Uncontrollable Chaos
“What happens in Red Bull doesn’t stay in Red Bull”—this could summarize the past two years of the British-based team, which is backed by Austrian and Thai capital. A period marked by storms of all kinds, each recounted in detail in newspapers and websites worldwide. Friendly fire, enemy fire, cross-suspicions, high-profile departures. The Red Bull team has plunged into chaos, and not even Max Verstappen’s fourth consecutive drivers’ title seems to have restored balance. On the contrary, in recent days, speculation has only increased.
Just consider what happened to Liam Lawson, demoted to Racing Bulls after just two race weekends. As reported by the editor-in-chief of De Limburger—the Dutch outlet that first broke the news on Tuesday evening: “Our main source was quite high up, so we deemed the story valid enough to publish. We decided not to call Red Bull for a comment and went ahead, even knowing that Lawson was unaware of the outcome of the Dubai summit. Then we received furious reactions from Red Bull.”
In short, the news broke online before being communicated to the directly affected party—just to give an idea of the atmosphere…
Constant Leaks
On Saturday morning, it was The Daily Mail and its well-informed journalist Jonathan McEvoy who reported on “fierce internal politics” within Red Bull, citing “sources close to the team.” The British newspaper explained how Christian Horner and Helmut Marko have, over the years, played a sort of good cop/bad cop dynamic, with Horner given the ungrateful task of informing drivers of their dismissals. Max Verstappen, meanwhile, has his own inner circle, consisting of Helmut Marko, his father Jos, his manager Raymond Vermeulen, and his race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase. It is no secret that Christian Horner is not considered indispensable by Max Verstappen.
The source close to the team revealed to The Daily Mail that “both Helmut and Christian share responsibility for the Liam fiasco.”
This aligns with a report from GPBlog on Saturday evening, which previously noted—likely not coincidentally—Marko’s absence from the Milton Keynes summit that was supposed to outline the RB21’s development.
Will Christian Horner and Helmut Marko Be Ousted?
The Dutch outlet also spoke with “sources very close to what is happening” and went as far as to claim that “Marko’s departure would be necessary to help Red Bull save itself from chaos.” But that’s not all—between the lines, one can read: “For the good of the team, not only Marko should leave, but also Horner. And if there were a meeting where the Thai shareholder had to choose between Horner and Marko, the one to go would be the team principal.”
This is certainly not a random statement—it is reasonable to assume it originates from within the team—and it is surprising, considering that Christian Horner previously shielded himself behind team owner Chalerm Yoovidhya during the storm of allegations regarding inappropriate behavior.
GPBlog concluded with another cryptic remark: “The question is whether Horner and Marko will decide to step down voluntarily for the good of the team. A quick decision would be essential, as Max must decide his future. But if Horner and Marko remain in their roles, then it is easy to understand which path Verstappen will choose…”
Although Helmut Marko is respected by the ‘Verstappen clan,’ many within the team believe that his decisions have contributed to Red Bull’s decline into mediocrity. Thus, the futures of Horner and Marko may not be as closely intertwined as in the past—at least, not in Max Verstappen’s eyes.
It is also worth remembering that Christian Horner is still entangled in the inappropriate behavior case, which will see him face a public labor tribunal in January 2026, with all the potential risks—read: reputational damage—that could bring to the team.
Finally, speculation about Red Bull’s power unit refuses to die down. The German outlet Formel1.de has reported “backstage rumors suggesting that it is not technologically up to the level of the Mercedes V6.” This is the same Red Bull Powertrain project championed by Christian Horner, who torpedoed the Porsche deal (which aimed to acquire 50% of the team).
In short, no one can predict what will happen. But from the current picture, even Christian Horner and Helmut Marko can no longer consider themselves safe.
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