Christian Horner is one of the most well known figures in Formula 1. He is the team principal of the Red Bull Racing team, a position that he has held since the team’s inception in 2005. He is the youngest person to have ever served as a Formula 1 team principal and has taken Red Bull racing from an upstart “partying” team which would drive cars with Star Wars liveries, to a world conquering team which has gone on to become one of the most successful and exciting teams in F1 history. Under Christian Horner, the team has won five Drivers titles and four Constructors titles. Horner’s Red Bull Racing has been the home to four time world champion Sebastian Vettel and current world champion Max Verstappen. Christian Horner was eleven years old when he carried out his first project in motorsport, much smaller than Red Bull Racing, which he leads today. His budget was zero and the stable had only one person, himself. The circuit where he was going to test wasn’t really a circuit either, just a big hill behind his parents’ house in Warwickshire, a county in the West Midlands, UK. In this post, we will find out more about Christian Horner, his life, career, net worth and other interesting things. Let’s get started.
Christian Horner Net Worth: All You Need To Know
How did Christian Horner get started with motor racing?
He had built his car with the means at hand: “I had tinkered with a kind of go-kart with the wheels of a stroller found in a dump. For the seat, I had used a crate for fruit and, for driving, I used a rope,” he explains. “I was fascinated by speed.”
Christian Horner: Red Bull Racing
Christian Horner is still trying to be the fastest on the circuit, but on another level: he runs Red Bull Racing, one of the best teams in Formula 1. The Briton is at the head of a team composed of 800 people with around thirty functions: engineers, technicians, designers, mechanics, cooks, sales managers, truck drivers and, above all, two drivers.
The hill behind the garden go-kart has evolved into a streamlined carbon fiber and metal machine at an exorbitant price, packed with the most advanced technology. A rocket on wheels that climbs to 360 kilometers per hour and whose price is expressed in millions of euros. Yes, he still plays small cars, but the stakes are different: his job is to win races with Red Bull’s F1 cars. An exercise he has mastered to perfection.
When his team made its debut in the premier class of motorsport in 2005, he was the youngest team manager in Formula 1 history. 17 years later, he is one of the most recognized and respected personalities in the paddock. Observers believe that with what he has achieved, he deserves a place next to names like Enzo Ferrari, Sir Frank Williams and Toto Wolff.
Horner’s stable exceeded all expectations. When his team arrived in Formula 1, the previous generation called it a bunch of party animals. 335 races later, the harvest of revelers is impressive: 82 victories, 219 podiums, almost 6,000 points in the world championship, five drivers’ world championships and four constructors’ world championships. The Red Bull Racing paddock has featured legendary drivers like Sebastian Vettel, Max Verstappen, Sergio Perez, David Coulthard, Mark Webber etc. and with one of the best young drivers programs, more stars are expected to drive for the team in the future.
Is Christian Horner superstitious?
We meet Christian Horner near Milton Keynes, where Team Red Bull Racing is based. It is here that, true to tradition, he spends his time when the great circus of Formula 1 is at rest. That means he has to commute from Oxfordshire, where he lives with his wife, ex-Spice Girl Geri Halliwell. The Red Bull site is impressive. It has six buildings, a ‘hall of fame’ for cars from past seasons and laboratories where only cutting-edge technology is allowed.
He usually arrives at 9 am to work, The day begins with a debriefing of the previous season, with his collaborators. During interviews, Horner is attentive, and speaks slowly, in a soft and reassuring tone. The manager of the stable is rather short, without being petite. It is elegant: white shirt, sand sweater and fitted jacket. Here, he is the boss. He tells everything directly or indirectly related to Red Bull Racing. When he takes people on a guided tour, he usually knows the name of each employee, his function or what he is doing.
In return, everyone seems to appreciate it. “It’s a job that has nothing to do with being a coach or a manager in a football club.” “Running the team during a Grand Prix weekend is only one aspect of the job. You have to surround yourself with the right people because there is a lot to do. There is no better team sport than Formula 1. I have to get 800 eyes in the same direction because the result of this collective effort is a racing car to win the Grand Prix. A lot of my job is to break down barriers. When I’m here, I feel like I’m in a doctor’s waiting room. Everybody comes through. But on the circuit, during a Grand Prix weekend, everyone has a clearly defined role. The team then operates with an almost military command.”
How is Christian Horner’s relationship with Geri Halliwell?
Since he is the team principal of Red Bull Racing, Christian Horner attends all the races of the F1 calendar. Add to that test day and his many other obligations, such as sponsor events, and he’s gone for almost 30 weekends a year. When he was young, it was nothing, but today he has three children. “This job requires you to spend endless hours on the plane. And when you’re at home, you have to be available for your family, take advantage of every minute. My wife accompanies me four or five times a year on the circuit, sometimes with children. But she also has her professional obligations.”
In 2014, Christian Horner and Geri Halliwell’s relationship made tabloid headlines overnight. But in reality, they had known each other for longer. “Amazingly, we met at a Grand Prix in 2010,” Horner said. “At the time, we were both a couple. When you marry one of the most famous women in England, your name goes from the sports pages to the people section. It was not a pleasant experience, but we couldn’t escape it: it’s part of the way we have designed our life”, he adds.
“Geri is used to it, it doesn’t affect her because she’s been in the spotlight for 25 years.” In January 2016, they had a son. Christian already had a four-year-old daughter and Geri an eleven-year-old daughter, Bluebell. The five of them live in what Horner describes as complete chaos consisting of two Airedale terriers, two West Highland terriers, a chicken coop, donkeys and more.
Between seasons, if there is no Grand Prix on the program, the family has priority. “It’s fantastic to spend a weekend with the family. Formula 1 is not real life. After a Grand Prix, you have to recharge your batteries every time.”
How did Bernie Ecclestone contribute to Christian Horner’s growth in F1?
Coming back to F1, Christian Horner didn’t always want so much responsibility. From the age of twelve, when his go-kart was replaced by a real second-hand racing kart, he only dreamed of one thing: to become a pilot. His father Garry, a businessman, is passionate about motorsport and loves to take his son around the circuits of the country. At eighteen, the hobby became a kind of profession: Horner was quite good behind the wheel. He gained training in Formula Renault, beat many young talents and passed a test with Lotus F1. At 25, he realized he had reached his limits and may not be able to take it to the next level. He then put an end to his career as a driver. “You always have to be honest with yourself. I raced in what at the time was Formula 3000, the championship just below Formula 1, against guys who would later succeed in Formula 1. I’m thinking of drivers like Juan Pablo Montoya or Nick Heidfeld. That’s when I realized they were made of a different wood than me.”
A year earlier, Christian Horner and his father had founded their Formula 3000 team, Arden International – which Garry still manages. He was going to become a team manager, trained not at university, but by life.
After a season or two, the team reaped victories and other team owners asked him if he would like to become the spokesperson for the Formula 3000 championship. A function in which he would have negotiated directly with Bernie Ecclestone, who was still the boss of Formula 1 and championships like Formula 3000. “I think Ecclestone quickly understood that I was passionate and ambitious,” recalls Horner. “And one fine day he asked me why I wouldn’t do something in Formula 1.”
How did Christian Horner get started with Red Bull Racing?
Ecclestone offered him various options, until he came into contact with Dietrich Mateschitz, Austrian billionaire and co-founder of the energy drink Red Bull. Mateschitz had taken over Jaguar’s Formula 1 team, including the Milton Keynes infrastructure. And he asked Horner to direct it. “When I arrived here, they had already used up several managers,” recalled the Briton. “In the afternoon, I was introduced to the staff, who no doubt wondered who this greenhorn was: convincing requires patience.”
During his first year at Red Bull, Horner hired the best engineers and the best strategists. Slowly but surely, the Red Bull team is gathering the top of the basket, such as car designer Adrian Newey, poached from rival McLaren and considered the best car designer in Formula 1. It is rumored that he signed a contract with Red Bull for a colossal fee of around 8 million euros per year.
Christian Horner: Total domination with Sebastian Vettel
From 2010 to 2013, the Horner, Newey, Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull combination was unbeatable to the point that Formula 1 was accused of being a boring and predictable sport. During this period, Sebastian Vettel and his teammate Mark Webber won more races than all their opponents combined. Since the introduction of the turbo hybrid era in 2014, Mercedes has won eight straight constructors championships. During the 2021 season, Red Bull finally managed to dethrone Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton in the Drivers Championship. “Lewis leaves no one indifferent,” said Horner. “You love him or you don’t like him, but he’s a fantastic driver, there’s no doubt about it. He’s without a doubt the biggest name in Formula 1.”
Christian Horner: Red Bull’s Max Verstappen era
If Mercedes has Hamilton, Red Bull has Max Verstappen, the Belgian-Dutch phenom who set the Formula 1 world on fire by becoming the youngest ever race winner during the 2016 Spanish Grand Prix. It was his first race for Red Bull Racing and he couldn’t have had a better start. Verstappen showed furious pace and unmatched talent since the start of his career and eventually ended up winning the 2021 Formula 1 World Drivers Championship by beating seven time champion Lewis Hamilton in the final race of the season in a dramatic final lap showdown. The Red Bull Racing team has signed Max Verstappen up till 2028 so the team’s future seems to be secure in the hands of one of the most talented drivers in the history of Formula 1.
What did Christian Horner say about Michael Masi?
Christian Horner, the boss of Max Verstappen’s Red Bull team, did not understand the FIA’s decision to remove Michael Masi from his position as Formula 1 race director. Christian Horner, the boss of the Formula 1 team, wanted to defend Michael Masi, dismissed from his position as race director after the controversies of last season, in particular during the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, which crowned Max Verstappen on the final lap.
“I think it’s tough. He was in a very difficult position last year, but we think a lot of decisions have been made against us. When you look at what he has at his disposal in terms of resources compared to what the teams have, that’s a huge difference. There’s been so much pressure on Michael’s withdrawal. It’s not fair. He didn’t do anything wrong according to the rules. It’s a bit of a smokescreen because if you look at this race, Mercedes had two pit opportunities”, explained the boss of the Britain based team.
Race direction will now alternate between Niels Wittich and Eduardo Freitas. The former was in charge of the German DTM Touring Car Championship. He was expected to take over the management of Formula 2 and Formula 3, but also to assist Michael Masi in the 2022 F1 season. The second was in charge of the World Endurance Championship (WEC) with in particular the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The new Formula 1 season, which promises a tantalizing duel between Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton, started on March 20 in Bahrain.
What does Christian Horner think about the future of Formula 1?
After 17 years in Formula 1, the Briton is no longer so impressed by the glamor and glitz, but he loves what he does and is pleased to see Formula 1 evolving for the better thanks to F1’s new owners, Liberty Media, whose objective is to reinforce the “entertainment” facet of this sport.
“Formula 1 is at a crossroads: either we choose to bet on technology, or we put the emphasis on man and machine, pushed to the extreme. Liberty Media seems to want to opt for the second option”, explains Horner, who is still having as much fun as the eleven-year-old boy in his go-kart up the hill. “At least I hope so. Formula 1 has to be a real race, a duel at the wheel, with heroes who defy speed and drivers like 21st century gladiators. That’s what’s exciting.”
What is Christian Horner’s net worth?
Christian Horner is one of the most successful team principals in F1 history. His team, Red Bull Racing has won the World Drivers Championship five times and the World Constructors Championship four times. Christian Horner is married to former Spice Girl Gerri Halliwell and is quite wealthy. Christian Horner currently earns a salary of $10 million per year from Red Bull Racing and his net worth is estimated to be around $68 million.
