Red Bull boss finally speaks out on decision to sack Christian Horner

Red Bull’s de facto CEO Oliver Mintzlaff insisted the company had to act after Christian Horner was removed from his role as F1 team principal in July.

Horner, who was team principal of the F1 outfit for 20 years, was sacked after a fractious divide emerged within the team and following a string of poor results earlier this year.

Horner, 52, won 14 world championships in charge of Red Bull but was under immense scrutiny after allegations of “inappropriate behaviour” were levelled at him from a female colleague ahead of the 2024 season. Horner was cleared, twice, after two internal investigations.

Yet Mintzlaff, whose official title is Red Bull GmbH’s (parent company) chief executive of corporate projects and new investments, believed it was time for the team to “turn the page and start a new chapter.”

“I wouldn’t call it [sacking Horner] a risk, because we were 100 per cent behind this measure,” Mintzlaff told Dutch publication De Telegraaf. “We knew we had to do something. I’m not a so-called hire-and-fire manager, someone who fires people just like that.

“Christian has a great track record with the team and has achieved a lot of success. Everyone here in the company, myself included, appreciates him for what he has done.

“But this is also part of being a professional organisation. You can’t keep relying on history and we felt it was time to turn the page and start a new chapter.

“It wasn’t an easy decision, but we didn’t rush into it either.”

Red Bull’s outgoing adviser Helmut Marko launched a stinging attack on Horner last week, accusing the British executive of “lying” and believing that Max Verstappen would have won this year’s world championship if he had been sacked sooner.

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Verstappen missed out on a fifth consecutive title by two points to McLaren’s Lando Norris after a terrific comeback, where the Dutchman was 104 points off top spot with nine rounds to go, fell just short.

Mintzlaff refused to be drawn on Marko’s comments, adding: “Those words about Christian are Helmut’s responsibility. I can’t say anything negative about Christian, simply because he has meant a lot to Red Bull. But there always comes a time when things aren’t going well and then, as a company, you have to make a decision.

“Are you going to give someone more time, or is it time for a new leader? We felt it was time for a change.

“Christian and Helmut have worked together wonderfully for years, since the start in 2005, so we’re talking about more than 20 years.

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“Give me a few examples of other large sports organisations where the leadership team has remained the same for so long. So you can view it very negatively that they are both gone now. But I would say that it is unique that they have been here together for so long and achieved so much.

“Sometimes you just need a change to shake things up.”

Red Bull start a new chapter in 2026 as they launch their own power unit for the first time, in partnership with Ford, with Isack Hadjar partnering Verstappen. Horner, meanwhile, has been strongly linked with Alpine after agreeing an £80m pay-out in September, with the ability to rejoin a team in the spring of next year.

The 2026 F1 season starts on 8 March in Melbourne, Australia.