Red Bull insiders do not expect Christian Horner to survive in his role: Reports

In what appear to be ominous signs for Christian Horner, recent reports from insiders suggest that the Red Bull boss will not be able to survive in his role as team principal.

Horner built the team from scratch when it debuted in 2005, with Helmut Marko by his side as the team's special advisor. Horner's career arguably peaked in 2023 when Red Bull dominated the championship in an unprecedented manner, winning 21 of the 22 races.

The future looked great, with the team seemingly primed to dominate in 2024 as well. But in what was a surprise for many, news broke earlier in the week of an internal investigation against Horner.

While the nature of the complaint is not clear, reports have suggested multiple theories, including Horner's aggressive management style as well as allegedly inappropriate behavior with a female colleague.

With the official hearing on Friday, speculation has been rife over what one can expect to be the outcome. BBC Sport's Andrew Benson has now reported that Red Bull insiders think Horner will not survive in his role.

According to Benson, if Horner is removed, the position could go to Oliver Mintzlaff, Red Bull's chief executive officer of corporate projects with oversight of F1.

"Many insiders who have discussed the situation with BBC Sport do not expect him to survive in his role. However, Horner is a powerful and influential man, both inside Red Bull and within F1, and it remains to be seen whether this will lead to his downfall. Whichever way the hearing on Friday goes, major questions now revolve around Red Bull," Benson said.

"If Horner is removed from his position, either by being sacked or resigning, sources say he would be replaced by an executive from the Austrian side of Red Bull," he added. "Could that be Oliver Mintzlaff, former head of RB Leipzig football team and, since co-founder Dietrich Mateschitz's death in October 2022, chief executive officer of corporate projects with oversight of F1?"

Losing Christian Horner would have a huge impact on Red Bull and F1

Horner's F1 stint with the Austria-based team has helped him rise to a different level. In the eyes of many, Horner is one of the greatest team principals of all time. The man has taken a team that not many took seriously, and turned it into a winning juggernaut.

Horner has also become one of the most recognizable faces in F1 over time; he was only 30 when he became team principal.

There are still questions that need to be answered about what exactly the incident was and whether it was sufficient to punish Horner. But if Horner does indeed face the axe, it could well change the whole landcape of F1.