Adrian Newey has designed a host of iconic Formula 1 cars over the years, playing a key role in 12 constructors’ titles, 13 drivers’ titles and more than 200 Grand Prix wins across stints at Williams, McLaren and Red Bull.
But alongside his own designs, what are the Briton’s favourite cars of all time? As the latest chapter of an illustrious career comes to an end, with Newey preparing to depart Red Bull in early 2025, F1.com tracked him down to ask that very question.
“It’s such a difficult one, isn’t it? It’s very subjective, of course,” smiled Newey as he pondered his first choice, before settling on a car – powered by the pioneering Ford Cosworth DFV engine – that arrived in F1 during the early stages of the 1967 season, when he was just eight years old.
“I would say the Lotus 49, because that was a big influence when I was little, and sort of shaped my determination to try to take this career path.”