What does the departure of Christian Horner mean for Red Bull Racing, Formula 1, and the drama that lingers within the sport?
Christian Horner, the only team principal that Red Bull Racing ever knew—a man who led the team to six constructors’ titles and eight drivers’ championships. However, on the 9th of July 2025, he was sacked due to poor performance, boardroom tensions, and public controversies. Despite these allegations, his sacking marked a shock moment in the history of Formula 1.
Red Bull’s leadership offered no official reasoning behind the sacking. They sought to look beyond the present and focus on future strategy. Many inside the paddock felt that the move was overdue.
At the Hungarian Grand Prix, Zak Brown, the CEO of McLaren Racing, insisted that the change was a ‘fresh start’ for the sport:
“There’s always going to be some political aspects to the sport, I think it is going to be healthier with Laurent,” he suggested, as he discussed life in Formula 1 with Red Bull’s new team principal, Laurent Mekies. Mekies had transferred from Red Bull’s other team in Formula 1, Visa Cash App Racing Bulls.
“I’m a fan of Laurent. I’ve known him for a long time, and I think it’ll be good to go racing against Laurent,” Zak added. He seeks a fresh start for the sport.
Brown and Horner had an intense rivalry in the paddock. This was reinforced when Brown had accused Red Bull of cheating in 2022 because the team had exceeded the 2021 cost cap.
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But why do some people think that Horner’s departure was long overdue? As a team that had been dominating the sport for the last four years, it was expected that Red Bull would pick up a third consecutive constructors’ title in the 2024 season.
However, McLaren’s domination towards the end of the season would see the Papaya break Red Bull’s streak, a streak that was broken despite their star man, Max Verstappen, picking up the drivers’ title. Many blamed Red Bull’s narrow loss to the title on allegations that surfaced in February 2023 about Horner. The allegations were investigated by Red Bull when a female employee complained, stating that Horner had shown ‘inappropriate behaviour’ towards her.
Whilst Horner was cleared of these allegations later in the month, further information appeared in the media concerning his conduct towards the same employee. Regardless of this evidence, nothing was ever proven, and Red Bull issued no additional comment.
Behind the scenes, Red Bull was crumbling. Horner wanted so much power that he desired control over the powertrain of the car, budgets, and staffing. He even wanted control over the Racing Bulls. Red Bull felt that Horner wanted power purely for his benefit, rather than the team in general.
It is widely suggested that Max Verstappen would have left Red Bull for Mercedes in 2026 if Horner had stayed. Former Red Bull driver, Dan Ticktum, argued that the rumour of Max leaving may have influenced Red Bull’s decision to sack Horner, in an attempt to keep Max. Since then, the Dutchman has declared that he will stay at Red Bull for the 2026 season.
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So, for Red Bull, new boss Laurent Mekies is a clean slate, but pressure is already mounting. Adrian Newey has left for Aston Martin due to a deteriorated relationship with Horner. Poor performances on the track continue. Red Bull sits in fourth in the constructors’ standings.
That is equal to their worst season since 2015. Can they turn it around now that Horner is gone? Will Formula 1 become more entertaining now that the sport is less focused on a political side and more on cars that want to race?
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