Ford Motor Co., set to power Red Bull‘s engines from 2026, is closely monitoring the investigation into alleged misconduct by team principal Christian Horner. On Friday, the company emphasized its commitment to high ethical standards for itself and its partners.
This development marks Ford as the first of Red Bull’s current partners to publicly address the allegations against Horner. Despite Horner’s firm denial of the accusations, Red Bull initiated an independent probe two weeks prior.
At the Daytona International Speedway, Mark Rushbrook, the global director of Ford Performance Motorsport, expressed Ford’s position, indicating they are awaiting the results of the investigation into Horner’s conduct.
“As a family company, and a company that holds itself to very high standards of behaviour and integrity, we do expect the same from our partners,” Rushbrook said.
“It appears to us, and what we’ve been told, was that Red Bull is taking the situation very seriously. And of course, they’re worried about their brand, as well.
“And that’s why they’ve got an independent investigation and until we see what truth comes out of that, it’s too early for us to comment on it all.”
Reports today from Telegraaf.nl suggest that the extensive inquiry concerning allegations against team leader Christian Horner involved a significant incident reported at the headquarters of the billion-dollar corporation in Austria.
In December 2023, a female staff member accused Horner of inappropriate sexual conduct. The woman provided an external attorney, who is handling the investigation, with text messages alleged to prove these claims. These messages have been obtained by the Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf.
Analysis of the texts exchanged between Horner and the Red Bull employee reveals that Horner frequently sent messages of a sexual nature over an extended time frame.
Furthermore, it appears Horner took steps to conceal these actions. Specifically, after being approached about the ongoing investigation into misconduct on February 2nd and requested to comment, Horner’s legal representatives quickly issued a letter to the employee’s lawyer within 24 hours, proposing a settlement amounting to approximately £650,000 (over €760,000).
