Motorsport Missteps: Formula 1, Red Bull Racing and Christian Horner – Could a Reckoning be on the Horizon?

Buckle up for an in-depth analysis of F1’s latest and ongoing crisis and the public affairs campaigns being waged across the paddock.

Important note to the reader. This review includes the sensitive and serious subject matter of inappropriate workplace behavior. I am approaching this analysis from the clinical perspective of a crisis management practitioner on the handling of the public response, not the merits of the case or complaint itself, as I have no direct knowledge of either.

The business of sports. Professional sports are big business, and with big business comes the potential for big crisis. The need for crisis management is everywhere in athletics, from collegiate coaching scandals to bribery and gambling schemes to bad behavior and financial mismanagement to sponsorship dustups; the list goes on. While potential problems abound, sound crisis management counsel and strategy seem to be few and far between. Nowhere is that truer than with Formula 1 racing.

A few years ago, Netflix launched Drive to Survive, which follows F1 teams and includes in-depth interviews with drivers, team principles, and media in the sport, showing the world just how political, and dare I say dramatic, the elite sport is. The show is wildly popular and has, at least in part, sparked F1’s exponential growth, sponsorship, and fan interest, especially in the United States. For context, in 2023, F1’s annual revenue was more than $3.2 billion, while the NFL’s was just $2.35 billion during their 2023 season. 

Politics, rumors, and controversy. Just two Grand Prixes into the season, motorsport fans can barely keep track (pun intended) of all of the drama in F1 – Sainz out at Ferrari, Hamilton leaving Mercedes for Ferrari, a spat between teammates Riccardo and Tsunoda, Red Bull’s Christian Horner’s alleged conduct and Helmut Marko’s alleged media leaking, other investigations into team principles and some of the sport’s top leaders, and much more.

Red Bull rundown. However, the case of Red Bull Racing and its CEO and Team Principle Christian Horner’s alleged “inappropriate, controlling behavior” takes top billing. Here’s a crash course on the main events of the Red Bull and Horner-related drama.

• February 5, it becomes public that a Red Bull employee made serious allegations about inappropriate conduct from Horner to the team’s parent company, Red Bull GmbH. Note the employee’s original report to Red Bull HQ was made in December 2023.

• February 9, Red Bull launched an investigation, called both “internal” and “independent” in varying reports, and the company issued its first public statement noting the matter is being investigated by an “external specialist barrister.”

• February 15, Horner made his first public appearance and statement after the allegations as Red Bull launched its 2024 car. He says he respected the process and touted the team’s unity. It’s also the first time we hear from Max Verstappen, the team’s star driver, who maintains his relationship with Horner is “very good.”

• February 16, it’s reported that Horner offered the employee a £650,000 ($816,500 US) settlement through his personal lawyers.

• February 18, F1 issues a statement calling for Red Bull to conduct and conclude their investigation as soon as possible.

• February 20 – 26, Red Bull’s allies, adversaries, and partners weigh in. Pro-Horner Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko says they’re handling it well. Longtime Horner rival Toto Wolff, CEO and Team Principle of Mercedes, calls for transparency from Red Bull and makes some veiled digs. Ford Motor Company, partner in Red Bull-Ford Powertrains, airs its displeasure in a pointed letter to Red Bull.

• February 28, Red Bull GmbH clears Horner.

• February 29, Horner returns to the paddock for the Bahrain Grand Prix and is “pleased” the investigation is behind him and again stresses the team’s unity. Just 24 hours after Horner was cleared by Red Bull, WhatsApp texts and NSFW pictures allegedly between Horner and the complainant were leaked anonymously to FIA and F1 leadership, the rest of the grid team principles, and the media. Nearly everyone said they saw the material but couldn’t verify its authenticity. Horner said he won’t comment on anonymous speculation and denies wrongdoing.  

• March 1, Horner meets with FIA and F1 leadership and again says he won’t discuss rumors with the media.

• March 2, Horner and his wife Geri Halliwell  (former Spice Girl) watch as Max Verstappen, Red Bull’s prized driver, takes first at the Bahrain Grand Prix.

• March 3, Jos Verstappen, Max Verstappen’s father, starts publicly criticizing Horner, suggesting Horner shouldn’t stay in his role as CEO and Team Principle and if he does that Red Bull may not be the team for Max. At the same time, rumors are swirling that Verstappen is in talks with Mercedes to replace Lewis Hamilton.

• March 7, Red Bull suspended the employee who accused Horner of inappropriate behavior. Meanwhile, Horner is present at the Saudi Grand Prix for practice and qualifying as rumors start circulating about an investigation into Helmut Marko for leaking to the media that could force him out at Red Bull. Max Verstappen warns that if Marko is out at Red Bull, he may be right behind him.  

• March 9, Red Bull’s two drivers, Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez, take first and second, respectively, at the second race of the season.

• March 10, Horner states they won't "force" Max Verstappen to stay if he chooses to leave, amid internal team turmoil and speculation about his future with the team.

Amid all of the Red Bull chaos, the sixth season of the hit series Drive to Survive launched on February 23, reminding fans (me chief among them) just how tense and sensational motorsport is. The crisis manager and public affairs practitioner in me was also reminded just how much F1’s key players take pleasure in attacking their attackers in creative ways, generating risk for their adversaries and political cover for themselves. While this was fortuitous timing for Netflix and fans, I’m sure Red Bull feels otherwise.  

Stirring the pot, diverting attention. It’s been rumored that Horner was behind the reporting and publicization of a sham conflict of interest claim ahead of the 2024 season against Susie Wolff, Managing Director of F1 Academy – the sports young female driver training program and race circuit, her husband Toto Wolff, CEO and Team Principle of Mercedes, the sport ultimately cleared them of any wrongdoing. It’s my sneaking suspicion that the Wolff report was intended to be a diversion from a certain someone’s own drama (alleged workplace harassment) that was brewing under the surface around the same time. While everyone on the grid plays the game, perhaps no one is more public or brazen in doing so than Red Bull’s Cristian Horner. Cue Taylor Swift’s smash hit Karma.

Crisis management crash and burn. As I have managed similar matters, the ultimate objective is to get to the bottom of the crisis, implement appropriate solutions and remedies, communicate progress, and get back to business as quickly as possible. Investigations like this are real and must be taken seriously from an operational standpoint, not as a performative PR exercise. Unfortunately, what I believe we’re seeing here is more of the latter than the former.

It's important to note that even if Red Bull handled this matter perfectly – which is absolutely not the case – they would be accused of not being transparent enough and likely of botching their response. 

Months into this debacle, I suspect what’s happening behind the scenes is a host of competing priorities, including but not limited to a defiant Horner who wants to keep his job, potential legal implications and liability, financial concerns and incentives for the team (Red Bull is the third most valuable team in F1 at $2.6 billion), their sponsors and F1 writ large, and a lot of “I’m the smartest in the room” personalities and egos.

Layer on top of that, likely inadequate processes, policies, and standards for handling such matters, media swarming (rightfully so), many bit players willing to speak anonymously, and the human element of all of this and Red Bull remains the eye of a raging storm that could have disastrous consequences.

As an aside, I know very little about the internal culture of Red Bull GmbH. Still, even if it’s less than ideal, I must imagine somewhere there is at least one lawyer and one communication professional pleading with Red Bull GmbH to accept the hard truths, coordinate a comprehensive approach and response and put this behind them.

Meanwhile, Red Bull’s Verstappen continues dominating on the track, taking first-place finishes in both races so far this season. While winning is one of the best crisis management strategies in sports, unfortunately, Red Bull is proving in this case that simply continuing to perform on track isn’t going to get them out of the mess.

On the road to reckoning. As Formula 1 comes off a weekend in Jeddah for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, leadership at F1, the FIA, other teams, media, and fans (of whom women, 16 – 35-year-olds, and Americans are the fastest-growing demographics) recognize this situation has gone on far too long and without reasonable clarity or conclusion.

While firing the CEO is usually not the ideal course of action in a crisis, if Red Bull continues down the performative path (rather than making actual, operational change), may I suggest Red Bull give Christian Horner the boot and bring Guenther Steiner, former Hass Team Principle and fan favorite, back to the grid.

Should Red Bull GmbH want to protect the future of their very lucrative enterprise, they need to get serious about effective crisis management, pick the best of bad options, and get back to the business of racing.

If Red Bull does not change course, I predict there will be a crash of epic proportions at some point in the 2024 season – whether that’s a sponsorship or fan mutiny, a major lawsuit against Red Bull, or some other reckoning that can’t be ignored remains to be seen.

Storms always come to an end; however, Red Bull is becoming more of a long-term weather system that F1 and motorsport cannot shake, and that’s very bad for business.