5 interesting facts to know about new Red Bull boss Laurent Mekies

Red Bull has announced the sacking of Christian Horner from the team, which opened up a vacancy that Racing Bulls team principal, Laurent Mekies, will fill in. The 48-year-old's career in motorsports began in the junior racing categories before joining the F1 grid in 2003 with Minardi.

Since then, Mekies has had a host of experiences in the F1 world, yet little is known about him off the track, so let's take a look at five interesting facts about the new Red Bull supremo, who would be aiming to fill the boots of Horner at the team:

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#5. Laurent Mekies has studied at an F1 student destination

Laurent Mekies had completed his mechanical engineering in France before moving to England to join Loughborough University, a well-known destination for the F1 teams to recruit students. There, he pursued his Master's degree in automobile engineering and joined the junior racing paddock in F3.

The young Frenchman became a race engineer there and quickly moved on to complete his F1 ambitions after working in the F3 championship for two years.

#4. Mekies has long drawn ties with Red Bull

Mekies had joined the F1 grid with Minardi. However, the team was soon bought by the Austrian energy drink maker in 2005, which began the Frenchman's first stint with Red Bull.

Though the team was renamed Toro Rosso and Mekies worked for the junior outfit at Faenza, his ties with the leadership at Red Bull grew stronger before joining the FIA in 2014.

At last, his arrival at Racing Bulls last year made a complete-circle moment as he takes on the chief role at Red Bull.

#3. Mekies had a crucial role in implementing the Halo in F1

Laurent Mekies' role at the FIA was primarily as the Safety Director. While he took his job in 2014, F1's one of the biggest accidents coincided with his arrival as the Safety Director, as the racing world lost Jules Bianchi at the 2014 Japanese GP.

Oscar Piastri's McLaren at the F1 Hungarian Grand Prix 2024 - Source: Getty

Moreover, the governing body soon began its pursuit of finding a way to safeguard drivers from a similar incident yet again, and Mekies was leading the charge within the organization. This ultimately led to the introduction of the Halo device from the 2018 season under his reign before he moved on to his next F1 chapter.

#2. The 1990 Mexican GP is the favorite race of Mekies

The 48-year-old rarely talks about anything apart from F1. Every F1 fan and personnel member has their favorite F1 race close to their heart, and the 1990 Mexican GP is Laurent Mekies' all-time favorite.

The race was won by Alain Prost in the Ferrari, as Nigel Mansell brought home a 1-2 for the Maranello-based squad amid a season known for McLaren's dominance.

#1. The Frenchman is one of the lowest net worth F1 team principals on the grid

Laurent Mekies will be the second French team principal on the F1 grid and Red Bull's second-ever team leader. Despite this, he does not have a massive fountain of wealth in his backyard.

The former Racing Bulls team principal is estimated to be worth around $1.25 million (via PlanetF1), a number which pales in comparison to the previous office incumbent at Red Bull, Christian Horner's net worth, around $50 million.

However, Mekies' wealth is understood to have skyrocketed since his new role at Milton Keynes in the changing dynamics of the F1 world.