Red Bull destroyed its own F1 dynasty for no reason

This feels like the end of an era.

There are two ways that dynasties crumble: Age or unforced error. Red Bull’s F1 organization spectacularly chose the latter over the past 12 months with a seemingly endless string of moves that backfired. Now it’s appropriate whether to question whether this is the end for the team as we know it.

Team principal Christian Horner was fired on Wednesday morning amidst the most challenging season the team has had in years. Once the paragon of dominance, Red Bull stumbled, not just in standings but prestige over the 2025 season. It raised questions whether Max Verstappen could seek greener pastures after 65 Grand Prix wins with the team, as the once-dominant car lagged behind constructors it used to lap.

Sacking Horner was clearly a move to satiate Verstappen’s frustrations, but trouble had been brewing at Red Bull for some time before if you read the tea leaves. It began with the team’s response to allegations of sexual harassment and inappropriate behavior by Horner towards a female colleague, which emerged in February of 2024. At the time it felt like a foregone conclusion Red Bull would part ways with Horner, as it was the logical and morally correct move, but they instead rallied around him, clearing him of any wrongdoing in a fairly suspect internal investigation, which the team never released any details of.

Not long after this came another massive blow with Adrian Newey, arguably the greatest engineer in the sport’s history, announcing he would depart the team in April of 2024. The unquestioned scientific genius behind Red Bull’s dominance, the timing of Newey wanting out was suspiciously close to the Horner allegations, leading many to believe that Red Bull’s decision to exonerate and keep Horner had a direct effect on Newey leaving.

Then came the driver swap to start the 2025 season. Sergio Pérez, who had been Red Bull’s No. 2 next to Verstappen for all four of his world championship was being pushed aside to make way for youngster Liam Lawson. It came following a down season from Pérez that saw him finish 8th in the driver’s championship, netting only four podiums, functionally costing Red Bull a chance at the Constructors’ Championship, where they finished third behind McLaren and Ferrari. It felt like a knee-jerk decision, even in spite of the friction between Verstappen and Pérez. The team cast aside its long-standing side kick at the first sign of trouble, treating him as the most replaceable man in Formula 1.

Lawson ended up being terrible, was replaced by Yuki Tsunoda in the seat, and he’s been equally terrible. Through 12 races this season Lawson and Tsunoda rank 16th and 17th in the Driver’s Championship respectively, with neither managing to take a single podium.

There’s been an innate arrogance in Red Bull’s thinking that channeled itself through Verstappen’s brilliance. A prevailing belief that anyone was replaceable and simply a cog in the machine, which both denigrated individual achievement, while also overstating the value of the men at the top. That’s why Red Bull is in the situation it’s in right now.

So begins the most precarious juncture in the history of Red Bull’s F1 organization since its inception. The team is lagging behind in 2025, Verstappen is unhappy, Horner is gone, Newey is gone, and this is all happening when the team is on the verge on swapping from its long-reliable Honda powertrain to a largely unproved one made by Ford. This challenge is being foisted on the shoulders of Laurent Mekies, former Racing Director at Ferrari, who is an in-house hire after leading Visa Cash App Racing Bulls these past few seasons as Team Principal.

Will Verstappen even like working with Mekies? Probably not, because it’s unclear if Verstappen really likes working with anyone. Sure, Max is currently third in the 2025 standings and there’s a chance some magic could happen, but it doesn’t feel like it. McLaren is blowing everyone out of the water this season and the field is playing catch up.

This will be one of the great “what ifs” in motorsport. Had the team chosen to axe Horner in 2024 and do what it took to keep Newey we could be seeing Red Bull in a very different light right now. Instead, for the first team in years, the team feels rudderless, without a plan, and with all hope evaporating.

If this is truly the end of the Red Bull dynasty there will be a lot of blame going around, but in the end the team only has one place to point its finger: At itself.