Sergio Perez admitted that losing a key figure like Adrian Newey is certainly “not ideal” for Red Bull, but it’s “fair” that after such a long time working with the team, he wants to do something else.
The Milton Keynes outfit announced earlier this week that Newey will leave the team in the first part of the 2025 season. The Mexican driver admitted that he was very important to Red Bull, but the team’s success does not rely on just one person.
“I will say, [it’s] not ideal [to lose Adrian Newey].
“Someone like Adrian [Newey] has been tremendous to our team, to our organization. And he’s a very good friend of mine as well, in this time that we spent together. But at the end of the day, there are times in life – I think he’s spent like 20 years at Red Bull. I think he probably wants to do something else, and it’s fair.”
Perez added that, despite losing Newey, Red Bull still has some high-profile figures that can boost the team forward and lead the way to success.
“I think Red Bull is in a great place, has a very good and very strong organization with Pierre [Wache], with a Rico [Balbo], with Ben [Waterhouse],” Perez contended.
“I think the whole aero[dynamics] group is very strong, and we’re looking forward to the future. I think you have seen in the past with these big teams, big names when they leave, they will always succeed. You know, it doesn’t matter.
“It’s not down to one single individual. It’s a whole organization, and I think Christian has done a great job in sort of preparing for the next generation of what’s going to happen to Red Bull.”