Laurent Mekies has broken his silence on replacing Christian Horner as Red Bull Racing Team Principle, after the 51-year-old was sacked on Wednesday morning.
Mekies will move from Team Principle at Racing Bulls to the CEO at Red Bulls Racing.
The move was confirmed in a statement from Red Bull, reading: "Red Bull has released Christian Horner from his operational duties with effect from today (Wednesday 9 July 2025) and has appointed Laurent Mekies as CEO of Red Bull Racing.
"We would like to thank Christian Horner for his exceptional work over the last 20 years.
Red Bull confirmed that Laurent Mekies will take Christian Horner's role
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"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."
Speaking on the decision, new CEO Mekies said: "The last year and a half has been an absolute privilege to lead the team with Peter.
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Alan Permane (left) will take over as Team Principle at Racing Bulls from Laurent Mekies (right)
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"It has been an amazing adventure to contribute to the birth of Racing Bulls together with all our talented people.
"The spirit of the whole team is incredible, and I strongly believe that this is just the beginning."
At Racing Bulls, Mekies will be replaced by current Racing Director Alan Permane.
READ MORE: Red Bull statement in full as Christian Horner loses job after 20 years
"Alan is the perfect man to take over now and continue our path. He knows the team inside out and has always been an important pillar of our early successes," Mekkies added.
Speaking on his new role, Permane added he was "honoured" for the opportunity.
He said: "I feel very honoured to take on the role as Team Principal and would like to thank Oliver and Helmut for the trust they have shown in me.
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Red Bull Christian Horner has been sacked after 20 years as team principle at Red BullGetty"I am looking forward to working with Peter to continue the good work that both him and Laurent have done in taking this team forward.
"This is a new challenge for me, but I know that I can count on the support of everyone within them."
News of the decision sent shockwaves across the F1 community, not least Sky Sports F1 commentator Martin Brundle, who revealed he was "quite sad" to hear the news of his "friend" Horner's sacking.
“[It's] completely out of the blue, given things going on and problems in the team," he said.
"I’m quite sad about it if I’m honest, I consider Christian a friend.
“He took it from what was the Stewart team through Jaguar to a lot of success and a huge trophy cabinet."
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