Christian Horner was involved in ‘aggressive’ exchange with Red Bull shareholders before he was sacked

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Christian Horner perhaps tried to retain too much control at Red Bull before losing his job. Paradoxically, sacrificing some of his power may have secured his position.

Speaking at the British GP just days before Red Bull communicated their decision, Horner said the team’s structure didn’t need to change. Those above him clearly disagreed.

Horner was at once the team principal and the CEO, overseeing every department at Milton Keynes. The ownership may have felt he was stretching himself too thin or becoming too dominant.

Indeed, it’s telling that replacement Laurent Mekies has taken on a smaller remit. Red Bull may yet embrace the McLaren model, appointing someone above the Frenchman (in the mould of Zak Brown) to handle bigger-picture decisions.

Christian Horner’s Red Bull shareholders meetings became ‘increasingly aggressive’

German giants Porsche wanted to buy 50% of the Red Bull team, but Horner successfully blocked the deal. He knew it would dilute his authority.

This was Horner’s first encounter with Austrian executive Oliver Mintzlaff, who immediately felt ‘undermined’, according to Motor Sport Magazine. The deal unravelled in 2022, the same year Max Verstappen won his second straight title.

Further triumphs followed in 2023 (the most dominant season in F1 history) and 2024. Those results protected Horner, but he became vulnerable when McLaren dethroned Red Bull.

• READ MORE: Laurent Mekies now facing same ‘baffling’ Helmut Marko problem as Christian Horner at Red Bull

As he ‘constantly’ defended himself, Horner’s meetings with Mintzlaff and Thai shareholder Chalerm Yoovidhya became ‘increasingly aggressive’. During one discussion in Austria, he refused to relinquish control of the marketing department.

Soon after, he was ‘summoned to London’, where he was relieved of his duties, but not given a clear explanation.

How the mood in the Red Bull camp has changed since Christian Horner sacking

Mekies debuted in the best possible way as Verstappen won the Sprint in Belgium. A fourth-place finish for the Dutchman in the race was solid, but the Hungary weekend was the worst of Red Bull’s season so far in terms of pace.

Verstappen qualified eighth, his lowest starting position of 2025, and lost a position in the race. Even though his deficit to the Dutchman improved, Yuki Tsunoda was 17th.

Still, Red Bull staff are feeling ‘motivated’ after many spent a period ‘mourning’ Horner, who had been in the role for 20 years. Mekies knows he has time before a judgement is cast because he’s inherited a multitude of problems.

Red Bull are on for their worst constructors’ championship showing since 2015 in fourth place, and it’s likely that the bulk of their development has concluded.