Details of Christian Horner’s dismissal from the Red Bull Formula 1 team have been revealed, with reports claiming the crucial meeting took place in a London hotel.
Horner was fired by the Milton Keynes-based squad on Wednesday after 20 years in the role, additionally ending his tenure as F1’s longest-serving team boss.
The 51-year-old was immediately replaced as Team Principal and CEO by Racing Bulls boss Laurent Mekies.
Horner made an emotional statement to the team’s personnel at Milton Keynes the same day, as his exit was made public.
According to German newspaper Bild, Horner was informed of the decision at a London hotel by Red Bull’s CEO, Oliver Mintzlaff and senior advisor Helmut Marko, on the Tuesday leading up to the British Grand Prix.
However, the same publication has also reported that the initial plans to remove Horner from his post began a week earlier at the Austrian Grand Prix in Spielberg, when Mintzlaff met with Mark Mateschitz and Chalerm Yoovidhya, two of Red Bull’s key stakeholders.
This was followed by a Zoom call in which the decision was made final.
It was reported that Horner’s previously stellar relationship with Yoovidhya had soured after Horner had shown a lack of interest in overseeing additional areas of the organisation, including its marketing and technical operations departments, as well as its powertrains department.
Further speculation says that Yoovidhya and Max Verstappen – whose father Jos had publicly stated his contention with Horner – were not at a clay pigeon shoot, an event held by the team before the British Grand Prix every season.
These reports would point towards a continuing trend of speculation that those in the Verstappen camp were keen for the team to be rid of Horner, in an effort to tempt the reigning World Champion into staying with the team, amid increasing rumours of an impending switch to Mercedes.
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