After one of the most memorable offseasons in recent F1 history, the majority of the early-season excitement has
centered around one team: Red Bull Racing. The team, which dominated in the 2022 and 2023 seasons, appears to
be dominant again in 2024, but the seemingly bullet-proof organization has begun to show its cracks. An offseason
internal investigation has led to one of the most high-profile power struggles in recent history, and the dominant
team has
Over the winter, a Red Bull employee accused company Principal Christian Horner of unethical workplace behavior,
prompting the company to undertake an inquiry. Just before the season-opening round in Bahrain, the team
exonerated Horner of all wrongdoing, ostensibly putting an end to the scandal and allowing the squad to focus on
winning another title. However, one day after an independent inquiry exonerated Horner, an unidentified source
disclosed the claimed inappropriate texts to hundreds of journalists and news organizations. In addition to
scandalizing the organization, these well-timed leaks coincide with a power struggle among the team’s owners
following the death of longstanding owner Dietrich Mateschitz in 2022.
Mateschitz, a longtime backer of Red Bull’s motorsports ambitions, owned 49% of the corporation, with Thai
entrepreneur Chalerm Yoovidhya owning the remaining 51%. Following his death, tensions arose between Dietrich’s
son, Mark Mateschitz, and Yoovidhya, resulting in a civil war inside the organization over the Christian Horner
incident. Horner has Yoovidhya’s support, but he has also clashed with longstanding advisor and one of Red Bull
Racing’s most significant members, Helmut Marko. The rivalry between Marko and Horner is critical, as star driver
Max Verstappen has publicly supported the advisor in this spat.
