Adrian Newey's exit from Red Bull is not expected to impact the team's performance, at least not until 2025, according to former Formula 1 team bosses Gunther Steiner and Gian Carlo Minardi.
Speculations suggest Red Bull is starting to already lose its leading position in 2024, with competitors like Ferrari and McLaren winning races this season amidst the team's internal issues, scandals and unrest.
The controversy involving Christian Horner and subsequent loss of Newey's exceptional design and technical expertise, who is set to leave early in 2025, have added to the team's challenges.
Newey's short 'gardening leave' after his departure raises the possibility of him joining a team like Ferrari, Aston Martin, or Mercedes as soon as next year.
"I find it strange that he can start working somewhere else already next year," Steiner expressed to Sky Italia.
However, he noted that "all dominant periods" eventually end in F1, yet Red Bull is poised to continue its success in the near to medium term.
"The Red Bull era will come to an end in 2026 at the latest," Steiner predicted, "but at the moment they are in good shape."
"In the short term it won't make a big difference because the concept is already in place," he added.
Newey himself, during last weekend's Miami Grand Prix from which he was excluded from Red Bull's technical discussions, confirmed he had addressed the primary flaws of the 2024 car, ensuring the 2025 model would be even more competitive.
Steiner believes that Red Bull will scarcely feel Newey's absence in 2024 or 2025, the final years of the current regulations.
"I haven't given up hope that there will be a few more fights this year," he remarked. "But the engineers at Red Bull are already getting the best performance from this very good car. They don't need Adrian for that."
"He is there to plan for the future, not to oversee what happens on the track. So it will have an impact on 2026."
The 2026 season will see a total overhaul of chassis, aerodynamics, and engine regulations.
"At the moment all the teams are purely focused on the future, 2026, practically taking Red Bull's success and supremacy for granted," Gian Carlo Minardi, currently leading the Imola race promoter, commented.
"Red Bull remains the reference car, even if they seem to have lost the serenity that has constantly characterised them in recent seasons, especially due to the well-known internal issues they are having."
