Christian Horner SACKED by Red Bull F1 after 20 years as replacement immediately named

Christian Horner has been removed from his positions as chief executive and team principal of Red Bull Racing. A spokesperson for parent company Red Bull GmbH told Mirror Sport: "Red Bull has released Christian Horner from his operational duties with effect from today."

The company also confirmed: "Laurent Mekies has been promoted from Racing Bulls to replace him as CEO." The Frenchman was team principal at Red Bull's junior team, having joined from Ferrari. Oliver Mintzlaff, chief of Red Bull's sporting projects, said: "We would like to thank Christian Horner for his exceptional work over the last 20 years.

"With his tireless commitment, experience, expertise and innovative thinking, he has been instrumental in establishing Red Bull Racing as one of the most successful and attractive teams in Formula 1. Thank you for everything, Christian, and you will forever remain an important part of our team history."

Horner has been the team's only leader since it first arrived in Formula 1 back in 2005. The Red Bull energy drinks company purchased the struggling Jaguar F1 team in November 2004 and Horner was recruited to help turn it into a force on the grid. His exit comes after the 51-year-old, who is married to Spice Girl Geri Horner, was last year accused and cleared of 'inappropriate behaviour' by a female colleague.

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His replacement Mekies said: "The last year and a half has been an absolute privilege to lead the team with Peter [Bayer, Racing Bulls CEO]. It has been an amazing adventure to contribute to the birth of Racing Bulls together with all our talented people.

"The spirit of the whole team is incredible, and I strongly believe that this is just the beginning. Alan is the perfect man to take over now and continue our path. He knows the team inside out and has always been an important pillar of our early successes."

It has also been confirmed that Alan Permane has been promoted from his role as sporting director of Racing Bulls to become team principal at the junior team. He said: "I feel very honoured to take on the role as team principal and would like to thank Oliver [Mintzlaff] and Helmut [Marko] for the trust they have shown in me.

"I am looking forward to working with Peter to continue the good work that both him and Laurent have done in taking this team forward. This is a new challenge for me, but I know that I can count on the support of everyone within them."

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Until today, Horner had been the team's only leader since it first arrived in Formula 1 back in 2005. The Red Bull energy drinks company purchased the struggling Jaguar F1 team in November 2004 and Horner was recruited to help turn it into a force on the grid.

During his 20 years in charge, the team has won 14 titles including eight drivers' championship wins and six constructors' title successes. They have also managed 124 race wins, 107 pole positions and 287 podium finishes.

Red Bull won their first F1 title in 2010, the first of four consecutive drivers' championships with Sebastian Vettel between 2010 and 2013. They later repeated the trick between 2021 and 2024, with Max Verstappen dominating the grid.

But the team has lacked competitiveness this year. Red Bull Racing are languishing in fourth place in the constructors' championship 38 points behind third-placed Mercedes and a whopping 288 adrift of runaway leaders McLaren.

Horner was the longest-serving team principal on the F1 grid before he was relieved of his duties. His exit means Toto Wolff is now the veteran chief in the F1 paddock, having led Mercedes since 2013 when he joined from Williams where he was executive director. The second longest-serving team principal on the grid is now Andrea Stella, who was only appointed by McLaren in December 2022.

Horner's position has been largely under scrutiny since he was accused last year of 'inappropriate behaviour' by a female colleague at Red Bull Racing. He denied the claim and was cleared of wrongdoing by an independent external KC appointed by Red Bull to investigate the matter.

But the scandal caused divisions in Red Bull Racing's leadership. Long-serving team adviser Helmut Marko seemed to be working against Horner for a time, but eventually agreed to a ceasefire. But Verstappen's father Jos has been an advocate for a new leader of the team ever since.

That may be a factor in the company's decision to cut Horner loose, particularly at a time when Verstappen is being strongly linked with a switch to rivals Mercedes. Red Bull may feel they have a better chance of keeping hold of their star driver by having removed Horner from the team principal and CEO roles.