Horner says perceived influence over Red Bull cost him his team principal role

Christian Horner has broken his silence on his dismissal as Red Bull Formula 1 team principal in July 2025, suggesting that a perception he wielded too much influence over the team ultimately cost him his position after 20 years at the helm.

“I think the company just wanted to go in a different direction, or perhaps it was perceived I had too much influence over the team,” Horner told Autosport. “And, of course, life after Dietrich [Mateschitz] had passed was quite different within the group.”

Horner was appointed by Red Bull co-founder Dietrich Mateschitz following the team’s takeover of the Jaguar outfit and oversaw two distinct eras of dominance. With Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull claimed four consecutive drivers’ and constructors’ championships between 2010 and 2013. A second dynasty followed with Max Verstappen, who delivered four drivers’ titles and three constructors’ crowns between 2021 and 2024.

Mateschitz’s death in October 2022 is widely regarded as the turning point in Red Bull’s internal politics. With the founder gone, the brand’s board — overseen by CEO Oliver Mintzlaff — moved to assert greater control over F1 operations, encroaching on territory Horner had long managed with near-total autonomy.

The tensions became public in 2024 when an internal investigation into allegations of inappropriate behaviour against Horner was launched, and subsequently appealed. Both processes cleared his name, but the episode accelerated a fractious power struggle within the organisation. High-profile departures followed, including chief technical officer Adrian Newey and sporting director Jonathan Wheatley, while Red Bull’s on-track results deteriorated heading into 2025. Horner was sacked in July of that year.

In his interview, Horner was emphatic in crediting Mateschitz as the architect of everything Red Bull achieved in motorsport. “He was Red Bull. All the significant decisions were going through him, he built that business from nothing in a great partnership with the Yoovidhya family,” Horner said, referencing Red Bull’s other co-owners.

“Dietrich was passionate about racing, cars, he loved the drivers, he loved all forms of motorsport. It’s easy to underestimate what he actually has done for the world of motorsport — so inevitably when you lose a founder like that it leaves a void and it’s just different. He was very good to me, he gave me the chance, he believed in me and he gave me the freedom to operate the business, and I’ll forever be grateful to him for that.”

Horner’s departure marks the end of one of the most successful tenures in Formula 1 history, though the circumstances surrounding it remain a defining chapter in the sport’s recent politics.