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Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko compared Christian Horner's work to that of Laurent Mekies, stating that the latter has brought more positivity to the team and better results. Horner and RBR split earlier this season in a shocking move.
Christian Horner had served as Red Bull's team principal since their inception in the 2005 season, becoming the longest-serving team principal in F1 history. Under him, the team won six Constructors' and eight Drivers' championships, making him one of the most efficient team principals on the grid. Shockingly enough, he was let go from the team earlier in July this year, and the decision was said to be mutual.
While no official reason was given, the team's performance this season and the internal investigation against him earlier last year were speculated to be the reasons for the split.
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Laurent Mekies, who had been serving as the team principal for VCARB, was appointed in his place. The team saw a difference in the working, as RBR's advisor, Helmut Marko, explained.
"The whole technical team is more open and they discuss things," he said (via Autosport). "Appointing him was the right decision. Given the complexity of Formula 1, having a technical expert at the top is probably the better solution."
Marko added:
"It’s now much more structured from a technical perspective. And when everything works together, and the driver is integrated into the process, you can see the results. The car isn’t fundamentally different, but with this level of coordination, we can deliver such performances."
Red Bull also recently had their first taste of success under Mekies as it won the race at Monza, conquering the 2025 F1 Italian GP.
Laurent Mekies claims "perfect" weekend after RBR's first victory without Christian Horner
Max Verstappen is the non-McLaren driver with the most wins this season. He won two races previously at Suzuka and Imola, but that was under Christian Horner's guidance. A dry spell followed this as the team struggled to provide a car that was competitive enough to clinch the top place on the podium.
However, the Italian GP weekend turned out to be a major change for the team as Max Verstappen dominated. He put in the fastest lap in F1 history to clinch pole position and ended the race in 1 hour, 13 minutes, and 23 seconds, making it the quickest race in F1, too.
Christian Horner's replacement, Laurent Mekies, claimed that it was a "perfect" weekend with Verstappen taking the win.
"Max did just a perfection, perfect weekend," Mekies said after the race (via F1). "Such a strong weekend, it put us there. We were not anticipating to have a pace advantage in the race, but it turned out to be the case."
Max Verstappen still sits in third place in the championship as McLaren continues to dominate. However, his performance proves that he remains one of the strongest drivers on the current grid.
