Christian Horner fears his sacking 'is yet another crisis for his marriage to Geri Halliwell to face' after he lost his job at Red Bull on Wednesday.
The 51-year-old had spent the last two decades as team principal, overseeing great success during that time.
However, Horner was dismissed on Wednesday with Red Bull saying in a statement: "We would like to thank Christian Horner for his exceptional work over the last 20 years. With his tireless commitment, experience, expertise and innovative thinking, he has been instrumental in establishing Red Bull Racing as one of the most successful and attractive teams in Formula 1.
"Thank you for everything, Christian, and you will forever remain an important part of our team history."
Christian Horner fears his sacking 'is yet another crisis for his marriage to Geri Halliwell to face' after he lost his job at Red Bull on Wednesday
PA
Last year, Horner was accused of inappropriate behaviour by a female Red Bull employee.
He was twice cleared internally, however, and always denied any wrongdoing.
Geri decided to stand by her husband, with the duo putting on a united front at the 2024 Bahrain Grand Prix.
Now, however, a source has told The Sun that Horner fears a crisis in his marriage after he was relieved of his duties earlier this year.
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The insider was quoted as saying: “Christian is of course desperately sad that his career has ended this way.
"He also had the shock news about his ex wife’s death just a few days before.
"But the emotion he showed during his teary speech was actually about Geri.
“He fears his sacking is yet another crisis for his marriage to face after an incredibly difficult year."
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Geri Horner and Christian Horner have been married ever since 2015GETTYThere is currently nothing to suggest that Horner's departure from Red Bull is in relation to the allegations that were made against him.
Instead, it's far likelier that he's been axed because Red Bull aren't operating at the peak of their powers like they were before.
Star driver Max Verstappen has won just two races this term, in stark contrast to previous years.
Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri have instead dominated, with McLaren looking increasingly likely to achieve success in the Drivers' Championship.
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When it comes to the Constructors' Championship, Red Bull currently sit fourth with 172 points to their name.
Mercedes, Ferrari and McLaren are all above them in the standings.
Meanwhile, Horner's close friend and Sky Sports pundit Martin Brundle has admitted that the 51-year-old's exit is 'sad'.
He did admit, however, that it wasn't 'completely out of the blue'.
Christian Horner oversaw great success at Red Bull during his time in chargeGETTY"I don't think it's completely out of the blue, given things that are going on and the sort of problems in the team, words getting out of team Verstappen and others," he said.
"I'm quite sad about it if I'm honest, I consider Christian a friend and he's done an incredible job for the last 20 years - won an awful lot of races, and championships for drivers and for the team.
"And he took it from what was the Stewart team through Jaguar, and it was struggling, to a massive campus in Milton Keynes and an awful lot of success and a huge trophy cabinet.
"But it's not been difficult to feel in the Formula 1 paddock, and to observe, and to hear, that things were not particularly rosy."