October 16th 2023.
Christian Horner has been the principal of Red Bull Racing since its formation in 2005 and during that time, the team has experienced great success, winning 16 of 17 races this season and securing both the Constructors and Drivers championships. However, with the passing of Red Bull founder Dietrich Mateschitz last year, political tensions have been brewing between the higher ups, with Christian now reportedly trying to oust his long-time friend and colleague, Helmut Marko.
Helmut has been the head of Red Bull's driver development programme since its inception and has helped guide the careers of many of F1's top drivers, including Max Verstappen, Sebastian Vettel and Daniel Ricciardo. However, Helmut's position, previously untouchable under Mateschitz, is now under threat, with Christian and sporting CEO Oliver Mintzlaff reportedly trying to convince the company's new board into ousting him in the coming months.
The reason for this alleged power struggle is due to Helmut's controversial and derogatory comments about various drivers, even those under Red Bull's employ. He recently made xenophobic remarks about Sergio Perez and initially refused to apologise for them, with Horner later criticising the comments but not taking any action.
The report also adds that tension is growing between Horner and Marko over the running of AlphaTauri, with Christian wanting to drop Yuki Tsunoda from the team despite the Japanese driver recently extending his contract through 2024. This is something that Marko is against as Honda bring $10million worth of funding with them.
The F1 season continues this weekend with the USA Grand Prix in Austin, Texas. While things are running smoothly on the track, the political drama off of it is sure to continue to build until the Red Bull board make a decision on Helmut Marko's future.
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