Is new 26 F1 ruleset real reason Newey has ducked out at this time?

[John S]

Reading between the lines of web post below I kinda get the impression that Adrian may have chosen to jump ship at this juncture rather than do heavy lifting for new 26 Regs at the team.

Presently he will no longer be included in any development work at RBR for the 26 chassis and by the time he is free to join another team most of their 26 car design will pretty much on course, if not developed. This will leave him to tidy up, rather than lead the approach for 26 chassis.

I seem to recall a comment from Christian, around time Adrian's departure was announced, suggesting Newey really, really dislikes big Regs changes.

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/06/16/newey-f1-2026-rules-heavily-influenced-by-some-

[Jericoke]

I would love to see Newey working with the FIA helping define the rules and doing testing/enforcement.

If anyone can get a loophole past Newey they've earned it.

I'd also like to think he'd leave hints in the press "I'm surprised we haven't seen anyone make use of X, but I'm sure someone will figure it out soon"