How 'pragmatic' Mekies will reshape Red Bull compared to 'attacking' Horner

20:23, 21 Jul

Updated: 20:27, 21 Jul

byTobia Elia

With Christian Horner now out of the picture, how will Red Bull’s leadership approach change under Laurent Mekies? Former F1 driver Jolyon Palmer has offered his take on the question.

We’ve entered what promises to be a historic week for Red Bull. For the first time in the team’s 20-year history, Christian Horner will not be on the pit wall.

Instead, Laurent Mekies will take his place, having been promoted to CEO and Team Principal of the Milton Keynes outfit after delivering strong results with Racing Bulls.

It won’t be an easy task for the Frenchman, who’s stepping into the shoes of a figure with a legacy of massive success and multiple world titles.

On top of that, he inherits a team in the midst of a turbulent season, with the RB21 often falling short of McLaren—and at times even struggling against other direct rivals.

So what kind of approach will Mekies bring to Red Bull? And will the team rally around him to navigate its way out of the tough situation?

Laurent Mekies

Mekies ready to replace Horner

''I think they will all be really gearing up behind him at the moment because this is after the fallout of everything in the last year and a half,'' Jolyon Palmer told via F1 Nation.

''The key personnel that have left Red Bull and there's a lot of people within the team that are looking around and thinking who's going to go next.''

''The whole team was very unsettled and this is the chance now for the rest of the team who are still very good at what they do to re-galvanize and put their support behind Laurent''

Palmer also added: ''It's all about just then the communication channels with Laurent, making sure that he's fed back and he's in the loop as quickly as possible.''

''He understands where the team are at, what needs to change. And I wonder with the different personalities between Christian and Laurent if there's going to be a bit of a culture change at Red Bull.''

According to the former Renault driver, Mekies’ more pragmatic approach—compared to Horner’s more direct style—could actually benefit the team.

''The attacking nature of Christian Horner...he was always bullish always wanting to hit back if he was ever on the back foot? I wonder if that will change and it will be a bit more of a pragmatic race team, maybe and not necessarily all guns blazing attack in favor of Max.''

''But we will see because we really don't know what Laurent Mekies is going to be like in this situation.''