The music has stopped in Milton Keynes. What began twenty years ago as a loud, disruptive “party team” designed to rattle the F1 establishment has been replaced by a silent, clinical corporate machine. But as Oliver Mintzlaff’s “cleansing” of the Christian Horner era accelerates, Red Bull Racing is facing a catastrophic brain drain that threatens to leave the reigning champions as little more than a corporate ghost.
Formula One is a multi-billion dollar business, and for the first time in the sport’s history, even the teams are run to turn a profit. Yet each team is more than the sum of its parts. Today’s shock news that Max Verstappen’s race engineer and Red Bull’s Head of Race Engineering, Gianpiero Lambiase, is set to depart may serve as the final hammer blow to the once-legendary racing empire.
The successful F1 teams over the decades have enjoyed a family-style culture where each individual’s goals are aligned with the primary objective of the team: a singular, relentless focus on collective victory.
Red Bull join F1 as the “party team”
Having bought the remnants of the failed Jaguar team—previously run by corporate types interfering from the USA— Dietrich Mateschitz’s passion was not just to go racing, but to disrupt the stuffy corporate atmosphere of Formula One. Red Bull became known as the “party team”; after each Grand Prix, the pit lane was flooded with beats from the Red Bull garage pumping out tunes like “Who Let the Dogs Out?”
Out went the traditional team motorhome, and in came the massive floating glass palace known as the “Energy Station,” featuring DJ booths, bars, and a terrace. The team published a race weekend magazine called The Red Bulletin, which often poked fun at senior paddock members and the FIA alike. All of this reinforced their image as the outsiders — the new kids on the block.
At 31 years of age, Christian Horner was by far the youngest ever F1 team principal. His presence within the “Piranha Club,” populated by veterans like Ron Dennis and Jean Todt, created an immediate stir. The team launched Formula Una, recruiting local models to act as brand ambassadors each weekend, further leaning into that youthful, lavish culture of the mid-2000s.
Yet, behind the facade was a steely determination to take on the F1 establishment and win. Horner’s biggest masterstroke was the recruitment of Adrian Newey from under McLaren’s nose—a move that stunned the paddock and began the transition of Red Bull’s image from party team to predator team. The signing of David Coulthard lent the team a veneer of professional credibility, as the likeable Scot bridged the gap between fun-loving antics and a deadly seriousness about winning.
The transition from outsiders to owning the show
The next transition was the signing of Sebastian Vettel in 2007. His promotion to the senior team in 2009 changed everything. As Newey recollects, the young German embodied the “arrogant” attitude required for the top and was razor-focused on winning—at all costs.
After just five years of competition, Red Bull won the first of many championships as Vettel claimed the drivers’ title in 2010, alongside the team’s first constructors’ title. This would be repeated for the next three years, firmly establishing Red Bull as a cornerstone of the F1 paddock.
What was a marketing dream for the energy drinks brand became a nightmare for the old-school F1 brigade. Over the years, some of the laddish excesses faded, but the team always revelled in the tight-knit nature of its culture.
But as happens in life and sport, nothing lasts forever. Dark clouds formed on the horizon in 2022. Despite creating a revolution in the paddock, the energy drinks magnate behind the operation was rarely seen and remained a deeply private individual. During the summer of 2022, it became known that he was seriously ill. The team eventually announced his death from pancreatic cancer on October 22, during the US Grand Prix in Austin, Texas.
The rise of Red Bull’s sporting corporate executive
Little did those at Red Bull Racing realize that everything was about to change — and quickly. The leadership of the parent company in Austria underwent a massive and swift transition. Dietrich Mateschitz had been the final arbiter and decision-maker on nearly everything. He had entrusted the various sporting enterprises to figures like Horner to run them successfully. But with Dietrich gone, his son Mark had little interest in managing the day-to-day operations that had made him a multi-billionaire.
There was another majority owner behind the scenes: Chalerm Yoovidhya. He held a 51% majority stake in the Red Bull empire, as his family had been responsible for the original formulation of the energy drink in the Far East. With Mark now acting as the guardian of the Mateschitz legacy, someone had to step up to run the operation. That individual was the “corporate enforcer,” Oliver Mintzlaff.
He is German executive who came to prominence as CEO of RB Leipzig, Mintzlaff now holds the title of CEO of Corporate Projects and Investments. This includes all the brand’s sporting interests, including the F1 team. Mintzlaff is a classical corporate executive, a stark contrast to the visionary, “handshake-deal” style of entrepreneur that Dietrich Mateschitz was.
His German executive background brings a clinical focus on efficiency, accountability, and the professionalization of the empire’s “loosely controlled” sporting divisions. These skills served Mintzlaff well at RB Leipzig, where he transformed an upstart club into a self-sustaining, trophy-winning powerhouse. He became known for his ability to secure top-tier managerial talent, most notably Julian Nagelsmann in 2019, for whom he eventually negotiated a world-record €25m compensation fee.
Horner stripped of his unfettered control
The philosophy of the club was to scout promising young talent, form them into a winning unit, and then sell them to “Mega-Clubs” for huge transfer fees. It was this track record that persuaded the Mateschitz family to appoint him to oversee the entire Red Bull sporting operations.
However, following the founder’s passing, the new hierarchy in Salzburg decided that the unfettered autonomy enjoyed by Christian Horner was no longer tenable. As Horner sought to ring-fence his authority, he clashed directly with Mintzlaff’s vision.
While Red Bull Racing was flying high and Horner backed by the Thai majority shareholder, Mintzlaff’s hands were initially tied. Then came the smear campaign of 2024, where Horner was accused and twice cleared of an inappropriate relationship with an employee. Many believed Mintzlaff was behind the move. While Horner retained his position as Max won his fourth title, the “Night of the Long Knives” had begun. Rumours were seeded that Verstappen was set to leave, and his father, Jos, became engaged in a public war of words with Horner.
The Brain drain underway in Milton Keynes
As McLaren rose to wrestle away the 2024 constructors’ title, Horner’s standing in Salzburg took another blow. The tension in Milton Keynes resulted in the first nail in Horner’s coffin: Adrian Newey’s decision to retire from the team. The “Brain Drain” was underway:
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Adrian Newey: The design genius who opted for retirement (and later Aston Martin) over the internal fray.
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Rob Marshall: Was offered the top technical job at McLaren. A foundational pillar of Red Bull Racing now credited with McLaren’s resurgence.
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Jonathan Wheatley: The Sporting Director who turned the Red Bull race team into a “Swiss watch” operation, lured away by the Audi/Sauber project.
By the summer of 2025, Verstappen trailed Oscar Piastri by over 100 points. Just days after the British Grand Prix, the bombshell dropped: Horner had been sacked. Private videos emerged of Christian announcing his farewell to the crew; there were cries of anguish as many employees viewed him as a father figure.
Culled: The keepers of the Red Bull Racing culture
With Horner gone, the writing was on the wall. Paddock rumours abounded of a mass exodus, with many CVs appearing on the desks of the fledgling Cadillac team nearby. Horner was replaced by Laurent Mekies, who appeared to be an instant success as Verstappen began winning again. However, the turnaround was largely based on upgrades to the RB21 conceived before Horner’s dismissal.
The day Horner left, Mintzlaff began a ruthless “cleansing” of the communication, marketing, and commercial departments. The casualties included:
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Paul Smith (Head of Communications): The long-time gatekeeper of the team’s public image.
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Oliver Hughes (Chief Marketing Officer): The man behind the record-breaking Oracle and Bybit deals.
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Alice Hedworth (Communications Manager): A visible presence at Verstappen’s side, culled as departments were centralized in Salzburg.
Recent fallout includes the departure of Ole Schack, the team’s long-serving mechanic since 2005, who cited a shift in “culture and atmosphere.” And today, the biggest shock of all: reports that the iconic voice of Gianpiero Lambiase (GP)will be leaving the team. It is the severing of the final cord connecting Max Verstappen to the team that made him a champion and maybe will signal his ultimate departure from Milton Keynes too.
The final cord to Max Verstappen severed
The transformation of Red Bull Racing from a renegade “party team” into a corporate machine has reached its final, clinical stage. The “family” that Dietrich Mateschitz and Christian Horner had built has been systematically dismantled, replaced by a structure that values efficiency and centralisation over the maverick spirit that once defined the Milton Keynes racing operation.
The era of handshake deals and paddock satire is finished, replaced by a ruthless corporate “cleansing” led by Oliver Mintzlaff. As the last of the old guard—from the legendary Adrian Newey to the loyal mechanics and marketing gurus who built the brand—exit the stage, the team stands at a precipice. The possible departure of Gianpiero Lambiase to McLaren represents more than just a personnel change; it is the severing of the final cord connecting Max Verstappen to the team that made him a champion.
In 2005, Red Bull was the outsider looking in. In 2026, it is an institution searching for its soul. If the ‘voice in Max’s ear’ is truly moving on, it is more than a personnel change; it is the final confirmation that the empire Dietrich Mateschitz founded has finally—and perhaps irrevocably—crumbled.
In 2005, Red Bull was the outsider looking in. In 2026, it is an F1 institution searching for its lost soul. The empire Dietrich Mateschitz founded has finally—and perhaps irrevocably—crumbled.
NEXT ARTICLE: Bearman’s Japan crash now exposes F1 CEO’s complacency ahead of emergency safety summit
Last Updated on April 8 2026, 2:31 pm
The all new Formula One and its focus on energy management hybrids was apparently going along swimmingly – until Oliver Bearman’s 50g impact crash in Japan. The Haas driver on the electrical boost was unsighted through a high speed section of the iconic Suzuka circuit when he happened upon the Alpine of Franco Colapinto who was harvesting energy.
The closing speeds were enormous forcing Bearman to take evasive action, sending him off track and slamming into the barriers. The British driver limped away from the incident, but it was later confirmed he had no broken bones and just severe bruising. This has resulted in an urgent sit-down tomorrow between the FIA, senior F1 officials and the teams along with the manufacturers to address the dire straits F1 has now found itself in.
Yet this incident was predicted by the drivers but received a complacent response from the sport’s CEO Stefano Domenicali. “We need to avoid overreaction because it’s just the beginning of a new journey, so that’s why I say we need to stay calm,” he said…. CONTINUE READING
A.J. Hunt is Senior Editor at TJ13, where Andrew oversees editorial standards and contributes to the site’s Formula 1 coverage. A career journalist with experience in both print and digital sports media, Andrew trained in investigative journalism and has written for a range of European sports outlets.
At TJ13, Andrew plays a central role in shaping the site’s output, working across breaking news, analysis, and long-form features. Andrew’s responsibilities include fact-checking, refining editorial structure, and ensuring consistency in reporting across a fast-moving news cycle.
Andrew’s work focuses particularly on the intersection of Formula 1 politics, regulation, and team strategy. Andrew closely follows developments involving the FIA, team leadership, and driver market dynamics, helping to provide context behind the sport’s biggest stories.
With experience covering multiple seasons of Formula 1’s modern hybrid era, Andrew has developed a detailed understanding of how regulatory changes and competitive shifts influence the grid. Andrew’s editorial approach prioritises clarity and context, aiming to help readers navigate complex developments within the sport.
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