Ex-Red Bull team boss on returning to F1
Christian Horner: I still have a bill to settle
January 31, 2026 – 11:59 p.mReading time: 2 minutes
Christian Horner spoke out for the first time after being fired from Red Bull Racing. He spoke about conditions for a return to Formula 1.
A few days after reports that Christian Horner could acquire a stake in the Alpine team, the ex-Red Bull team boss spoke out. Things had become quiet around him since the race at Silverstone last July. But the 51-year-old is not done with the racing circuit yet.
“I have the feeling that I still have a score to settle in Formula 1. It didn’t end the way I would have liked. But I won’t come back for anything. I’ll only come back for something that I can win,” said Horner, according to a report in the “Kronen Zeitung” at the European Motor Show in Dublin.
In 2005, at the age of just 31, Christian Horner took on the role of team boss at the newly founded Formula 1 team Red Bull Racing. Under his leadership, the team developed from a newcomer to a dominant force in the premier class. Between 2010 and 2013, Red Bull won four drivers’ and four constructors’ world championships with Sebastian Vettel, and from 2021 further titles followed with Max Verstappen.
He was surprisingly relieved of his position with immediate effect on July 9, 2025 after more than 20 years as team boss and CEO of Red Bull Racing. Red Bull did not give a single specific reason for the move in the official announcement. There had previously been reports of inappropriate behavior by Horner towards an employee.
“I miss the sport, I miss the people, I miss the team I built,” he said. And he’s ready to try again. “I don’t want to go back to the paddock if I don’t have anything to do there,” he said. But he only wanted to return “for the right opportunity”. He would rather be a partner than an employee like he was recently at Red Bull. He did not comment on the Alpine reports.
“I’m not in a hurry. I don’t have to do anything,” said the Brit. He is fascinated by speculation about his professional future. He was associated with every team, which flattered him. But he couldn’t do anything before spring.
