Adrian Newey shares insights into how curiosity and keen observation drive his success in Formula 1.
Adrian Newey believes one of his greatest qualities is his curiosity.
The former Red Bull single-seater designer, who may potentially return to F1 with Aston Martin, explains why observation is crucial for advancement in Formula 1.
“I think curiosity is a very valuable thing,” Newey stated on the Talking Bull podcast. “You can be curious about, obviously, I’m well known for looking around on the grid.”
“It’s about seeing what others are doing and wondering why they are doing it. And that doesn’t necessarily mean you directly copy it. It’s just about trying to understand the thought process of others and seeing if there’s something to learn.”
When asked whether he draws inspiration from technical details, he explains that thought can extend to other areas: “It’s mostly about understanding the principles of what you’re trying to achieve, then looking for solutions.”
“But looking around, to some extent, in nature, which has become a very important subject, where many engineers are studying more closely the flight of birds, the flight of insects, how certain sharks can be so efficient, all that kind of stuff, it has become a very important topic.”
“And it is certain that if I look at some of the solutions adopted by birds to achieve very high efficiency, there are things that have been learned and applied,” he adds, before giving an example of his inspiration outside of F1 for the single-seater he designed in 1997.
“I’m not saying it was necessarily applied here, but there are things like the air intake, which I studied at Williams and have continued since, that really came from looking through the window of a small propeller plane and observing how the air intake was managed.”
“We had noticed a similar issue on a Formula 1 car, where the air intake is right behind the helmet. The plane’s solution was therefore elegant, and that’s what we applied on the Williams in 1997, so I think I always try to keep my eyes open.”
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Newey Unveils Rivals’ F1 Secrets on the Grid Newey Unveils Rivals’ F1 Secrets on the Grid
