Christian Horner ‘played a character’ as Susie Wolff breaks silence on Red Bull exit

Susie Wolff, the head of F1 Academy and the wife of Mercedes F1 boss Toto Wolff, says Christian Horner “played a character very well” during his stint in charge of Red Bull.

And she has described the off-track allegations surrounding Horner in 2024 as “a real shame for the sport.”

Susie Wolff: Christian Horner ‘played a character very well’ at Red Bull

Horner was sacked by Red Bull in the aftermath of July’s British Grand Prix after more than 20 years in charge, with Racing Bulls boss Laurent Mekies installed as his replacement as chief executive and team principal.

The 51-year-old stands as one of the most successful team principals in F1 history having led Red Bull to six constructors’ titles and eight drivers’ championships – split evenly between Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen – since his appointment in 2005.

As revealed by PlanetF1.com, Horner officially cut ties with Red Bull last month after agreeing a settlement worth $100million (£74.2m/€85.1m).

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PlanetF1.com understands that Horner will be free to pursue a return to F1 at some point during the F1 2026 season under the terms of his Red Bull departure.

It is widely expected that Horner will seek a team-ownership-style position upon his return, potentially in a similar role to that held by Mr Wolff, his long-term adversary who owns a third of the Mercedes team as well as acting as chief executive and team principal.

Horner was accused of inappropriate behaviour by a Red Bull colleague in early 2024.

He was twice cleared of the claims, first by an internal investigation conducted by a lawyer and then by another lawyer who dismissed the complainant’s appeal. Horner has always denied the accusations.

Speaking to the Sunday Times, Mrs Wolff has claimed that Horner “played a character” during his Red Bull tenure.

And she argued that the accusations made against the former Red Bull team principal “wasn’t the best for the image of the sport.”

She said: “Christian was supportive of F1 Academy and for that I’ll always be grateful.

“It was a real shame for the sport – the whole drama that was created with the allegations.

“We were getting so much positive momentum with F1 Academy and that all kicked off and suddenly everyone wanted to interview me about that [the Horner saga].

“He was someone that played a character very well.

“But I do think that incident maybe wasn’t the best for the image of the sport and showed that we’ve still got work to do.”

Mrs Wolff’s comments come after her husband – who was embroiled in a bitter rivalry with Horner during the classic 2021 season in which their drivers, Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton, battled for the title – branded the former Red Bull boss an “a**hole.”

Mr Wolff said: “What do I think [of Horner]?

“Well, that over the last 12-15 years, he has often behaved like an a**hole.

“He operates according to completely different values, but even the greatest enemy has a best friend.

“On the other hand, he was extremely successful in what he did.

“Now that he’s gone, at least for a while, a real personality has left the sport.

“He was controversial and divisive, but he was one of the main characters here. We can safely say that he was as significant as a great driver.

“Looking at it purely from an F1 perspective, I don’t think there are many old-style team boss dinosaurs left here.

“Maybe just me. Maybe Fred [Vasseur, Ferrari team principal] is a bit of a dinosaur too!”

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