Marko Claims Delayed Horner Exit Cost Verstappen 2025 Title

Helmut Marko has stated that Max Verstappen would have won the 2025 Formula 1 World Championship had Red Bull dismissed Team Principal Christian Horner earlier in the season. The veteran advisor, who confirmed his own immediate departure from the team after the Abu Dhabi finale, argued that the delayed action allowed on-track performance to slip irrecoverably in the title fight against Lando Norris.

Why it matters:

Marko's comments provide a stark, insider assessment of the internal turmoil that many believe derailed Red Bull's season. His claim directly links the team's leadership crisis to its failure to secure a fifth consecutive drivers' title, framing the power struggle as a decisive competitive factor. This narrative challenges the external view of a simple performance deficit and points to deeper organizational fractures following Dietrich Mateschitz's death.

The details:

• Marko told Dutch media that the decision to remove Horner became unavoidable once performance declined, but executing it sooner would have salvaged the championship: "If we had done it earlier, we would have got things back on track sooner and Max Verstappen would have been world champion this year."
• He described a fundamental shift in the team's power structure after founder Dietrich Mateschitz's health declined in 2022, alleging Horner began aligning with Thai co-owner Chalerm Yoovidhya to seize control.
• Marko characterized his final years working with Horner as involving "dirty games," citing fabricated stories—including a racially charged comment about Sergio Perez and false claims he undermined the engine program—as tactics allegedly used to undermine him.
• He claims Horner eventually lost Yoovidhya's support when repeated lies were exposed, leading to his dismissal.

Between the lines:

Marko's account paints a picture of a team consumed by a civil war, where managerial energy was diverted from the championship fight to internal politics. His assertion that Verstappen's late-season surge under Laurent Mekies came "too late" suggests the performance issues were rooted in organizational instability, not just car development. Furthermore, his rejection of Red Bull's official statement on his departure hints at ongoing discord, implying his exit was less a retirement and more a final separation from a changed environment.

What's next:

With both Marko and Horner gone, Red Bull enters a new era under Laurent Mekies. The central question is whether the team can restore its singular focus and technical dominance without the two architects of its most successful period. For Verstappen, the narrow two-point title loss will be a powerful motivator in 2026, but it remains to be seen if the team's new structure can provide him with a car capable of reclaiming the crown.