Horner reveals he had his sights set early on Newey at Red Bull
F1 News
- GPblog.com
Christian Horner has been part of Red Bull Racing from the very beginning, becoming the youngest team boss ever. With that role also comes the less pleasant decisions: for instance, Horner was forced to transfer Guenther Steiner to clear the way for the arrival of Adrian Newey.
Horner began his motorsport career as a driver, but proved to have a talent for the business side of the sport in particular. That talent was recognised early on by Helmut Marko, who in 2005 brought in the then only 31-year-old Briton as team boss at the newly formed Red Bull Racing.
Steiner transferred by Red Bull
Guenther Steiner was brought to the team in the role of director of technical operations, and in that capacity he and Horner led the team in its first season. However, when he and David Coulthard managed to recruit Adrian Newey, he decided to find another home for Steiner.
"Guenther was and is a character but it was obvious he was not a technical leader. I identified what the team really needed was technical leadership and direction. So from a very early stage I made a point of bumping into Adrian," Horner explained in conversation with Inews.co.uk.
Steiner remained at Red Bull in the following years, albeit in a different role - and in a different place. He was transferred to the United States to set up a NASCAR team on behalf of the brand. There the current Haas team boss succeeded and he continued to work for Red Bull until he decided to set up his own company in 2009. In the years that followed, talks began with Gene Haas about setting up a US F1 team.