Red Bull Racing’s Christian Horner, Formula 1’s Longest Tenured Team Principal, Is Making History

With six driver championships and five constructor titles in less than two decades, Oracle Red Bull Racing’s rise to the top is “all about the people,” as team principal Christian Horner explained.

Horner’s comments came just after Max Verstappen solidified his second consecutive Formula 1 championship with four races remaining in 2022. Red Bull’s dominance in 2022, earning a combined 16 wins with Verstappen and Sergio Perez, dethroned Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team after eight straight constructor titles.

“We’ve always stuck by the principles that we’re a race team, here to go racing,” Horner said while in Brazil for the penultimate race weekend of the year. “We’re not afraid, sometimes, to take difficult and bold decisions. We’re not a corporately driven organization. We’ve always been independent and a little maverick.

“We’ve been non-conformist at times. We’re a challenging brand and a challenging team that embodies itself in everything we do and how we go racing.”

Red Bull’s historic 2022 campaign could be solidified if Perez can edge out Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc to give the team its first-ever one-two finish in the driver standings. This doesn’t come without drama, though, as Verstappen didn’t listen to team orders during Sunday’s race to allow Perez by him near the race’s conclusion to give him the edge on Leclerc.

“It would mean a huge amount,” Horner, who hails from Britain, said. “Obviously, it would be something we haven’t done before. I think it would mean a great amount to Checo. For the team, it would cap off an incredible year.”

Horner, a former Formula 3000 driver himself, joined Red Bull in 2005. The Austrian energy drink manufacturer entered Formula 1 under the leadership of founder Dietrich Mateschitz, who died on Oct. 22, 2022.

It was Horner who created a long-term plan for Red Bull, which took Formula 1 by storm. His immediate success with Red Bull helped land superstar drivers and youthful prospects, such as Verstappen, who would eventually become the team’s top pilots.

Within 18 years, Oracle Red Bull Racing is now one of the most successful teams in Formula 1 history. Horner’s tenure as the longest serving team principal in Formula 1 has led to Red Bull jumping to fifth on the all-time wins list with 91 victories, only behind Ferrari, McLaren, Mercedes and Williams, all teams that have existed since 1978 or earlier.

Horner, when asked about if he imagined the team would be so successful, said, “I don’t think anybody could have imagined. You dream, but we have a phenomenal team with great strength and depth. What we’ve managed to achieve in the last 18 and a half seasons has been an incredible journey.”

As Horner reflects on his journey with the Britain-based team, he believes he was chosen because Red Bull’s philosophy was to invest in Formula 1’s youth movement. At the time of his signing, he was just 31 years old.

“They gave me that opportunity, and that’s something you have to grab with both hands and make the best of,” Horner said. “We’ve had tremendous support over the last 18 seasons. As I say, it’s a people business. It’s about getting the right people, the right roles and having the right spirit and the right culture in a racing mentality.”

There is, of course, another layer to the team’s success. The side of signing key partnerships to ensure Red Bull is on the top of its game on and off the track.

Oracle Red Bull Racing partnered with Poly, which is part of HP’sHPQ
portfolio of hybrid work solutions, creates premium audio and video products for people to have clear meetings.

When Poly first met with Oracle Red Bull Racing, team members were sometimes struggling with multiple different communications devices and wasting precious seconds that could’ve been better spent on the track action. As such, their IT team was responding to an ever-increasing volume of service tickets to assist with voice calls and troubleshooting.

Poly engineers worked with the Oracle Red Bull Racing team to identify the different workstyles of their team members. This renewed confidence in communication has meant that Oracle Red Bull Racing can send fewer people to the track and maneuver resources to other, race-critical areas of the business.

“Poly is an important partnership for us because it’s a technology partnership for us,” Horner said. “It’s not just a sticker with the team. It’s technology we’re making use of. They’re playing a key role in helping us win these races and championships. It goes way beyond commercial recognition. It’s the technology we’re making use of and the product is playing a key role.”

Oracle Red Bull Racing has integrated Poly Studio X30 and X50 video bars, as well as Voyager 4320 headsets and Voyager Focus 2 headsets, CCX 500 phones and Poly Sync 20 speakerphones. Plans are in place to deploy more solutions throughout the partnership for business support and design, in meeting rooms and the new Oracle Red Bull Racing Powertrains facility.

As Red Bull continues the fight to stay at the top of the Formula 1 grid, the team will begin competing with its own engine program in 2026. Currently, Red Bull utilizes Honda engines.

Horner’s team has already begun working on its brand, called Red Bull Powertrains, which will take place at the same time as Formula 1’s new engine package. The 2026 season will see more electrical power, as well as 100% sustainable fuels.

“In engine terms, 2026 is tomorrow,” Horner said. “We’re flat-out and we have a great group of talented people. The first Red Bull engines are up and running on the dynamos, which is great to see. We have a steep learning curve and a great group of engineers and a fantastic culture.”

The Formula 1 season finale, the Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, takes place on Sunday, Nov. 20 at 8 a.m. ET on ESPN.