Nov 17, 2013; Austin, TX, USA; (EDITORS NOTE: caption correction) Formula One president Bernie Ecclestone greets two members of the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders before the United States Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

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Bernie Ecclestone Slams Christian Horner Over Red Bull Racing Exit!

Bernie Ecclestone gives his views on Red Bull Racing's decisions

Bernie Ecclestone is longer a part of the Formula 1 paddock. The 94-year-old was once the King of the Formula 1 racing community. However, after his exit from the sport many things have been changing. The most recent change is the surprising exit of Christian Horner from Red Bull Racing. Ecclestone has a small list of confidants in Formula 1 racing. Christian Horner is one of the few people whom Ecclestone finds worthy enough to call a friend.

The former team principal and CEO of Red Bull Racing has been facing numerous issues over the years. However, his luck started changing for worse last year. It started with a harassment scandal Horner was involved himself in. He also lost key figures from Red Bull Racing like Adrian Newey and Jonathan Wheatley. To add fuel to the fire, Red Bull’s performance drastically went down since 2024.

In 2025, they are no longer a championship challenging a car. Max Verstappen is solely dragging Red Bull Racing in the championships. Their second driver is practically non-existent in the championship struggles going on in the front row.

Bernie Ecclestone Quotes Red Bull Racing’s Power Struggles Amidst Christian Horner’s Despair

Red Bull Racing had already gained fame by the Bernie Ecclestone left the sport. The old maestro of Formula 1 management recognises Horner’s role in the team and their success. Although, Ecclestone did not hold back his words when talking about the recent situation.

Bernie was quick to call out Christian Horner as an “idiot” for the scandal he was involved in 2024. He was also highly critical of Horner’s decisions and working in the team. Bernie says that Horner’s decision to handle every area in the team and keep a tight leash on the workings of Red Bull Racing led to his downfall. The higher ups at Red Bull Racing did not want the team to become- “Christian Horner Racing“.

Ecclestone and Horner are reportedly longtime friends, but…https://t.co/iI4o2rHHtq #F1
— Motorsport.com (@Motorsport) July 10, 2025

“Christian was the chief executive. If I’m the chief executive of a company, I want to be in charge. I want to do all the things that I think are right, and if I’m wrong, they can fire me, they can say, ‘Sorry, bye-bye, you made a few mistakes.’ So, the minute Christian can’t be in that position to do what he thinks should be done, then for him it’s not easy. You can’t half-manage something. You need to have someone, I always say, to turn the lights on and off and only really need one person.”

Christian Horner took care of the team for a long time. He led them to success and a lot of fame. However, the moment things went south in terms of performance he was disposed off. Ecclestone’s words raise a strong concern about the inner turmoil going on at Red Bull Racing.

Bernie Ecclestone

Christian Horner

Formula 1 2025 Season

Red Bull Racing

Rohan Singh

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I work as a Writer at The Playoffs specialising in NHL, Formula 1 and Motorsports. I got into online journalism a couple of years ago. I used to be an intern for a website managing their Formula 1 content and then I served an entire year as a contractual writer.