Christian Horner refuses to accept Adrian Newey’s exit as the reason for Red Bull’s performance slump

Christian Horner denies claims that Adrian Newey's departure has been the cause of Red Bull's recent struggles.


Christian Horner refuses to accept Adrian Newey’s exit as the reason for Red Bull’s performance slump

Adrian Newey and Christian Horner (via IMAGO)

The Italian GP was another dramatic race for Red Bull Racing, with the RB20 underperforming at Monza and disappointing Max Verstappen. The Dutchman voiced his concerns about the car’s balance and speed. Rumors suggest that Adrian Newey‘s departure earlier this year may have impacted the team’s performance. However, Team Principal Christian Horner denies these claims.

Christian Horner disagreed with the idea that Red Bull’s recent struggles are because Adrian Newey left the team. He believed that the issues they were facing were already present before Newey’s departure. He also mentioned that one person’s absence couldn’t cause such a sudden drop in performance. As per him, the problems were building up over time and that the 65-year-old’s departure couldn’t have led to such immediate changes in the team’s results. Even Max Verstappen had stated, the aero genius’ exit was not the reason for Red Bull’s struggle.

I think it would have had all of these issues because the issues were already there, and one man’s input could never be so dramatic so quickly.
Christian Horner told GPBlog.com
YouTube video

Christian Horner pointed out that the problems with RB20 began to become noticeable after the Miami GP. He also explained that Newey was still involved with the team until the Friday of the Miami race weekend. Hence, it’s unlikely that his departure could have caused such issues. Horner suggested that if the performance problems were caused by the aero-genius leaving, they would have taken longer to show up.

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This started to really highlight itself in Miami. Adrian was plugged in up until Friday of Miami. So there's no way it would have impacted so quickly.
Christian Horner added.

Christian Horner affirms Red Bull will come up with a fix amidst recent struggles

Christian Horner was asked if Adrian Newey had left as a way to avoid dealing with the team’s issues. He responded that it wouldn’t make sense, even if Newey had stayed, he would still be working with the same team members. The 50-year-old expressed, success relies on everyone working together in F1. Therefore, the problems are a team issue and not just one person’s responsibility.

Max Verstappen, Helmut Marko and Christian Horner (via IMAGO)
Max Verstappen, Helmut Marko and Christian Horner (via IMAGO)
Well, he'd be working with all the same people. Formula One is a team sport. It's a team, it's a team issue. And the team will come up with the resolution.
Christian Horner stated.

Certainly, Horner emphasized that finding a solution requires teamwork and collective effort, rather than blaming a single person. The team is working hard to find the solutions to the problems they faced in the past races. Fans hope Red Bull bounces back at the upcoming race in Baku and defends their Constructors title.

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