Overview

• Red Bull confirmed on September 22 that Christian Horner had left the company after a negotiated settlement, with the payout widely reported around £80 million and some reports citing $70–100 million.
• Multiple outlets report the agreement includes a pathway for Horner to rejoin the grid in 2026.
• Coverage indicates Horner is likely to seek equity or ownership-level authority rather than a standard team principal contract.
• Haas is mooted as a potential landing spot for a rebuild as the team struggles in 2025, while links to Alpine persist despite Guenther Steiner publicly doubting that move and saying the payout is not enough to buy a team.
• Separate reporting says a significant tax bill would reduce an £80 million figure by roughly £36 million at the UK’s top rate.