that makes it a lot easier to think about what is right. At the end of the day, we have a really strong group of people that maybe aren’t talked enough about in the press in general.

“That’s fine, they know what they have to do, they know what they are worth to the team, and they know how important they have been for the current success as well with the car. We just keep on working.”

READ MORE: Hamilton admits it would be a ‘privilege’ to work with ‘amazing’ Newey at Ferrari in 2025

Verstappen and Red Bull put the off-track noise to one side when the action got under way at the Miami International Autodrome to secure pole position for Saturday’s Sprint, with Sergio Perez lining up third.

Verstappen heads into the 100-kilometre dash with a 25-point lead over Perez in the drivers’ standings, while Red Bull sit 44 points clear of nearest rivals Ferrari in the constructors’ battle.