Christian Horner at a press conference - Photo: Race Pictures

Red Bull switches name ahead of '26 chapter, Horner dismissal details emerge

08:00, 22 Dec

byLuke-John Buckle

Red Bull implements a name change and new details on Christian Horner's dismissal emerge. Recap the best stories with GPblog here!

Red Bull's engine is now called Red Bull Ford

Red Bull will be building their own engine for the first time in the stint on the Formula 1 grid.

Since 2005, they have used an array of customer engines with varying levels of success.

The Austrian team will now make their own power unit from 2026 in collaboration with American giant Ford.

Until now, these power units have been referred to as Red Bull Powertrains before becoming Red Bull Powertrains-Ford.

For 2026, the name will be shortened to just Red Bull Ford, with the Powertrains part of the title dropped. Racing Bulls will also use the engines while their old supplier Honda have teamed up with Aston Martin.

Photo: Red Bull Content Pool

New details of Horner's Red Bull dismissal have emerged

Horner was the only team principal in Red Bull's history until he was dismissed in July.

The Briton was replaced by Laurent Mekies, and more details of Horner's departure have emerged.

Red Bull chief Oliver Mintzlaff explained he knew something had to be done as the Austrian team lagged behind McLaren in the early part of 2025.

He told De Telegraaf: "I don't want to call it a risk, because we were one hundred percent behind this measure.

"We knew we had to do something. I am not a so-called hire and fire manager, someone who just fires people. Christian has a great track record with the team and achieved a lot of success. Everyone here in the company, including myself, appreciates him for what he has done.

"But this is also part of a professional organisation. You can't keep leaning on history and we felt it was time to turn the page and start a new chapter. That was not an easy decision, but we didn't take any chances either."

Red Bull will head into the new season with four-time world champion Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar in their cars.

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