Mekies Pushes Back at Horner: Red Bull's Unity, Not Its 'Mojo,' Is What Matters

Laurent Mekies has pushed back at Christian Horner's claim that Red Bull has "lost its mojo," arguing that the team's response to a bruising 2026 campaign shows its identity is intact — and arguably more valuable than the swagger it once carried.

Why it matters:

Horner ran Milton Keynes for two decades before his removal as CEO and team principal in July 2025. His comments to The Times — that the team has lost "its mojo, its presence, its vibe" — read as a public verdict on his successor's tenure. Mekies used Friday's press conference at the Mexico City Grand Prix to answer it directly.

The details:

• Mekies conceded Horner's right to an opinion and respected his history with the team, but said the internal mood is "extremely different" from Horner's description.
• He pointed to Red Bull's recovery from a difficult opening to the year, with problems on both the chassis and power unit sides.
• The distinction he drew: a positive spirit is easy when you are winning races; holding that same fight under pressure is something else. "The way the team set the Milton Keynes department on fire to try to come back" is, in his words, the Red Bull spirit.
• That turnaround has restored competitive momentum and, more importantly, confidence inside the organisation.

What's next:

Mekies was careful not to mistake a recovery for an arrival. Winning a race or two is not the benchmark — world titles are. "Until we are there, nobody will feel we have achieved anything." Until those championships return, he has little interest in declaring the mojo restored.