Schumacher tears into Horner and Wache amid Red Bull woes

Red Bull Racing, once the dominant force in Formula 1, is grappling with a turbulent 2025 season, and Sky Germany pundit Ralf Schumacher has pinpointed the team’s management structure as the root of its woes.

The Milton Keynes squad, which slumped to third in the 2024 constructors’ championship, continues to struggle with a car that lacks both consistency and drivability.

Schumacher, a six-time Grand Prix winner, has laid the blame squarely at the feet of technical director Pierre Wache and team principal Christian Horner, arguing that their leadership fails to fill the void left by the departure of design legend Adrian Newey.

In a scathing critique on Sky Germany, Schumacher exposed what he sees as systemic oversights that threaten Red Bull’s future.

Wache’s Shortcomings and Newey’s Irreplaceable Legacy

The exodus over the past two years at Red Bull of key technical figures – chief designer Rob Marshall, head of race strategy Will Courtenay, sporting director Jonathan Wheatley, and, most critically, Newey – has by all accounts weakened the team’s technical department and overall operations.

Newey, who joined Red Bull in 2006 and shaped its championship-winning cars, departed for Aston Martin in March 2025, marking a turning point for the team.

His successor, Pierre Wache, was promoted from within to oversee the RB21, but Schumacher is unconvinced by his ability to match Newey’s genius.

“In my opinion, Pierre Wache is simply no Adrian Newey. Accordingly, it will be difficult,” Schumacher stated bluntly, pointing to the French engineer’s struggles to deliver a competitive car as evidence of Red Bull’s technical decline.

The RB21’s erratic performance has seen Red Bull trail McLaren by a staggering 99 points in the Constructors’ championship after just five races, with only 89 points to their name, while Max Verstappen sits third in the drivers’ standings, 12 points behind McLaren’s Oscar Piastri.

For Schumacher, the absence of Newey’s innovative touch is glaring, and Wache’s inability to step up has exacerbated Red Bull’s on-track struggles.

The team’s decision to rely on internal promotions rather than seeking external talent has, in Schumacher’s view, exposed a critical weakness in their technical strategy.

Horner’s Leadership Failures and a Fractured Team

Schumacher’s criticism extends beyond Wache to the very top of Red Bull’s hierarchy, with team principal Christian Horner bearing the brunt of his review.

Horner, who has led Red Bull since its inception, is accused of mishandling the team’s talent and fostering a culture of overconfidence.

The departure of Newey, in particular, is a decision Schumacher believes Horner should have fought tooth and nail to prevent.

“He built up the entire team and, together with Dr. [Helmut] Marko, was responsible,” Schumacher said of Newey’s pivotal role. “He should have seen it. And he should never have lost Adrian Newey.”

Schumacher’s frustration with Horner is compounded by what he describes as a “classic management problem” at Red Bull.

The 2024 texting scandal, which saw Horner accused of inappropriate behavior by a female employee, cast a long shadow over the team. Though cleared of wrongdoing, the saga exposed fissures within Red Bull’s leadership and distracted from their on-track efforts.

• Read also: Schumacher questions if Hamilton will see out Ferrari dream

Schumacher sees Horner’s leadership style as a liability, suggesting that his ego has clouded his judgment.

“When I think ‘things are going as they are and I don’t need him’, that’s when it all starts. I think Christian Horner has outgrown himself, and now he’s faced with a dilemma,” Schumacher explained.

He added, “With him, you always get the feeling that he wants to stay afloat in the team and takes things very seriously. And whether that’s always a good thing, I don’t know.”

As Red Bull heads into the Miami Grand Prix, the team faces an uphill battle to reclaim its former dominance. Trailing McLaren and Mercedes in the constructors’ standings, and with Verstappen struggling to keep pace in the drivers’ championship, the pressure is mounting.

And Schumacher’s pointed critique underscores a broader truth: Red Bull’s current struggles are not just technical but deeply rooted in a management structure that has failed to adapt to the loss of its brightest minds.

For a team accustomed to winning, the road ahead looks daunting unless Horner and Wache can prove their detractors wrong.

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