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Max Verstappen celebrates winning his fourth world title last October (Mark Thompson\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
Rob Marshall had left for McLaren, joining as its chief designer in January 2024. Chief technical officer Adrian Newey, widely described as a design genius, left for Aston Martin a few months later, and sporting director Jonathan Wheatley became the team principal for Sauber (a team that has outscored Red Bull 35 to 29 points over the last four race weekends). Will Courtney, head of race strategy, left the Milton Keynes-based crew last fall after 20 years with the team and will join McLaren sometime during the 2026 season.<\/p>\n
The drivers\u2019 side has experienced changes since that era-defining 2023 season, too. Sergio P\u00e9rez was replaced by Liam Lawson, who was then replaced by Yuki Tsunoda two races into this season.<\/p>\n
The team\u2019s second seat pales in comparison to the performances Verstappen has strung together over the last 18 months, but even the Dutchman\u2019s results have been a far cry from his world championship-contending years.<\/p>\n
Verstappen has been vocal about his issues with the car, and yet Red Bull hasn\u2019t figured out how to remedy it and is staring down a regulation change come 2026.<\/p>\n
Horner, the team\u2019s leader since it joined the Formula One grid in 2005, has weathered the highs of Sebastian Vettel and Verstappen\u2019s championship-winning seasons, as well as the lows of last year\u2019s investigation into\u00a0allegations of inappropriate behavior, which was subsequently dismissed. Horner has always denied the allegations.<\/p>\n
But 12 races into the season, and a few days after Verstappen had secured pole but ultimately finished fifth in the British Grand Prix with his team-mate last, Horner\u2019s 20-year tenure has come to an end. It came as a surprise and raises plenty of questions. But how did we get here? And, crucially, why now?<\/p>\n
As shocking as Horner\u2019s departure is, the biggest question his exit has raised is what this means for Verstappen, the reigning world champion and one of the greatest drivers in the sport\u2019s history.<\/p>\n
Verstappen thanked Horner in a social media post<\/a> a few hours after the 51-year-old\u2019s sacking was made public. \u201cFrom my first race win to four world championships, we have shared incredible successes. Winning memorable races and breaking countless records,\u201d his post on X said. It was a positive summation of a partnership that had come under scrutiny during Red Bull\u2019s tumultuous last 18 months.<\/p>\n Complicating matters was Verstappen\u2019s father\u2019s relationship with Horner and Jos Verstappen\u2019s public airing of his grievances, often putting his son in an awkward position of being asked about them. In an interview with the Daily Mail<\/a> during last year\u2019s investigation, Jos Verstappen warned that Red Bull would \u201cexplode\u201d were Horner to remain in position. \u201cHe is playing the victim when he is the one causing the problems,\u201d Jos said. Verstappen\u2019s response to his father\u2019s comments ahead of that March\u2019s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix was to say his father was \u201cnot a liar\u201d, raising further questions about Horner and Verstappen\u2019s futures within the team.<\/p>\n Christian Horner and Max Verstappen pictured in the garage during practice ahead of the Spanish Grand Prix (Mark Thompson\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n Verstappen went on to win a fourth world title at the end of that turbulent year, and the 27-year-old is under contract with the team until the end of the 2028 campaign, but that hasn\u2019t stopped further speculation, most recently about a possible move to Mercedes<\/a> \u2014 something the Silver Arrows haven\u2019t shut down. Mercedes\u2019 current No. 1, George Russell, whose contract expires at the end of the year, said at Silverstone that the likelihood of him not being at Mercedes next year was \u201cexceptionally low\u201d.<\/p>\n Verstappen had always publicly supported Horner and the team\u2019s performance, unwilling to throw anyone under the bus. But even as recently as last weekend in Silverstone, he remained quiet about his future.<\/p>\n Picking a team for next season is more complicated than in previous years due to the 2026 regulation changes, which include updates to fuel, engines and cars. It\u2019s not as simple as making a move to the most competitive team this season.<\/p>\n The grid pecking order won\u2019t be clear until the teams arrive in Australia for the first race of the season, when the cars will be in a true competitive environment. When asked about whether it would be risky to switch teams ahead of a fresh regulation set, Verstappen said, \u201cThat\u2019s why I\u2019m contracted to Red Bull.\u201d<\/p>\n Does Horner\u2019s exit make Verstappen more likely to stay? That will be the defining question facing the team next. After Horner\u2019s exit, the speculation is unlikely to go away \u2014 especially if Red Bull\u2019s on-track performance does not improve dramatically.<\/p>\n This season you can get closer to the F1 action by joining The Athletic\u2019s Formula 1 WhatsApp channel. Click here<\/a> to join or search for The Athletic | F1 on your WhatsApp.<\/p>\n Red Bull\u2019s problems began in 2024, a season in which they were expected to dominate, as Verstappen had won all but three races the previous year and Red Bull had clinched both championships. But, instead, the 2023 form and cohesion faded away.<\/p>\n In 2024 preseason testing, Horner came under investigation after allegations of controlling and inappropriate behaviour were made against him by a female employee. Horner denied the allegations.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/GettyImages-2217837573-scaled.jpg\")
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