Christian Horner’s absence “unthinkable” as Nico Rosberg reacts to “unreal” Red Bull sacking

Nico Rosberg has admitted his shock after Red Bull removed Christian Horner from his role as team principal and CEO. Rosberg added that “it was a long time in the making,” but described his absence from the paddock this weekend as “unthinkable.”

“Christian Horner not being here anymore is unthinkable. That’s completely unreal”, Rosberg told Sky Sports F1. “It was a big, big shock and surprise to everybody, including himself. He didn’t see it coming at all, nor did anybody in the team.

“But of course, it was a long time in the making. Coming on from last year from all the issues that he’d been having there, so I think this was just a result of that.

“But nobody really still knows 100 per cent what exactly happened.”

The Belgian Grand Prix weekend is the first race weekend without Horner leading the Milton Keynes outfit. In his place, former Racing Bulls team chief Laurent Mekies takes the helm. With Max Verstappen taking the win at Saturday’s sprint race, he is off to a good start, albeit with little influence from him so far. 

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, Christian Horner, Red Bull Racing

Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool

Red Bull’s 2025 season has been sobering. At the halfway point, the team sits fourth in the constructors’ championship and, despite several strong races from the Dutch driver, including two Grand Prix wins, the team is struggling to equip its drivers with a strong car.

“Laurent’s got quite a difficult situation to be dropped in,” Red Bull chief engineer Paul Monaghan told the media. “I’ve known him for many years, he’s a very personable, smart chap.

“Now it’s up to us to pull together as a team, because there are nine other teams who can’t wait to fight us. If we’re going to stand up to them, we have to stand as a team.

“We are preparing to stand as a team. Laurent is doing his utmost to ensure that that is what we are aiming to do. We will do so.”

While the reason behind Horner’s exit has not been defined by the team, it follows a number of high-profile exits, including Adrian Newey and Rob Marshall. This, alongside the intense pressure of fixing its second driver issues, must have been a factor. 

Photos from Belgian GP – Sprint