Horner set to be cleared of ‘inappropriate behaviour’

Christian Horner is ready to be cleared of ‘coercive behaviour’ following an investigation into the Red Bull staff principal.

The 50-year-old husband of ex-Spice Girl Geri Halliwell had confronted allegations over his conduct in direction of a feminine worker. It stays to be seen whether or not he’ll keep in his £8m-a-year put up.

The allegations have been made by an in depth colleague, with the racing staff’s mum or dad firm, Red Bull GmbH in Salzburg, confirming an inside investigation on February 5.

They appointed a London KC to guide the inquiry. He heard 60 hours of proof, together with not less than eight hours from Horner in a single day, earlier than producing the essential 150-page report that went earlier than the broader firm’s board on Wednesday.

Horner was awaiting their adjudication as he took his personal jet on the three,000-mile journey from the UK to Bahrain for the opening race of the season this Saturday.

He was stated to be in good spirits because the day developed, hoping his identify could be cleared on touchdown within the Gulf kingdom this afternoon. He didn’t flip up on the paddock.

Former popstar Geri, mom of their seven-year-old son Monty, has stood resolutely by him all through the ordeal. She is claimed to be ‘devastated’ by the jolt to their lives, which they break up between their farmhouse (and stables) in Oxfordshire and a house in North London.

Horner has received 13 world championships since heading the staff as a 31-year-old in 2005. He was then the youngest staff principal on the grid, but is now its longest-serving.

He attended pre-season testing in Bahrain final week earlier than returning residence, his place seemingly rising stronger as the times progressed.

But he seemed to be up in opposition to forces ranged in opposition to him inside the organisation, however the veracity of the accusations.

Ford, who’re coming into an engine partnership with Red Bull from 2026, led requires a swift conclusion to the saga. In a letter written final Friday, chief government Jim Farley expressed his displeasure on the ‘unresolved allegations of inappropriate behaviour by Red Bull Racing management’.

Those requires readability on the earliest second have been echoed by F1’s American homeowners, Liberty Media.

Horner’s place was additionally undermined, it appeared, by the demise of the vitality drinks mogul who gave him his huge break 19 years in the past on the helm of the brand new Red Bull staff. Dietrich Mateschitz died in 2022 of most cancers, a tragedy that inevitably shook up the administration construction, leaving executives jostling for place. One key mover is believed to have been Oliver Mintzlaff, the managing director and former CEO of RB Leipzig, who, it’s stated, resented Horner’s powerbase.

Horner, nevertheless, retained the assist of Red Bull’s Thai faction, headed by Chalerm Yoovidhya, son of the agency’s co-founder Chaleo. Chalerm, as an inheritor to the corporate fortune with a 51 per cent stake in it, is estimated to be price £30billion. He turned up intermittently at races and might be seen in lengthy and pleasant chats with the Englishman, together with when Verstappen clinched the third of his consecutive world titles in Qatar final October.

Another vital voice was that of Dr Helmut Marko, Red Bull’s 80-year-old motorsport adviser – an Austrian believed to be extra in step with Mintzlaff than Horner.

‘Marko was given a contract renewal final yr, however he noticed his cash halved,’ stated one well-placed F1 determine. ‘There is the notion that he needed his revenge on Horner, and needed him out.’