Christian Horner reveals 'shit sandwich' shock in Red Bull F1 sacking

Christian Horner has described his reaction to the news that he had been sacked by Red Bull as like receiving a "shit sandwich".

Following the 2025 British GP, Horner was dismissed as team principal and CEO of Red Bull on July 9 after 20 years at the helm, and 14 combined world championship titles. 

As Red Bull's performance dipped, the bosses of Red Bull GmbH decided to remove Horner and replace him with Racing Bulls chief Laurent Mekies. Horner has since maintained a relatively low profile since being axed.

He is understood to be eager to return to grand prix racing, but only in a team ownership role and not as an employee, which he effectively was at Red Bull, albeit the most senior one in Red Bull Racing.

Reacting to the news of his departure in a specially-recorded interview for the new series of Netflix's Drive to Survive, Horner recalled the events leading up to it.

"After the Austrian Grand Prix, we turned up at Silverstone and Max qualified on pole, but ended up finishing fifth," Horner began to explain on the latest season of Netflix's Drive to Survive. 

"Twenty-four hours later, I was contacted to attend a meeting in London, where they informed me that operationally, I was no longer, from that moment onwards, involved in the running of the Red Bull Formula 1 team.

"I feel a real sense of loss and hurt. It was all rather sudden, and I didn't really get a chance to say a proper goodbye. 

"I never imagined being in this position, and your immediate reaction when you're delivered a shit sandwich like that is, 'Fuck them'.

"I've had something taken away from me that wasn't my choice, that was very precious to me.

"I only ever gave my best. I did my best for my team, for the people that I represented, but that performance this year hasn't been as strong as previously."