Newey savours ‘incredibly special’ RB17 debut at Goodwood

On its opening day on Thursday, the Goodwood Festival of Speed delivered another unforgettable moment as Adrian Newey finally guided the Red Bull RB17 up the famous hill climb, describing the occasion as the culmination of years of work on the ambitious track-only hypercar.

The RB17's public dynamic debut marked a major landmark for a project that Newey has overseen from the very beginning.

Although he has since moved to Aston Martin, the renowned F1 designer remained at the heart of the RB17 programme, taking the wheel himself for its first appearance in front of Goodwood's packed crowds.

Having previously unveiled the car's full-scale design model at the 2024 Festival of Speed, Newey returned this year wearing his helmet to complete the RB17's first run up the iconic 1.16-mile hill.

A milestone years in the making

Speaking immediately after his initial run, Newey reflected on what the occasion meant.

“It’s an incredibly special moment. It’s been a very long time in the planning,” he said.

“I think I did my very first sketch of the car over Christmas of 2020, going into ’21, so it’s been a long time in gestation, but everybody, guys and girls back at the factory, they’ve done a really amazing and fabulous job to get it here.

“Really special to have the car here and to take it up the hill for the first time.”

Adrian Newey drives his creation, the Red Bull RB17 earlier today. #GoodwoodFoS pic.twitter.com/oX5So04nTZ

— Junaid #JB17 (@JunaidSamodien_) July 9, 2026

The RB17 remains one of the most ambitious creations to emerge from Red Bull Advanced Technologies.

Powered by a naturally aspirated 4.5-litre Cosworth V10 producing more than 1,200bhp, the exclusive hypercar will be limited to just 50 examples, with a pre-production version scheduled to continue running throughout the Goodwood weekend.

Formula 1 drivers Isack Hadjar and Yuki Tsunoda are also set to experience the machine during the event.

Development continues ahead of customer deliveries

While the RB17 has now made its public debut, Newey acknowledged that the development programme is still progressing, with several of the car's advanced systems yet to be fully activated as engineers continue refining the package before customer deliveries begin.

“So at the moment, the active suspension isn’t working,” he said, explaining the hypercar’s current status.

“The fans are only cooling, not generating downforce as well. Some of the other active systems aren’t calibrated yet, so this is kind of to get the car out, get it running.

“It only ran for the first time three weeks ago, so it’s really to pull it together, and for it to work first time out of the box and be here is very special.”

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For Newey, Thursday's run at Goodwood was about more than simply ticking off another development milestone.

The broad smile on his face after climbing from the RB17 reflected a rare moment of pure satisfaction—one that has been difficult to find in recent months as Aston Martin has endured a challenging Formula 1 campaign.

Amid the pressures of helping steer the team's long-term rebuild towards the 2026 regulations, the chance to finally drive a car he first sketched more than four years ago offered a welcome reminder of why the project has meant so much to him.

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