Sacked Red Bull boss Christian Horner has been labelled an ‘idiot 50-year-old who thought he was 20’ by former Formula 1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone.
The F1 world was rocked on Wednesday when it was announced that Horner had been ‘relieved of his operational duties’, although he still remains employed by Red Bull.
Horner, husband of former Spice Girl Geri Halliwell, had run Red Bull since its inception in 2005, winning eight drivers’ championships and six constructors’ championships.
The 51-year-old said his dismissal came as a ‘shock’ but it could be argued that it was inevitable amid reports of a power struggle at the team, loss of key staff like Adrian Newey, a feud with Max Verstappen’s dad Jos and a sharp decline in results on the track over the past 12 months.
Moreover, Horner’s reputation plummeted 18 months ago after he was accused of coercive behaviour towards a female colleague.
He was twice cleared following internal investigations but the scandal continues to hang over him and the team after hundreds of WhatsApp messages, appearing to be exchanged between Horner and the complainant, were leaked to the F1 world.
Ecclestone, who ran F1 for four decades until 2017, has now spoken out about Horner’s sacking and was highly critical of his close friend in regards to the scandal.
‘This other business that he got involved with 18 months ago, he was just an idiot,’ the 94-year-old told The Telegraph.
‘He was a 50-year-old who thought he was 20, thought he was one of the boys.’
He later added: ‘The bottom line is that there are people there who thought he was getting away with things, that he was acting as if it was not the Red Bull Ring, but the Christian Horner Ring.
‘He got away with so many things. And all the time you’re delivering, people close their eyes. But when you stop delivering, people start looking. One or two begin thinking, “Well, I could do a better job”.
Christian Horner’s goodbye speech to Red Bull staff
‘Yesterday, I was informed by Red Bull that operationally I would no longer be involved with the business or the team moving forward.
‘I will still remain employed by the company but, operationally, the baton will be handed over.
‘It came as a shock to myself. I’ve had a chance to reflect over the last 12 hours and wanted to stand in front of all of you to break this news and to express my gratitude to each and every single member of the team that has given so much during the last 20-and-a-half years.
‘When I arrived 20 years ago, there were a few less grey hairs. I walked into a team and did not know what to expect but I was immediately welcomed and we started to build what became a powerhouse in F1.
‘Watching and being part of this team, has been the biggest privilege of my life.’
‘He had been running the company the way he thought it should be run. For a long time, people were prepared to say, “OK, fair enough, he’s getting the job done”. But as soon as you go off a little bit, people look and say, “Hang on”.
‘Christian won a lot of championships. He was used to winning. So, it’s not easy when you’re not winning – and when you know that it’s not entirely your fault.’
Ecclestone also believes that Horner would still have his job if Red Bull was still being run by it’s founder Dietrich Mateschitz, who passed away in 2022.
‘When the real boss was alive, he would have smelt there was going to be trouble at the camp. He would have thought, “I had better get stuck into this, see what’s what, and rectify it”.’
Christian Horner had bust-up with Jos Verstappen days before Red Bull sacking
In spite of Max Verstappen’s great success, Horner has long a difficult relationship with his father Jos.
In the wake of the scandal, the Dutchman infamously called for the team principal to be sacked, saying: ‘The team is in danger of being torn apart. It can’t go on the way it is. It will explode.’
The pair repeatedly clashed and according to former F1 driver turned pundit Ralf Schumacher, they did so again following last Sunday’s British Grand Prix at Silverstone.
‘There was another argument or a heated exchange, at least visually and verbally between Jos Verstappen, Christian Horner and the press officer,’ Schumacher said.
‘You could see that Jos was anything but happy with the situation.’
Verstappen started the British Grand Prix on pole but in the notoriously difficult to drive RB21 he slumped to finish fifth, while teammate Yuki Tsunoda’s terrible form continued as he crossed the line 15th.
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