11 months ago
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Nate SaundersJul 10, 2025, 09:29 AM ET
In the aftermath of Red Bull's bombshell decision to sack Christian Horner this week, it was casual to miss the sanction of the antheral replacing him: Laurent Mekies.
The Frenchman has made the contiguous measurement up from Racing Bulls, Red Bull's inferior team, wherever he'd been squad main since the commencement of 2024. His assignment marks the latest section successful a singular 20-year travel done virtually each level of Formula 1, some connected the competitory and governance broadside of the sport.
Born successful 1977 successful Tours, France, Mekies studied mechanical engineering astatine ESTACA successful Paris earlier completing a master's grade astatine Loughborough. He entered F1 with Arrows successful 2001, past joined Minardi the pursuing year.
When Red Bull bought the squad and rebranded it arsenic Toro Rosso, Mekies stayed on, yet becoming caput of conveyance performance. He was a halfway portion of the squad erstwhile Sebastian Vettel delivered the team's fairytale triumph astatine the 2008 Italian Grand Prix.
In 2014, Mekies joined the FIA arsenic information director, wherever helium played a pivotal relation successful the improvement and implementation of the Halo cockpit extortion device, present a mainstay of modern F1 safety. His 2018 determination to Ferrari sparked contention owed to a deficiency of gardening leave, frustrating rival teams.
At Maranello, helium roseate done the ranks from sporting manager to lawman squad main and racing director, seen arsenic a steadying beingness during a volatile play for the Scuderia. After 5 years astatine Ferrari, a telephone from Red Bull's orbit brought him back.
In 2024, helium took implicit arsenic squad brag of the renamed Racing Bulls, moving alongside caller CEO Peter Bayer to redefine the team's long-time individuality arsenic a Red Bull B-squad. One of the astir high-profile episodes of his little tenure was the messy mid-season departure of Daniel Ricciardo. Mekies didn't shy distant from criticism.
"We are not blessed with yet however we handled it, and of people we are precise conscious that we could, and should, person done a amended job," helium said aft Ricciardo's affectional exit successful Singapore.
Now, Mekies steps into 1 of the astir scrutinised jobs successful satellite athletics -- tasked with guiding Red Bull done its post-Horner epoch and keeping the reigning champions competitory successful a fast-shifting F1 landscape. He joins astatine a clip the wheels of Red Bull's adjacent rhythm are already successful motion, with the squad acceptable to extremity its Honda concern astatine the extremity of 2025 and commencement racing with its ain motor successful 2026.Red Bull Powertrains has already been processing the 2026 engine.
The astir evident task facing the softly-spoken Frenchman is obvious: convincing Max Verstappen that his semipermanent aboriginal should beryllium with Red Bull Racing. Verstappen has a declaration until 2028 but has clauses to flight if show is not good.
Red Bull's determination to portion with Horner seemed, successful part, to beryllium a past rotation of the dice to quieten the sound astir the imaginable of Verstappen racing elsewhere adjacent season. Whether it is capable remains to beryllium seen.
The squad is cautious astir the upcoming regularisation alteration adjacent twelvemonth and expects to beryllium disconnected the gait of the class-leading car, though making immoderate predictions astir show comparative to the remainder astatine this signifier is mostly guesswork.
