Juan Pablo Montoya believes one aspect of Christian Horner’s exit will ‘hurt’ Red Bull’s operations

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Red Bull dropped one of the biggest bombshells in recent Formula 1 history when they announced the departure of Christian Horner as team principal and CEO.

It followed days of speculation regarding the future of superstar driver Max Verstappen, whose pursuit of a fifth consecutive drivers’ championship has been falling apart.

And with Horner’s exit, the team may be about to take a drastic change in direction just in time for the 2026 F1 regulations under new leader Laurent Mekies.

It’s a delicate time for Red Bull. Instability ahead of a new rule set should be taken seriously. It could completely derail the team in the long term.

Horner made Red Bull personnel ‘jealous’ during his final months, with the amount of power and influence he had at his team.

Where the Briton goes next is anyone’s guess, but Horner is convinced he needs one thing to join Ferrari, especially if he wants to be successful.

READ MORE: Red Bull ‘observers’ saw one clear sign that the power had gone to Christian Horner’s head before he was sacked

Juan Pablo Montoya thinks Christian Horner’s Red Bull exit will ‘hurt’ Racing Bulls

Although the team are only fourth in the constructors’ standings, they have taken two victories and four pole positions this year.

Despite that, Red Bull mechanics may welcome Horner’s exit and the change in atmosphere that may arrive with a new structure.

However, new leadership is something that Juan Pablo Montoya sees as something which has ‘hurt’ their second team, Visa Cash App Racing Bulls, after they lost their team principal, Mekies.

“One thing that happens when this happens is, OK, they’re bringing stability, trying to seek new stability or new leadership in at Red Bull, but every time they do this, they hurt Racing Bulls,” he said.

“People never think about that. People think of Red Bull, Red Bull, Red Bull. Every time you take out a driver and bring in another driver, it hurts the team as well.

“It’s all instability that people don’t take into account. Sometimes they want to kick Christian out, fine, that’s their decision. They want new leadership, but they shouldn’t make those changes at the personal expense of the other team.”

READ MORE: David Croft has heard that Red Bull designers ignored ‘undriveable’ warnings months before Christian Horner sacking

What ‘doesn’t make sense’ about Max Verstappen to Mercedes rumours

With Red Bull now being in a slightly vulnerable position, it would be easy for Verstappen to jump ship, but that may not be the wisest decision.

The running order at the start of the 2026 season is going to be a lottery. Taking a gamble to leave Red Bull and commit to a long-term contract elsewhere could backfire.

Instead, playing the patient game and waiting to see who is fast next year before exploring a move could be most beneficial beyond 2027.

Verstappen to Mercedes rumours don’t ‘make sense’ because Will Buxton believes it would destroy Kimi Antonelli, who is only 18 years old.

At the same time, it would be an incredible opportunity for him to learn from one of the best in the sport’s history at a very young age. It’s a challenge he may even welcome.