Verstappen camp responds to Horner’s sudden exit

Jul.10 (GMM)  Christian Horner's sudden dismissal has stunned the Formula 1 paddock, triggering widespread speculation about the reasons behind the Red Bull boss’ abrupt departure.

Having weathered a sexting scandal, internal power battles, and the loss of key staff, Horner’s position had appeared secure — until this week. According to reports, Red Bull’s Thai owner Chalerm Yoovidhya finally sided with the Austrian wing of the company, ending a long period of protection for the 51-year-old.

The timing of Horner’s sacking is also raising eyebrows, as it coincided with Mercedes’ executive board reportedly approving a formal push to sign Max Verstappen for 2026 and beyond.

“A coincidence? Hardly,” wrote Osterreich newspaper.

Following another tough outing at Silverstone, Horner was seen clashing with Jos Verstappen. Former F1 driver Ralf Schumacher, speaking to Sky Deutschland, said: “You could see that Jos was anything but happy with the situation.” He also revealed that Horner had placed him on a “blacklist” for earlier criticism.

Schumacher believes Horner’s long reign had become unsustainable. “In the end, it really was the case that they were no longer able to attract or retain good people,” he said. “They simply didn’t want to come because of his personality.”

Rumours suggest Horner may have been attempting to force out Red Bull advisor Dr Helmut Marko or prevent the Verstappen camp from acquiring a stake in the team.

“His team most likely wants to buy shares, like Toto Wolff did at Mercedes,” former F1 driver Vitaly Petrov said via Telegram.

Bernie Ecclestone, one of Horner’s closest allies, says the Briton was blindsided by the decision. Dutch racing commentator Tom Coronel told Formule 1: “Something must have happened to cause a bit of panic. This tells me something’s wrong. There must have been a fire.”

Mika Salo echoed that sentiment in Ilta Sanomat: “I believe there is something behind the scenes that the public is not being told about. There is nothing else to say about this, unless you know.”

Two of Horner’s senior allies — communications director Paul Smith and head of marketing Oliver Hughes — are also departing. Meanwhile, speculation has already linked Horner to potential future roles at Ferrari or Alpine. Alpine’s Flavio Briatore, a known Horner supporter, offered his well-wishes for the “next adventure.”

Although Verstappen had remained tight-lipped about Horner’s fate in recent weeks, reports indicate he met privately with Red Bull CEO Oliver Mintzlaff days before the news broke.

Max Verstappen’s manager Raymond Vermeulen offered a carefully worded response: “It’s up to Red Bull to share the background to the decision. In Red Bull’s view, this is the best way forward. It’s up to the parent company to hire people and make strategic choices.”

Vermeulen added: “Nothing changes for us. We continue to look at the sporting side and are looking for more performance, so that we can return to the top.”

A Sky Italia reporter claims Verstappen may have used the Mercedes offer to apply pressure internally: “The Dutchman asked for a second person to work with alongside Horner. Now, with this move, many possibilities open up. But I believe that with Horner’s departure, Verstappen is destined to fulfil his contract until 2028.”

With Horner gone, Red Bull Racing — including the Red Bull-Ford power unit project — will now fall under the direction of Laurent Mekies. Alan Permane steps up at Racing Bulls.

“We continue to look forward to returning to the Formula 1 grid in 2026,” a Ford spokesperson said.]]>