Support for dismissed Horner? 'Red Bull's exodus was unavoidable'

As the race director of Formula 1, Niels Wittich had to deal extensively with Red Bull Racing, who were the dominant force in the sport during his tenure. The German also notes how the racing empire has slowly collapsed, with star driver Max Verstappen now contemplating a departure.

During the 2024 F1 season, Wittich was suddenly fired by the FIA, reportedly at the behest of President Mohammed Ben Sulayem. These days, he follows the competition from a distance and, on the Boxengasse Podcast of the Sky Sports Germany, he also comments on the many personnel changes within Red Bull lately.

Adrian Newey, Jonathan Wheatley; just a couple of names of leading Red Bull personnel who left. They did so for various reasons, with the presence of team principal Christian Horner playing a role in this decision. It's no secret that Newey and Horner were no longer on the same page.

Newey's departure inevitable?

In the end, people like Newey and Wheatley were missed at the Austrian team, but according to Wittich, the departure of important people is simply inevitable.

“I think if you're a team like Red Bull and you've won a lot in the past years - especially after Mercedes' long dominance with the old, previous generation Formula 1 cars - you're always in the spotlight, no matter what,” Wittich says.

“There's definitely been a lot happening in terms of personnel. Of course, key figures have left the team. But my feeling – I believe it's somewhat normal in Formula 1 that mechanics, engineers, and team principals change jobs within the paddock, although that may not apply as much to team principals.”

With that last remark, Wittich hints at Horner, who, as it's well known, was dismissed by Red Bull last week.

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