Carlos Sainz explains what makes Laurent Mekies the ‘perfect fit’ for Red Bull after Christian Horner sacking

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Laurent Mekies takes over from Christian Horner at Red Bull after the latter was sacked from being team principal after 20 years at the helm.

Horner’s exit comes amid turbulent times for Red Bull on track, with only Max Verstappen scoring them points while Yuki Tsunoda struggles to get on top of the tricky RB21.

While it could’ve been viewed as performance-based, Red Bull’s owners and the Verstappen camp were reportedly unhappy with Horner’s concentration of power within the team and favoured a structure similar to McLaren.

With Red Bull slipping to fourth in the Constructors’ Championship, the decision to install Laurent Mekies represents a fresh start after the team lost a number of key staff, including Adrian Newey, in 2024.

Mekies’ first weekend with the team is at the Belgian Grand Prix, and discussing his appointment in the Drivers’ Press Conference, Carlos Sainz explained why he’s a perfect fit.

Carlos Sainz says Laurent Mekies understands drivers ‘very well’

Sainz worked with Mekies twice in his F1 career, the first when he was at Red Bull sister team Toro Rosso and again at Ferrari when he was deputy team principal.

The French engineer has held numerous roles in his F1 career, including at the FIA where he was head of Safety and deputy F1 Race Director.

Replacing Horner was always going to be difficult due to his household name status and ability to give the media soundbites.

Working with him at Ferrari, Sainz explains why he thinks Mekies is the perfect fit for the team principal role at Red Bull to take over Horner.

“He understands drivers very well. He had a special communication with drivers, which I think makes things very comfortable. I think he’s honestly the perfect fit for that team,” said Sainz.

READ MORE: All you need to know about Red Bull team principal and CEO Laurent Mekies

Laurent Mekies is only the second Red Bull team principal

Horner was the longest-serving team principal in F1 having been in his post since 2004, and was the only team principal at Red Bull.

Only Toto Wolff has been in his post for more than 10 years, while most teams made changes in the last three to four years.

Mekies represents a new era for the team, as they look to get back to winning ways and attract more talent on the engineering side.

His exit will likely have an impact on whether Verstappen stays at the team, amid interest from Mercedes as F1 enters a new regulation cycle in 2026, and there is uncertainty over whether the Red Bull engine project will be competitive.