Christian Horner has been fired as team principal and CEO of Red Bull Racing after 20 years and eight Formula 1 drivers’ titles, the team announced Wednesday.
Horner, 51, has led Red Bull Racing since its first F1 season in 2005. During his tenure as CEO, Horner led Red Bull to 124 grand prix victories, 207 pole positions, 287 podium finishes, eight Drivers’ Championships and six Constructors’ Championships, the most recent coming in 2023.
“We would like to thank Christian Horner for his exceptional work over the last 20 years,” Oliver Mintzlaff, Red Bull CEO of corporate projects and investments, said in a news release. “With his tireless commitment, experience, expertise and innovative thinking, he has been instrumental in establishing Red Bull Racing as one of the most successful and attractive teams in Formula 1. Thank you for everything, Christian, and you will forever remain an important part of our team history.”
Horner, who is married to Geri Haliwell, better known as Ginger Spice of British pop group the Spice Girls, rose to stardom following Netflix’s F1 docuseries “Drive to Survive,” which has aired seven seasons and seven episodes since its debut in 2019.
His firing from Red Bull comes amid a tense atmosphere on the team, in part due to the team’s fourth-place ranking in the 2025 Constructor’s Standings, and the uncertainty around star driver Max Verstappen’s future with the team.
Horner’s public issues at Red Bull reach back even further, to before the 2024 season, when he was accused by a team employee of sexual misconduct. Horner denied the accusations, and two investigations launched by Red Bull dismissed the claims, the Associated Press reported.
Horner previously denied reports that Ferrari had reached out to him about replacing current team principal Fred Vasseur.
“It’s always flattering to be associated with other teams. But my commitment, 100 percent, is with Red Bull,” he said during the Spanish Grand Prix weekend in early June. “It always has been and certainly will be for the long term.”
Laurent Mekies, who heads sister team Racing Bulls, will replace Horner in his role as team principal and CEO of Red Bull Racing. In addition, Racing Bulls racing director Alan Permane will be promoted to team principal at Racing Bulls.
“It has been an amazing adventure to contribute to the birth of Racing Bulls together with all our talented people,” Mekies said in the release. “The spirit of the whole team is incredible, and I strongly believe that this is just the beginning. Alan is the perfect man to take over now and continue our path. He knows the team inside out and has always been an important pillar of our early successes.”
“Christian Horner has been a polarizing figure in the sport during his tenure at Red Bull for his tremendous success as well as personal flaws,” said Matt Lofgren, racing contributor for cleveland.com. “He was instrumental in taking Red Bull Racing beyond the sport or the energy drink and into its own globally recognizable brand, but not without controversy. He possesses just as much personality as the drivers he oversaw, which often became its own story. While he was a massive winner for his work in Formula 1, he didn’t make many friends a long the way, so his now fall from the top is not surprising with Red Bull’s struggles this season, though the timing certainly is.”
