Christian Horner breaks down in tears during emotional speech on final day in job | F1 | Sport

Published: 2025-07-09 19:00:43 | Views: 11


Christian Horner 'broke down' during an emotional goodbye speech at the Red Bull factory, according to Sky Sports F1 commentator David Croft. The long-serving team principal was sacked on Wednesday, with the team struggling in fourth place in the Constructors' Championship standings. The 51-year-old has been present on the Red Bull pit wall since the team's inception back in 2005, but after 20 years in Milton Keynes, the partnership has been terminated with immediate effect.

Horner has been replaced by Racing Bulls team principal Laurent Mekies, with Alan Permane filling the subsequent hole left in Faenza. After the announcement on Wednesday, he was given the opportunity to speak to Red Bull employees at the team factory.

Speaking outside of the Milton Keynes facility, Croft told Sky Sports F1: "From those that we've managed to speak to, it is a unified sense of disappointment and sadness at a man that they see has unified their team, who was never afraid to sit and have a chat to various people no matter what they did for the organisation.

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"The speech that Christian Horner gave this morning to the factory, we understand, was hugely emotional, and Christian himself was very emotional and broke down on occasion.

"He received a massive ovation at the end of that speech from a workforce that are very loyal to him, because he has helped bring success and bonuses and World Championship glory, in terms of 14 world titles during his time as team principal.

"He drove out this morning at 25 past 11 - I was stood here waiting for you, Craig [Slater] - and he looked fairly impassive I think, just staring ahead in his car. There was no thumbs up, there were no waves. He drove out of the gates here for what, now, seems to be the final time."

Replacement Mekies inherits a fractured team that is a shadow of the behemoth that aced the start of the ground effect regulations. Along with Horner, Jonathan Wheatley, Adrian Newey, and Rob Marshall have all departed Red Bull since 2023.

Soon, star driver Max Verstappen could follow Horner out the door. The four-time world champion is now 69 points behind Oscar Piastri at the top of the Drivers' Championship standings and could gamble on a reported move to Mercedes if he sees the Silver Arrows as the best return path towards F1 glory.



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