Red Bull mechanic fond of Adrian Newey: 'He does that all day'

Adrian Newey is one of the architects of Red Bull Racing's current success - and a lot of other teams in the past. Outwardly, Red Bull's chief technical officer is a bashful, calculating man. Internally, he is known very differently, says Calum Nicholas. As one of Red Bull's senior mechanics, he works closely with Newey.

Twelve constructors' titles and 12 drivers' championships: It leaves no doubt that Adrian Newey is among the designers in Formula 1 ever. The latest car he designed - the RB19 - is currently virtually unbeatable in the hands of Max Verstappen. Within the team, Newey is particularly well-liked, according to Nicholas' words in a Sky podcast.

Newey and his sketchbook

"Adrian is brilliant," Nicholas tells. "He's quite a reserved person anyway but when he's in the garage, it's quite funny. When you're in the garage and you're working and you're busy you can get quite annoyed if people are in your way. Certainly any guests or other people that are non-operational that happen to be in the garage, you can get quite annoying when people are in your way while you're working and when it's Adrian, you know what he's doing. You know he's there and he's there working and you know he's there and the chances are he's gonna find a way to improve the car. So you're always like, ‘it's fine, Adrian.’ And he'll be there sketching away and you'll be trying to get work done."

Newey always has his sketchbook handy, as probably every follower in Formula 1 knows. On the grid, he walks around with his notebook among the competitors' cars. He is also constantly taking notes in Red Bull's own garage.

"That's what he does all day long and then you'll constantly be there and you'll be trying to get something done and Adrian might be in your way and you're trying to work around him and eventually he'll be, ‘oh sorry, sorry, Calum.’ And you're like, 'no, no, you carry on, you carry on. You're gonna have a bigger impact on making this car win than I am, so you do whatever you need to."