After a week of turmoil and drama, Christian Horner, the beleaguered team principal of the Red Bull Formula One team, was given succour yesterday when his team delivered a dominant victory at the season-opening race in Bahrain.
He oversaw the race from the pitwall while his wife, Geri, the former Spice Girl, was there to support him – which, given he is fighting for his job, his reputation and potentially his marriage, will have provided some cheer.
Yet the spotlight remains firmly on Horner, even as Red Bull once more dominated, with a crushing win from world champion Max Verstappen.
He has been team principal at Red Bull for 20 years, and is one of the most successful leaders in the modern sport, but he has become the focus of continued attention over allegations of inappropriate behaviour made by a female employee. These reached a peak last week when, within 24 hours of his exoneration from these accusations, an email was leaked, within F1, the press and others purporting to show messages between Horner and the employee who made the complaint. Its veracity has not been confirmed, but its impact has been immense.
As a result, interest in F1 has extended far beyond the sports pages. Horner, a major figure in motor racing, enjoys its politicking, the sparring that takes place among the team principals and media attention. However, this was a fight of a different kind – although his supporters have argued it is driven by internal powerplays at Red Bull.
Yet it was very personal too. Geri Halliwell-Horner arrived in Bahrain on Thursday evening as the leaked email was dropping into inboxes around the world. The contents were swiftly dissected across social media, which left her reportedly “distraught and humiliated”.
Yet, Halliwell-Horner arrived for the race Saturday hand-in-hand with her husband in a show of solidarity. She has backed Horner throughout – although she did not go to the grid before the race, as she has many times in the past, instead remaining in the team’s hospitality sector. However, Horner was notably joined in a very public show of support by Chalerm Yoovidhya, the Thai son of Red Bull’s founder, Chaleo, who owns a 51% share of the company and is understood still to be backing Horner.
Speaking after the race Horner said: “Obviously, it’s not been pleasant. The unwanted attention. I’m not going to comment on what motives whatever person may have for doing this. My focus is on this team, my family, my wife and going racing. I have the support of an incredible family, of an incredible wife, of an incredible team and everybody within that team. My focus is on going racing and winning races and doing the best I can.
“You can see what it meant to the whole team, better to do your talking on-track. The focus is now very much on the cars.”
How Halliwell-Horner ultimately reacts has yet to be seen, and the process is far from over. It began on 5 February when Red Bull Racing’s parent company, the energy drink manufacturer Red Bull GmbH, based in Austria, announced it had begun an investigation into Horner for alleged inappropriate behaviour, but did not cite details other than it was understood to be “controlling” in nature.
The female complainant remained unnamed, as did the English barrister conducting the inquiry. Horner attended an interview with the barrister in London lasting more than eight hours. The investigation included many employees and resulted in a report of more than 600 pages.
Red Bull would not comment on the process while it was going on. Horner had denied any wrongdoing from the start. But at the launch of the team’s new car on 15 February, he looked tired.
When it became clear that a decision would be announced on Wednesday in Bahrain, the atmosphere in the paddock was febrile. Horner might have believed a corner had been turned when the decision came from Red Bull GmbH that the grievance had been dismissed, yet no information about the investigation, its findings or its conclusions were released. “The decision has been made, so please move along” was the gist of Red Bull’s statement.
Other team principals demanded transparency – as did, privately, the FIA, the governing body of motor sport, and F1 Management, as well as the press. Social media proclaimed a cover-up. Horner and Red Bull, having refused to comment on the process while it was going on, now said they could not comment on it for confidentiality purposes.
It was an ignominious and unedifying episode for someone who, until this point, had enjoyed a remarkable career. Having decided early that he did not have quite what it takes to make a top driver, Horner threw himself into team management, founding his Arden team to race in F3000. He duly made his mark and caught the eye of Dietrich Mateschitz, the Austrian businessman who had cofounded the Red Bull energy drink company. When Mateschitz bought an F1 team to establish Red Bull Racing, he took Horner on as team principal for its first season in 2005.
He was the youngest team principal on the grid at the time and is now the longest-serving. What followed was in F1 terms quite extraordinary. He delivered four consecutive world championships with Sebastian Vettel between 2010 and 2013 as the team became, alongside Ferrari and Mercedes, one of the big three powers in F1. Three more drivers’ titles have since been delivered by Verstappen, and a total of six constructors’ championships.
