Christian Horner formally leaves Red Bull with £52m pay-off

Christian Horner has formally left Red Bull after agreeing a severance deal following his sacking as team principal in July.

Red Bull’s statement announcing his departure did not give any figures, but a source close to Red Bull told BBC Sport that Horner had received a pay-off of 60m euros (£52m), which would be one of the biggest pay-outs in sports history.

The 51-year-old was in charge of the Formula 1 team since their inception in 2005, leading them to eight drivers’ championship and six constructors’ championship titles.

He had a salary of 12m euros (£10m) a year and a contract to 2030.

On 9 July Red Bull said Horner had been “released from his operational duties”.

He was dismissed after a controversial 18 months that started when a female employee accused him of sexual harassment, an allegation that was made public in February 2024.

Horner was twice cleared of the claims, firstly after an internal investigation conducted by a lawyer, then by another lawyer who dismissed the complainant’s appeal.

But the revelation exposed a power struggle at the team which accompanied a loss of competitiveness.

Red Bull’s long-time design leader, Adrian Newey - regarded as the greatest designer in F1 history - left the team in April last year.

He was upset by the allegations, as well as the way he perceived his importance had been diminished by Horner and others at the team.

Long-time sporting director Jonathan Wheatley followed in July. He is now team principal of Sauber for their transition into Audi’s factory team next year.

Will Courtenay, head of strategy who had been at Red Bull since it was Jaguar in the early 2000s, resigned in July. He will join McLaren as sporting director as soon as a contractual impasse can be resolved.

As Red Bull’s form declined through the first half of this season, relations between Horner and the main shareholders worsened.

Horner lost the support of the main shareholder, Chalerm Yoovidhya, who saved him when the allegations first became public, and Oliver Mintzlaff, Red Bull’s chief executive officer corporate projects and investments, decided to sack him after a poor performance by the team at the British Grand Prix.

In a statement on Monday Mintzlaff thanked Horner for his “exceptional work”.

“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,” Mintzlaff said.

Horner said in the same statement that leading Red Bull had been “an honour and a privilege”.

He added: “My biggest satisfaction has been assembling and leading the most amazing group of talented and driven individuals and seeing them flourish as a subsidiary of an energy drinks company and seeing them take on and beat some of the biggest automotive brands in the world.”

Source: BBC

- Agencies