Translation:

Red Bull because of the Horner affair: once bulls, now zeros

There is no end to the saga surrounding the accusations against Red Bull team boss Christian Horner. That’s why the Briton is being compared to Icarus.

The saga surrounding the accusations against Red Bull team boss Christian Horner is never ending. That’s why the Briton is being compared to Icarus.

Things are only going well at Red Bull in sporting terms. After last week’s test drives in Bahrain, defending champion Max Verstappen (26) is considered to be the heavy favorite for the title in the Formula 1 World Championship, the first of 24 races of which will take place next Saturday on the track near the Bahraini capital of Manama. Formula E boss Jeff Dodds even bet 250,000 US dollars on the Dutch Red Bull superstar. He would donate it to charity if Verstappen does not win his fourth title in a row.

Beyond the stopwatches, however, something is really rotten in the Red Bull state in Fuschl near Salzburg. The reason: Red Bull Racing team boss Christian Horner (50) is still in office despite an investigation into sexual harassment in the workplace. There is still no result of the hearing by a lawyer, who has literally disappeared on vacation since then.

Horner, who vehemently denies any allegations, used the extra time to be present at the tests in Bahrain. However, it is not only the FIA and the American chief marketer of the premier class, Liberty Media, who are demanding the fastest possible clarification from Red Bull. Ford, the future technical partner, is now reacting most impatiently.

Ford demands clarification from Red Bull

In an open letter to the Formula 1 team, which is available to the AP news agency, the CEO calls for transparency in dealing with the matter. Ford is increasingly annoyed because there has been "no solution so far and no clear indication of when a fair and equitable solution can be expected. “Furthermore, the lack of transparency towards us is frustrating. Because we are business partners. And we want to receive a full report of all findings.”

One thing is certain: The Austrian decision-makers of the beverage group around Mark Mateschitz (he inherited the 49 percent from his father, Group founder Dietrich Mateschitz) and CEO Oliver Mintzlaff would rather get rid of Horner today than tomorrow. However, their hands are tied.

F1-Insider.com knows why: Dietrich Mateschitz had a management contract with the 51 percent owners from Thailand, which gave him a free hand in various operational decisions. This included making personnel decisions independently. After Mateschitz’s death in October 2022, this crucial additional agreement was not transferred to the heirs. As a result, it is not possible to suspend or dismiss Horner without the consent of the Thai family.

The problem: Chalerm Yoovidhya, head of the Thai Red Bull family, has taken a fancy to Horner. Ralf Schumacher, Formula 1 star and current expert for Sky Germany and extremely well connected at Red Bull, puts it in a nutshell at F1-Insider.com: “For Chalerm, Horner is a kind of foster son. He stands by him unconditionally. And whether we like it or not, unfortunately the reality is that our Western values of equality have not yet arrived in Thailand. The role of a woman is still seen differently there.”

Loss of image for Red Bull

The Austrians are therefore almost desperate to see how the Horner affair is causing more and more damage to the beverage company’s image. “Former bulls, now zeros” is the most harmless gloating that Mateschitz Junior and Co. have to listen to behind closed doors in the scene.

Because Horner has the Thais behind him. It doesn’t matter that he has turned the most important people against him with the Verstappen clan, design genius Adrian Newey, chief consultant Helmut Marko and the decision-makers at Red Bull in Austria. Frustrated, all you hear from Austria are sentences like: “Horner lives on another planet. He is no longer from this world.”

However, anyone who wants to understand why Horner has long been nicknamed “Icarus” in Salzburg, the young man from Greek mythology whose wings melted because he came too close to the sun, just has to watch the current season of the F1 documentary “Drive to survive” on Netflix. Horner celebrates himself in the style of the Sun King Louis XIV, who in the Middle Ages wiped away critics of his decadent lifestyle with one sentence: “I am the state.”

In several situations in the documentary, Horner never leaves any doubt as to who Red Bull has to thank for everything: him. With the knowledge of the investigation in the background, some scenes become bizarre. For example, when Santa Claus asks his children on camera: “Was your daddy good last year?” Or when he replies to his driver Daniel Ricciardo, who wishes him a good flight from A to B, completely detached: “As long as I’m not sitting behind Helmut (Marko, the ed.) and he farts, everything is ok.”

Jordan: “Someone has to pull the ripcord”

One thing is certain: Red Bull Austria must solve the Horner problem as quickly as possible. Despite the superiority from Thailand. Former team boss Eddie Jordan, a buddy of design genius Adrian Newey, fears the worst otherwise. Jordan told F1-Insider.com: “I’ve seen a lot of bad decisions. But the Red Bull situation is the most absurd thing I’ve ever seen. Of course there is the presumption of innocence for Horner. But does anyone seriously believe that the employee made the accusations up out of thin air? If Horner is innocent, is she guilty? The damage to Red Bull’s image is already huge. Someone has to pull the ripcord now.”

But who? At the moment, the plan is still for Horner, Newey and Marko to fly together from Austria to the opening race in Bahrain on Wednesday afternoon. You could also say: “The incredible journey in a crazy plane.”