F1 News: Christian Horner Recalls Guenther Steiner's Red Bull Exit- "Obvious He Was Not A Technical Leader”

Guenther Steiner may have been ousted from Haas for the same reason he was asked to leave Red Bull in 2006.

Rather surprisingly, Red Bull team principal Christian Horner stated that Guenther Steiner "was not a technical leader" when he worked for Red Bull before Adrian Newey's appointment in the team in 2006. The statement might be the answer to why the former Haas team boss was ousted from his last role on 10 January. 

Key Takeaways:

• Christian Horner, Red Bull team principal, suggested that Guenther Steiner's lack of technical leadership may have contributed to his removal from Haas.
• Guenther Steiner's sudden departure from Haas has surprised the Formula 1 community, with specific reasons known only to team owner Gene Haas and Steiner.
• Speculation arises that Haas' last-place finish in the 2023 Constructors' Standings might be a factor in Steiner's exit, as Gene Haas expressed a desire to move away from being in the 10th position.

The abrupt departure of Steiner from Haas has left the Formula 1 community in astonishment, with the specific reasons known only to team owner Gene Haas and the former boss. 

Speculation suggests that the team's last-place finish in the 2023 Constructors' Standings may be a contributing factor, as the team owner expressed that he has no desire "in being 10th anymore".

Horner revealed that back in 2004 after Red Bull bought the Jaguar F1 team, the co-founder of Red Bull GmbH, Dietrich Mateschitz, contacted him to take over the reins of the new outfit as team principal. 

This led to Horner becoming the youngest team principal in Formula 1, and he has since remained with the team for two decades. On the other hand, Steiner, who was also part of the team's technical department, eventually had to step down after being told by Horner to accommodate Adrian Newey. 

Recalling that day, Horner told i News:

“Guenther was and is a character but it was obvious he was not a technical leader.

“I identified what the team really needed was technical leadership and direction. So from a very early stage I made a point of bumping into Adrian.”

After Newey joined Formula 1, Steiner transitioned to lead the newly formed Team Red Bull NASCAR team. Subsequently, he assumed the role of team principal at Haas as they geared up to enter the sport in 2014.