David Coulthard said it was “uncomfortable” for him to watch the process of Adrian Newey leaving Red Bull and later signing with Aston Martin.

But, he would dish out the praise to Newey’s manager Eddie Jordan – also Coulthard’s Formula For Success podcast co-star – over how he would address Newey’s future across his appearances on the podcast.

DC admits Adrian Newey F1 situation ‘uncomfortable’ watch

While Jordan never gave in to Coulthard’s regular requests for him to blurt out F1 design guru Newey’s next move after he announced in May that he would leave Red Bull, Jordan would make references to where Newey was at in terms of his decision timeline, ultimately choosing to sign with Aston Martin and take up the newly-creation managing technical partner role.

The deal also included shares in the Aston Martin F1 team, with Newey to begin work in March 2025.

And Coulthard moved to give Jordan his flowers.

He said: “Actually, all credit for… Although it was, uncomfortable for me to observe the leaving of Red Bull and the joining of Aston with Adrian, the way that you explained on the podcast, the transition, the announcements of when he would be joining the team, and all of those sorts of things.

“And also, the deal that you managed to do, you deal-making guru you.

“So professionally, you must be feeling pretty successful.”

With Jordan giving himself the “silent assassin” crown to carry through 2025 in response, Coulthard asked him how he was able to keep Newey to Aston Martin under wraps for as long as he did.

“I do a lot of talking. I’m Irish. Irish people do a lot of talking,” Jordan replied. “But when there’s money involved and you need to keep your trap shut, you do. Invariably.”

Jordan went on to do some handing out of praise of his own, aimed at Red Bull.

Newey had title-winning success already on his CV with Williams and McLaren at the point he joined Red Bull in 2006, with Max Verstappen’s F1 2024 World Championship win taking Red Bull’s F1 title tally to 14 across the Drivers’ and Constructors’ categories, Newey there for them all.

Jordan continued: “It’s one of those things. Adrian was very united as well. I mean, we used to speak a lot with regards, ‘Don’t come near me. Don’t say anything. Don’t do this. Let’s just keep normal protocol going as we should’. He played a great game.

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“I mean, the most difficult… If I was to be very honest, in my lifetime, David, haven’t said this to many people, but in my lifetime, I’ve done some really, really scary deals, deals that have come off, some that haven’t. But I really believe the negotiations I had with Red Bull were the finest and the best caliber.

“They were incredibly decent and proper people to deal with. They understood exactly the situation, why I was talking to them, and the position of Adrian, having been there 18 years, he was a huge servant to them. He’s won dozens and dozens and dozens of World Championships there, but it was probably one of the greatest deals I’ve ever done in my life, not financially, but mentally.

“I felt so great about how that’s structured.”

Newey joins an Aston Martin team gunning for F1 title success in the not too distant future, with owner Lawrence Stroll having pumped heavy investment into the team, a new factory and windtunnel joining Newey in his financial commitments for success.

In addition, Aston Martin will become the sole Honda engine customer when the new regulations arrive in 2026, Honda having powered Red Bull to six of their titles with the partnership beginning in 2019.

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