Christian Horner axed from final Red Bull role as ties completely severed
Updated . First published at
Red Bull Racing has severed all ties with former team principal Christian Horner after he was removed as a director within the organisation's business entities.
In the days following last month's British Grand Prix, Horner, who had been hired as the team's inaugural boss, was sacked as team principal with immediate effect, ending a 20-year reign at the top of the Formula 1 team.
However, in a leaked video of Horner's farewell speech to staff, he could be heard saying that he remained a Red Bull employee without an operational role — a form of gardening leave.
READ MORE: Power skipper denies 'disgusting' rumours about marriage
READ MORE: Liverpool legend's ominous warning to title rivals
READ MORE: Game-day lunch meeting inspired 'sneaky' Grant winner
Former Red Bull Racing team principle Christian Horner. Getty
Beyond his role as team principal, Horner was the CEO of both Red Bull Racing and Red Bull Advanced Technologies — overseeing Red Bull Powertrains, which, in partnership with Ford, is driving the team's project of developing their own powertrains for the new 2026 regulations — and was a director of Red Bull Technology Limited.
However, the Milton Keynes-based team's Termination of Director Appointment filed with the UK's Companies House on Thursday confirmed that Horner was removed as a director of all three companies within the corporate structure.
This process marks the formal and final separation of his direct ties with the core business entities, having been appointed as a Red Bull Racing director in 2007 and to the technologies board in 2010.
Reports indicate that Horner's departure was the culmination of a period of internal power struggles and declining performance for the team this season.
Last year, following an internal investigation into dismissed misconduct allegations levelled at him, Horner faced external scrutiny and calls for him to step down. However, he remained in charge, denying the accusations of inappropriate behaviour throughout.
This year, the once thought-unbeatable force is stuck in a performance slump.
Christian Horner and the Red Bull Racing team celebrate in the pitlane after the 2023 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Red Bull Content Pool
The team was pipped by McLaren for the 2024 constructors' title and has since fallen to fourth in the constructors' standings at the mid-year break, despite still being spearheaded by four-time reigning champion Max Verstappen, who currently sits third in the drivers' standings.
The role of team principal and CEO of Red Bull Racing has been filled by Laurent Mekies, who was in charge of sister team Racing Bulls.
Horner's successor as director has been named as Stefan Salzer, who is the global head of human resources at Red Bull Racing's parent company, Red Bull GmbH.
Salzer's appointment to the boards of Red Bull Racing and Red Bull Technology Limited signals a greater influence from the Austrian-based company in the UK-based F1 operation.
He joins senior motorsport advisor Helmut Marko as the only other director in Red Bull Racing.
Salzer briefly served as a Red Bull Racing director in 2005 during the team's entry into F1.
Christian Horner, Helmut Marko and Max Verstappen. Getty
Horner has since been linked with a move to Alpine.
Six-time grand prix winner Ralf Schumacher believes the "time of figures" like acting team principal and executive director Flavio Briatore "is over", with Horner and Alpine a good fit.
"You need tech-savvy people at the top, someone like Horner," he told German tabloid newspaper Bild.
"Flavio could then help as an organiser and networker, as a face to the outside world."
