Adrian Newey OBE, chief technical officer of Formula One's Red Bull Racing team, has chosen British shipyard Oyster to build his new sailing yacht.
Due for delivery in 2024, Newey's boat will be a 27.4-metre Oyster 885 model that Newey hopes to sail around the world. The F1 tycoon will contribute significantly to the design and engineering of the yacht, "exercising his engineering brain" to create bespoke solutions including a hard-top bimini lined with solar panels. "It’s all personal and that’s the great thing about building a boat from new," he said in a press release.
Newey will further customise the interior of the 885 to suit his needs and will add a "folding leaf" to the swim platform which will free up an additional dining spot by the water. The standard model features a four-cabin layout with complement for four crew and a compact gross tonnage of 74 packaged inside a Rob Humphreys exterior.
"We are tailoring an existing design, but it’s for a very different outcome," explained Newey. "The beauty about motor racing is that there’s only two things that count – how quick it is and whether it’s reliable or not. Building a live-aboard sailing yacht is much more subjective in terms of the overall pleasure versus performance and usability."
Sailing is a world away from the thrill of the F1 circuit, but Newey noted that the "purity of sailing" and the appeal of being closer to nature influenced his decision to purchase and commission an Oyster. The 885 is a popular model for the boutique yard, with more than ten units in build or on the water since it was brought to market in 2010, according to BOATPro.
Adrian Newey is widely regarded as one of the greatest engineers in Formula One racing history, with his designs winning numerous titles at more than 200 Grand Prix events. The Red Bull Racing CTO is not the first prominent Formula One figurehead to choose Oyster Yachts, however; in the early 2010s, Eddie Jordan also commissioned a model from the same line, which was delivered in 2012 as Lush. Jordan sold her in 2018 to Richard Hadida, the now-CEO of Oyster.