Former F1 driver Robert Doornbos believes that there is ‘still unrest behind the scenes’ at Red Bull and that both Christian Horner and Helmut Marko are unhappy with one another. The reigning champions have dominated on the track, but have been plagued by off-track drama throughout the early stages of the 2024 campaign.
Speculation of a power struggle behind the scenes at Red Bull are nothing new, and Marko was even briefly placed under investigation ahead of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix for an alleged involvement in the leaking of Christian Horner’s supposed private WhatsApp messages.
That investigation was short-lived, and the Austrian was cleared of any wrongdoing, but concerns remain about the power structure within the reigning champions. While the drama of internal politics is no longer overshadowing the on-track achievements of Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez, it remains a topic of concern.
Ziggo Sport commentator Doornbos believes that there is more to the current state of internal relations at Red Bull than meets the eye. “Despite all the success at Red Bull, there is still a lot of unrest behind the scenes,” he explained at the Japanese GP.
“We get the tip of the iceberg through the media, but what is happening there now… Marko is not happy with Horner and Horner is not happy with Marko either. There are some things going on there.”
The former Minardi and Red Bull driver also believes that the alleged power struggle between Horner and Marko could impact the future of legendary aerodynamicist Adrian Newey, who has been heavily linked with a big-money move to the ambitious Aston Martin project in recent weeks.
“Behind the scenes, the lawsuit with that staff member against Horner is still going on, Adrian Newey is no longer charmed by it at all,” Doornbos explained. “Everyone thinks that’s Christian Horner’s best friend and yes, he brought him in for the big successes.
“But he doesn’t want to get involved in this anymore either. What I have heard is that Adrian Newey will no longer renew his contract. And that is a thing, because if he stops at the end of 2025, will you still be good for the new era?”
However, Newey himself has insisted that he isn’t looking too far into the future. “I’ve hugely enjoyed it, and I continue to enjoy it,” he told RacingNews365. “So I think as long as I continue to enjoy it and the team wants me then I’ll continue to do it for the moment and then we’ll have to see in the future. I don’t tend to plan too far forward.”
