{"id":291243,"date":"2025-07-25T18:19:15","date_gmt":"2025-07-25T18:19:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/291243\/"},"modified":"2025-07-25T18:19:15","modified_gmt":"2025-07-25T18:19:15","slug":"life-after-christian-horner-will-be-quieter-for-red-bull-but-will-it-be-better","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/291243\/","title":{"rendered":"Life after Christian Horner will be quieter for Red Bull \u2014 but will it be better?"},"content":{"rendered":"

One of Max Verstappen\u2019s greatest qualities \u2014 and the four-times world champion has several \u2014 is his ability to compartmentalise. When he was asked whether people had been shaken by the departure of Christian Horner, the former Red Bull chief executive and team principal who had led the team at every one of the 405 Formula 1 races they have contested, he simply said: \u201cNo. We are racers. Of course, when someone like Christian has been a part of the team for so long, I guess initially, everyone is a bit like, \u2018whoa\u2019, but also, everyone has to look ahead.\u201d<\/p>\n

He considers Horner a family member, but he is able to see beyond the emotion. For Verstappen, that may be a simple equation: Horner out, Laurent Mekies in \u2014 focus on performance. For everyone else, it has been a jarring couple of weeks. The Times has spoken to members of the factory, race team, and those close to both Horner and the decision-makers that sealed his fate.<\/p>\n

\"Max<\/p>\n

Verstappen was second-fastest on Friday in the sprint qualifying at Spa<\/p>\n

RUDY CAREZZEVOLI\/GETTY<\/p>\n

The overwhelming point of contention is not Horner\u2019s departure itself, but the manner of it. Given Helmut Marko, the Red Bull GmbH senior adviser, had already publicly suggested the title was beyond Verstappen, could a decision have been made for Horner to leave at the end of the season, to mutually part ways instead of the ignominy of being sacked, and appease those loyal to him?<\/p>\n

Sources close to Horner suggest he would have been willing to do that, such was his connection to the team and the people he worked with. Instead, the decision, with the approval of the shareholders, was delivered in a London hotel room, by both Oliver Mintzlaff, the Red Bull GmbH managing director, and Marko.<\/p>\n

It came as a shock, not only to Horner, but to those in the factory and here trackside in Spa. Some key partners, including those who spend millions a year on their association with Red Bull<\/a> (and built close relationships with Horner and Olly Hughes, the chief marketing officer who was also sacked), learnt of the news through the media and are understood to be unhappy.<\/p>\n

Nothing has operationally changed this weekend, and staff \u2014 the most senior of which were told on Tuesday, July 8, while the rest learnt of the news the following day, with the rest of the world \u2014 have not been told that anything specific will be altered.<\/p>\n

\"Laurent<\/p>\n

Mekies, a respected engineer, has no desire to become a public figure like his predecessor<\/p>\n

SHUTTERSTOCK EDITORIAL<\/p>\n

Mekies, a highly rated engineer with a background across the paddock at the FIA, Ferrari and most recently Red Bull\u2019s junior team, Racing Bulls, has prioritised asking staff what it is they need to perform to an even higher standard. He is also known for his excellent understanding of feedback from drivers.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe had a special communication with drivers, which makes things very comfortable,\u201d Carlos Sainz, who worked with Mekies at Ferrari, explained. \u201cHe\u2019s honestly the perfect fit for that team.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mintzlaff, who is regarded by many as a key power player in the organisation, arrived at the circuit on Friday, but will not be conducting any interviews, nor giving a rationale for the leadership change. \u201cThe Bull doesn\u2019t speak,\u201d is what many are told when they join the various Red Bull sporting entities, and so has been the case here.<\/p>\n

Headquarters may not speak, but those in the race team have, in their droves, to thank Horner for not only his service, but also his manner of leadership.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like I played football at Old Trafford under Sir Alex [Ferguson],\u201d one said. Like Ferguson, many elements of Horner\u2019s leadership were old school. Much of the way he led the team was the same as in his early years, when there were a couple hundred employees. Now there are about 2,000.<\/p>\n

It is understood one of the reasons for Horner\u2019s sacking was that Mintzlaff felt he retained too much control, particularly in commercial matters, and the two were known to have clashed over which sponsors to sign. <\/p>\n

\"Toto<\/p>\n

Wolff says Horner\u2019s \u201centertainment factor\u201d will be sorely missed<\/p>\n

HOLLANDSE HOOGTE\/SHUTTERSTOCK EDITORIAL<\/p>\n

It was also felt that Horner\u2019s way of working, in which he essentially approved every tiny detail, was no longer effective. Mekies will be tasked with \u201cempowering\u201d staff, such as the leaders working in powertrains and advanced technologies, to make their own decisions and have autonomy.<\/p>\n

Several sources have explained that was, in fact, one of Horner\u2019s greatest strengths. One said he was the \u201cmost empowering and supportive boss I\u2019ve ever worked for\u201d. The request from Marko to factory staff to \u201csmile more\u201d, did not, therefore, go down well. Cadillac are recruiting staff, as the 11th Formula 1 team to enter the sport next season, and Red Bull are now vulnerable to their advances.<\/p>\n

More contradictions come in the timing of Horner\u2019s departure<\/a>. It has been argued that were he given until the end of this season, the car for next year \u2014 when significant new regulations come in \u2014 would have been set in stone.<\/p>\n

The power unit and gearbox elements already are, but the aerodynamics can be tweaked. Horner was no expert in this area, delegating first to Adrian Newey and then to Pierre Wache, the present technical director.<\/p>\n

That McLaren have designed a better car than Red Bull is a credit to those in the papaya garage, and the structure in which they have been allowed to work \u2014 the team principal, Andrea Stella, is believed to have been integral in this regard. Can Mekies have the same effect? Probably not, unless changes are made in the garage, too.<\/p>\n

Wolff: I\u2019ll miss Horner \u2014 if he rocks up at FIA I\u2019ll be in troubleToto Wolff, the Mercedes team principal, had an unexpected answer when asked if he would miss his former rival Christian Horner. \u201cIn a way, yes, he was one of the main cast,\u201d Wolff told Sky Sports.<\/p>\n

\u201cFirst of all, I don\u2019t think he\u2019s gone for ever. I think he\u2019s going to pop up in some kind of other faction. I need to be careful. He could be rocking up in the FIA and then I\u2019m really in the shit, you never know! <\/p>\n

\u201c[He was a] main protagonist, he was somebody that was controversial, that was polarising and not soft-washed, and that was good from the entertainment factor, and from that perspective he\u2019s clearly going to be missed. His track record speaks for itself.\u201d<\/p>\n

Thrust into the crowd of microphones in the absence of his bosses, Verstappen, the typically straightforward Dutchman, perhaps provided the most honest assessment of what has unfolded \u2014 that it is too early to say whether all of this upheaval will actually pay off.<\/p>\n

The most obvious and notable shift is not in the performance at all (upgrades for this weekend were planned long in advance), but the politics. Jos Verstappen can sit in the Red Bull hospitality suite without a simmering displeasure with his son\u2019s boss. Marko can operate in his own unique way, without constantly clashing with Horner, and Mintzlaff knows that Mekies will focus on the car.<\/p>\n

That is something every party in this debacle can agree upon: Horner made headlines. His view is that he did so for the good of the sport, having an opinion on issues (such as the 2026 regulations), which was important when representing a team the size of Red Bull.<\/p>\n

Mintzlaff\u2019s belief is that Horner made headlines for the wrong reasons, detracting from the race team for his own self-interest. Even in 2023, when Red Bull were incredibly dominant and winning all but one race, column inches were often dedicated to Horner\u2019s tiffs with Toto Wolff, the Mercedes team principal, or other non-performance related topics. Mekies will not operate in that way \u2014 he is primarily an engineer and has no desire to become a huge public figure.<\/p>\n

\u201cIs there any way anyone can do it in the same way as Christian? No. At least certainly not me,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Mekies referenced in his press conference the need to bring back the \u201cRed Bull culture\u2026 work hard, play hard and try to only think about racing.\u201d That has been the motto of Racing Bulls of late, with fun liveries, team kits and social media focus \u2014 largely the ideas of Hughes.<\/p>\n

If that is what the shareholders and Mintzlaff wish for Red Bull to return to \u2014 and it is understood they do \u2014 then Mekies will have the same difficult job as his predecessor in convincing the engineers that it justifies the extra livery weight on the car. Verstappen also prefers to focus on driving, rather than the marketing commitments made by the younger, less proven Racing Bulls drivers<\/p>\n

So the decision-makers no longer wanted \u201cHorner Racing\u201d. What Red Bull Racing actually are, having never taken part in a race weekend, never developed a culture without their enigmatic leader, is anyone\u2019s guess.<\/p>\n

Will they return to winning ways, or will they become a mediocre race team dropping down the order without their talisman? In the words of Verstappen, \u201ctime will tell\u201d. No one in Spa seems to know for sure, hardly a glowing endorsement of such a cataclysmic decision.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"One of Max Verstappen\u2019s greatest qualities \u2014 and the four-times world champion has several \u2014 is his ability…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":291244,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4103],"tags":[4199,707,4200,79,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-291243","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-f1","8":"tag-f1","9":"tag-formula-1","10":"tag-formula1","11":"tag-sports","12":"tag-uk","13":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114915256963092152","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/291243","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=291243"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/291243\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/291244"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=291243"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=291243"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=291243"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}