F1 News
Red Bull boss backs Horner: 'Thinking only of the team'
While the internal turmoil flared to great heights in recent months, within Red Bull Racing everyone was looking to Oliver Mintzlaff, the managing director of Red Bull GmbH. If there was anyone who could put an end to all the fuss, surely it should be the big man within the group. But there was silence from the headquarters in Austria, which meant discontent continued to simmer. Now Mintzlaff is stepping out of the shadows, to publicly express his support for Christian Horner, Red Bull Racing's under-pressured team boss.
Reportedly, it was precisely the narrow section within Red Bull GmbH led by Mintzlaff that wanted Horner to step down after the allegations of inappropriate behaviour by a female colleague. In the end, this section of the company backed down, as the Thai majority shareholder remained firmly behind Horner.
Horner suddenly backed by Red Bull boss
Apparently, Mintzlaff has changed his mind. Indeed, in Bild, he now says that Horner is the right man to lead Red Bull Racing. "I am convinced of that. He only has the team's success in mind and is a very good CEO," said the German.
With Adrian Newey, a key figure is leaving Red Bull Racing's organisation, Mintzlaff also praised the Chief Technical Officer, without incidentally going into the reasons for the Briton's departure. Newey himself said that this year's unrest within the team played a role in his decision to leave Red Bull Racing.
"Adrian has done great things here over the years and played a big part in us winning 13 World Cup titles. It's obviously a shame that he's leaving us, but we discussed it in a very fair and respectful dialogue. What he leaves behind is not only a unique legacy, but also a structure that he helped to build. Of course we will miss him – also as a person – but tomorrow we will still know how to build a very fast Formula 1 car."
Marko with Verstappen to Mercedes?
Whether that will be enough for Max Verstappen to serve out his contract, which runs until the end of '28, remains to be seen. Mintzlaff expresses that Red Bull is working hard to develop its own power unit. Of this, it is now common knowledge that development is not going entirely according to expectations. Verstappen is also aware of this, and it may be a reason for him to switch to another team.
Mercedes is particularly interested in Verstappen's service. Should the Dutchman switch to Toto Wolff's team, there is speculation that Helmut Marko will follow Verstappen. However, Mintzlaff does not see that happening: "I think that is impossible. Helmut has close ties to Red Bull and we have a lot to thank him for. He also showed the courage to entrust Max with a Formula 1 cockpit at the age of 17."