Why did Christian Horner get fired by Red Bull?

USA Today

6 days ago

If you're waking up on Wednesday morning and you're a F1 fan, you're waking up to stunning news: Christian Horner, who has been the team principal at Red Bull for all of two decades ... has been fired.
Why would the team fire a man who has led the team to six Constructors' Championships and who helped drivers like Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen win Drivers' titles?
Let's start with the statement from Red Bull itself, per Formula 1:
'Red Bull has released Christian Horner from his operational duties with effect from today (Wednesday 9 July 2025) and has appointed Laurent Mekies as CEO of Red Bull Racing,' said a Red Bull spokesperson.
'Oliver Mintzlaff, CEO Corporate Projects and Investments thanked Christian Horner for his exceptional work over the last 20 years.'
'We would like to thank Christian Horner for his exceptional work over the last 20 years,' added Mintzlaff.
'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.'
Let's go over what else might be happening here:
Why would Red Bull fire Christian Horner now?
Let's start with performance: Red Bull won Constructors' titles in 2022 and 2023, but the team finished third behind champions McLaren and runners-up Ferrari last season. This year? Red Bull is a dismal fourth, not at all what the expectations are given that they have Verstappen -- arguably the best driver on the grid, in his prime. Perhaps that means you have to point to the car's performance, and that's on Horner and his squad.
But maybe there's more going on behind the scenes than we know about. There have been rumblings about Verstappen leaving for Mercedes if he can use a clause in his contract to get out of his Red Bull deal. And if the best driver in the world -- how do you replace a talent like him? -- is unhappy? Well, that might be on Horner too.
There was an investigation into Christian Horner's behavior in the workplace
There were allegations about how he treated a woman who worked for Red Bull. But he stayed with the team after the allegations were dismissed.
From Motorsports Wire:
The allegation, which was first levied at Horner on Feb. 5, was investigated by Red Bull's parent company, Red Bull GmbH. Horner was cleared of those allegations on Wednesday, four days out from Formula 1's season opener in Bahrain. As such, Horner will remain team principal and will be present when the team hits the grid for the race on March 2.
It is still unknown exactly what the allegation against Horner was. A female employee accused Horner of what has been described as "controlling and inappropriate behavior", though the details have not been officially described. Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf wrote in an article that the allegations regarded sexual misconduct, but a new report from London-based newspaper The Times reported Wednesday that such complaints were not levied against Horner.
It's hard to say if all of that is another reason why he was on a shorter leash with Red Bull, but perhaps.
Who is Alan Permane, who is Christian Horner's replacement?
He was the Racing Bulls racing director this year and got promoted. He previously worked for Alpine as their sporting director.
Who is replacing Christian Horner as Red Bull Racing CEO?
That would be Laurent Mekies, who was team principal at Racing Bulls.