Christian Horner was acquitted of charges brought against him by his employees. Horner has denied any wrongdoing on his part in the matter and Red Bull said “grievance has been dismissed”.
The Red Bull team boss previously dreamed of becoming an F1 driver himself, but then turned team owner and ended up leading one of the most successful F1 teams in recent years. Ta. Since its founding in 2005, Red Bull has won six constructors’ championships and seven drivers’ championships under Horner’s leadership.
Who is Christian Horner?
Christian Horner, a former race car driver, serves as Red Bull Racing’s CEO and team principal. When he was born on November 16, 1973, his family was already working in the automotive sector. Prior to assisting Christian Horner’s father, Garry Horner, in starting a company that provided parts to automakers, Horner’s grandfather was a purchasing manager for Standard Motor Company.
Horner began his career as a driver, competing in the British Formula Renault Championship, British Formula 2, and British Formula 3, before stepping away from racing in 1997 at the age of 25.
He created history in 2005 when, at the age of 31, he joined Red Bull Racing, making history as the youngest-ever F1 team principal. Horner is also the F1 grid’s longest-serving team principal, having guided the team ever since.
Christian Horner racing career
Christian Horner, like many others, started his racing career in karting before to receiving his Formula Renault scholarship in 1991. In 1992, he was awarded a seat in the British Formula Renault Championship with Manor Motorsport, where he finished the season as the top rookie and a race winner.
After winning five races, he placed second in the British Formula 3 Class B Championship with P1 Motorsport the next year. He went to ADR in 1995, Fortec in 1994, and finally TOMs in 1996, but he was never able to win any more races in the championship. Prior to advancing to Formula 3000 in 1997, Horner participated in the British Formula 2 championship in 1996 as well.
Christian Horner formed the Arden squad to compete in the tournament with his father, Garry Horner. He raced in the Formula 3000 races in both 1997 and 1998, however he only earned one point each time, placing 21st in 1997 and 33rd in 1998.
Christian Horner – Arden ownership
Christian Horner founded Arden in January 1996. In order to establish the team, Horner claims to have taken out loans, including one from his father, and convinced Roly Cincini, the founder of P1 Motorsport, to join the company as a race engineer.
Additionally, he purchased a used trailer from one of Horner’s main opponents at the time, Helmut Marko, the leader of the Red Bull junior squad in Formula 3000. He participated in 1997 and 1998, with Kurt Mollekens, who led the title at one point, joining him in 1998.
Horner realized he was “not capable of replicating the level of commitment” displayed by Juan Pablo Montoya during a pre-season test at the Circuit of Estoril in Portugal. Horner was running behind Montoya. This reinforced his decision, made as Arden’s team principal at the end of the season, to give up driving in order to focus on making the team successful.
Horner decided to retire, and he contracted Marc Goossens and Viktor Maslov to run for the team in the 1999 Formula 3000 season. Dave Richards’ Prodrive organization bought a 50% share in the team at the beginning of the season on behalf of Lukoil, a Russian oil business owned by Maslov’s father. However, Horner repurchased these shares after just one season.
For the 2000–01 season, Goossens was replaced by Darren Manning, who finished on the podium twice and had one pole. Along with Warren Hughes, the team participated in the Italian Formula 3000 in 2000, winning three races and taking second place overall.
Along with Tomas Enge and Bjorn Wirdheim, Arden won the 2002 team championship with five wins total—four for Enge and one for Wirdheim. Enge also won the drivers’ championship but was dropped to third after failing a drug test.
Red Bull provided support for Arden, which allowed them to win the drivers’ title in 2004 together with the championship in 2003. Vitatonio Liuzzi was introduced to the team by his manager, Helmut Marko.
Up until 2005, Christian Horner served as the team principal for Arden. He then moved on to Red Bull Racing in Formula 1. Garry Horner, Horner’s father, still oversees Arden’s racing and commercial operations.
Christian Horner – Team principal for Red Bull Racing
During Red Bull’s first Formula 1 season in 2005, Christina Horner took over as team principal. Eight weeks before the Australian season began, in 2004, the Austrian energy drink firm bought the Jaguar F1 Team. Horner was then appointed. With drivers David Coulthard and Christian Klein, the team was able to score 34 points, a significant increase from Jaguar’s nine points the year previous.
Adrian Newey was also hired by Horner in 2005 to serve as the team’s chief technical officer; this decision has been crucial to the team’s success over the last 19 years. After Red Bull secured its maiden podium at the 2006 Monaco Grand Prix, Horner dived into a swimming pool while only sporting a Superman cape.
Red Bull competed races in 2007 with the RB3, Newey’s first car. Despite this, the team’s reliability issues remained as seen by 14 retirements and just one podium. In the constructors’ championship, the team placed seventh in 2008 and second in 2009, with drivers Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber placing second and fourth, respectively.
2010 saw Red Bull achieve their first constructors’ championship and Sebastian Vettel become the youngest world champion at the age of 23 years and 133 days by winning the drivers’ championship. With the wins, Horner became the second-youngest team principal to win an F1 constructors’ championship at the age of 36, trailing only 34-year-old Colin Chapman, who did so with Lotus in 1963.
In addition to winning the team championship, Vettel secured the world titles for each of the drivers in 2011–2012–2013, when Red Bull Racing regained both titles. Before Max Verstappen’s historic drivers’ championship triumph in 2021, during a furious race against Lewis Hamilton in the season’s final race, the team had not experienced championship victory.
Red Bull won the world championships for both drivers and constructors in 2022 and 2023. Last year, its drivers, Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez, finished 1-2.
In addition, Horner received a CBE in 2024 and an OBE in 2013 for his contributions to motorsport.
Who is Christian Horner married to?
In 2015, Christian Horner wed Spice Girls singer Geri Halliwell; the two had a seven-year-old son named Montague. Alongside his ex-partner Beverly Allen, with whom he spent 14 years, Horner also has a daughter, Olivia, 10. In addition, he is the stepfather of Halliwell’s 17-year-old daughter Bluebell Madonna, who she had with screenwriter Sacha Gervasi before.
What is the net worth of Christian Horner?
Christian Horner is thought to be worth $50 million (£40 million), and as the team principal of Red Bull Racing, he reputedly makes over $10 million (£8 million) annually. Based on his estimated pay, he is the highest-paid principal of an F1 team.
