This doesn’t make sense? Does it?
Something along those lines, coupled with sheer surprise, was likely the reaction of many who saw that Christian Horner had departed Red Bull Racing on Wednesday (July 9). These types of stories are joyfully painful to discuss because they are undeniably intriguing while often being bogged down by speculation and confusion.
Nobody can be blamed for not seeing this move coming. Horner is, along with Toto Wolff, the archetypal Formula 1 Team Principal of our time. Red Bull has achieved eight drivers’ titles through his 20-year tenure, and he oversaw two of the greatest driver-team pairings in the sport’s history when both Sebastian Vettel (2010-2013) and Max Verstappen (2021-2024) put together generational championship performances with his team.
However, Horner’s sacking from the team comes 12 races into a season that has been defined by struggle for Red Bull. Though Max Verstappen has won twice at Suzuka and Imola, he’s made his negative opinion of this year’s car more than clear. Likewise, the second Red Bull car has a best finish of ninth, which Yuki Tsunoda scored in Bahrain.
The second car may be the crux of this whole issue. Since Liam Lawson was demoted from Red Bull back to Racing Bulls after two races this year, Tsunoda’s performance has demonstrated that the Red Bull is truly a monster to drive. This confirms the widely known secret that the team has built their car around Verstappen’s driving style, perhaps fatally so.
Personally, I don’t see that as the issue. In my estimation, Red Bull is too deeply committed to Verstappen to have Horner’s firing be linked to some sort of uniquely self-aware effort to future-proof the team in the event Verstappen leaves.
This leaves us with the grand question of why Horner was released now, rather than at the end of the season, for example. I have a few theories.
Purely Business
This is the simplest answer. In less than 2 years, Red Bull has fallen from a position of dominance in F1 to the verge of being a mid-field team. The powers that be within the larger organization at Red Bull may have decided the team’s performance demands a change, and that, as Team Principal, ultimately, all roads lead to Horner.
Red Bull also lost Adrian Newey, perhaps the greatest engineering mind in F1 history, last year, before sporting director Jonathan Wheatley departed the team as well. In short, 2024 was a hellacious year for Red Bull from a staffing perspective.
I suppose this makes sense. Is it more sensible to blame Max Verstappen and Yuki Tsunoda? Is it more sensible to call the state of the team the fault of the mechanics, engineers and strategists? Can this year’s struggle be traced back to some social media intern working overtime in the team’s HQ? Perhaps but perhaps not. Either way, all those people answered to Horner in the final analysis.
This may just be the burden of leadership; even if Horner did nothing wrong, the state of affairs falls on him. And, to be sure, none of us can say with a straight face that the state of the Red Bull team in 2025 is good.
A Conspiracy Theory
Verstappen’s recent frustrations have given rise to a subtle but real rumbling in the F1 underworld that Verstappen may be looking elsewhere as Red Bull continues to struggle in 2025, following a conclusion to the 2024 season where the team looked clearly outdone by McLaren.
For better or for worse, developments like this one lend credence to such theories. Specifically, Verstappen has been speculated to be eying a move to Mercedes as the Silver Arrows have finally overcome the pace deficit that defined their 2022 and 2023 seasons as they struggled to adapt to the current set of regulations. Mercedes even sits ahead of Red Bull in the World Constructors’ Championship standings at this time, some 38 points up the road.
To be sure, even Toto Wolff hasn’t completely ruled out the possibility of Mercedes making a play at acquiring the Dutchman. Time will tell, but if nothing else, we know for sure that Red Bull’s internal environment is not stable.
The First Office Feud
If there was ever a figure who brings profitable controversy to F1, it has to be Dr. Helmut Marko.
The 82-year-old advisor is heavily involved in the affairs of both Red Bull Racing and the Racing Bulls B-team, though his title, authority and influence are still loosely defined. What is certain, however, is that Marko serves as a de facto mouthpiece for the organization. His frank, unfiltered and, at times, unhinged edicts provide fans with an ostensibly unfiltered view of the environment at Red Bull. That environment, mind you, has been described repeatedly as toxic, divisive and unforgiving.
This allegedly unpleasant work environment is especially relevant to the Horner situation as there have been repeated and widespread suggestions that a personal animosity existed between Horner and Marko with the former being more aligned with the Thai side of Red Bull while Marko is firmly seated on the Austrian side of the company. Certainly, there has been a contrast in how Horner and Marko have publicly spoken of their drivers.
That may explain why, more than once, Horner has stated that a driver has the team’s full support shortly before they were unceremoniously demoted.
Chalerm Yoovidhya, son of Red Bull co-founder Chaleo Yoovidhya, recently sold his 2% stake in the company, breaking the Thai side of the organization’s majority share. Yoovidhya had been a staunch supporter of Horner, even when the latter was accused of inappropriate behavior toward a female colleague.
However, this transfer of ownership in the company meant, in essence, Horner was no longer on the side of those who held the ultimate decision-making power at Red Bull. In a purely Machiavellian sense, there may have never been a better opportunity for the Austrian side of the company to force Horner out.
Either way, Marko gave a professional statement on Horner before turning the focus back to the season at hand.
The Second Office Feud
Enter Jos Verstappen.
No stranger to controversy, Max Verstappen’s father has been a consistent and vocal critic of Horner, both before and after the 2024 allegations, during which he said the team would “explode” if Horner was not removed.
Rumors and speculation have already started to circulate that sacking Horner may be a play by Red Bull to keep Max Verstappen onboard as the team surely knows the four-time champion’s services would be highly sought after anywhere on the grid, let alone in the rest of the racing world. Again, Verstappen has been clear that he is not pleased with the cars Red Bull has given him in recent years, and surely his father is not letting anybody at the team live that fact down.
I’m not suggesting that the Verstappen family actively worked to usher Horner into the team’s history book. Rather, it seems obvious that Verstappen’s pace and ability as a driver give him and, perhaps more importantly, his father significant weight to throw around when it comes to the team’s inner workings.
Ralf Schumacher has even said that he witnessed a hostile exchange between Horner and Jos Verstappen ahead of the British Grand Prix this past weekend.
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What Do We Know?
Next to nothing — that’s the worst part.
Horner’s farewell speech at Milton-Keynes made it clear that he did not see his sacking coming ahead of time. There has not been a high-profile blow-up between Horner and Marko as of late. Reporting on the aforementioned allegations, of which Horner has been cleared by two internal investigations, has been restricted until a labor judge hears the case in 2026.
All that is certain is he is off the team. In the meantime, Laurent Mekies will step up from his role at Racing Bulls and take the helm at the main team.
Only time will tell whether this will play out well for Red Bull, whether this will keep Verstappen around, whether this was the result of a company-wide or personal desire to see Horner done away with or whether all of our hypotheses are wrong at the same time.
Alex is the IndyCar Content Director at Frontstretch, having initially joined as an entry-level contributor in 2021. He also serves as Managing Director of The Asia Cable, a publication focused on the international affairs and politics of the Asia-Pacific region which he co-founded in 2023. With previous experience in China, Japan and Poland, Alex is particularly passionate about the international realm of motorsport and the politics that make the wheels turn - literally - behind the scenes.