Former Formula One CEO Bernie Ecclestone has slammed Christian Horner for being an “idiot” during his tenure with Red Bull Racing. The 94-year-old F1 supremo has hinted at the reason that likely paved the way to Horner’s abrupt Red Bull exit on Wednesday.
Horner led Red Bull Racing for twenty years, winning six constructors’ titles and eight drivers’ championships. However, Red Bull decided to part ways with him for reasons that are yet to be known.
Ecclestone has allegedly linked Horner’s exit to the controversy that erupted during the opening round of the 2024 season, when Horner was accused of inappropriate behavior by a female colleague.
While Horner was cleared of any wrongdoing after an internal investigation, details of the alleged messages he sent to the colleague were shared with all team principals and senior figures in F1 by an anonymous sender.
Ecclestone blamed Horner for acting like he was 20 in his 50s. He told The Telegraph:
“This other business that he got involved with 18 months ago, he was just an idiot. He was a 50-year-old who thought he was 20, thought he was one of the boys.
“I often wonder, when these situations happen, why if the girl is so upset with the advances of someone, they don’t just say, ‘Oi you, stop it.’”
In what was most likely a reference to an alleged power struggle within Red Bull Racing last year, Ecclestone also highlighted the power held by Horner within the organization, and how that could have led many to allegedly turn against him when the team began to face problems with the car. He added:
“It would probably have been better if they had said, ‘Come in, Christian, sit down,’ but 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.’”
Horner’s dispute with Max Verstappen’s father, Jos Verstappen, last year made matters worse. Ecclestone explained that Horner likely found himself in a compromising position in the organization, eventually. He said:
“Genuinely, it was a little bit of a muddle. Christian was the chief executive. If I’m the chief executive of a company, I want to be in charge. I want to do all the things that I think are right, and if I’m wrong, they can fire me, they can say, ‘Sorry, bye-bye, you made a few mistakes.’ So, the minute Christian can’t be in that position to do what he thinks should be done, then for him it’s not easy. You can’t half-manage something. You need to have someone, I always say, to turn the lights on and off. You only really need one person.”
He added:
“I know it was suggested to him he should be a team manager and leave the commercial side to somebody else. But his idea was, ‘I am the chief executive.’”
Ecclestone then described Horner’s role at Red Bull for the last twenty years, acknowledging his efforts that made the team what it is today, but pointed out an alleged backlash when the car stopped winning races. He said:
“For Christ’s sake, who else has done what he has in Formula One? Just for results? You get very few executives who can do everything, from engineering to public relations.
“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.”
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