As Red Bull Racing begins a new chapter under the guidance of its new team principal Laurent Mekies, former F1 driver Ralf Schumacher is confident the Frenchman car to steer the former championship-winning outfit through its next evolution – and possibly even rebuild it from the inside out.
Schumacher believes Mekies brings not only experience, but also the leadership qualities required to unite a team, much like Andrea Stella has done at McLaren over the past two seasons.
Mekies’ journey through Formula 1 is extensive, with stints at Arrows, Minardi, Ferrari, and AlphaTauri-Racing Bulls, as well as at the FIA, where he served as safety director and deputy race director between 2014 and 2018.
A Diversity of Experiences in F1
Such diverse experiences are a valuable asset according to Schumacher, and they should help Christian Horner’s successor at Red Bull Racing stabilize the Milton Keynes-based outfit and push it on to thrive once again.
“First of all, the ambition, you can see that with Stella and Mekies, [they] have that too, and the experience,” Schumacher said.
“Where does that come from? In this case, he also went through the entire paddock, even in the smaller teams.
“He was with Minardi for a long time, then in AlphaTauri, and then Ferrari. And you have to give him credit, he had his heart in the right place.”
“He can bring people together”
Schumacher believes Mekies’ leadership qualities set him apart.
“That’s another issue, what is the use if you’re the king, but you don’t have any subjects who want to work with you, to put it exaggeratedly,” he added.
“He has that, and he’s just good at it; he can do that. He can catch people, he can bring people together. He can build a team, and that is so crucial in Formula 1.
“It really is just teamwork at the end of the day, and I think Red Bull made a great decision.”
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While Mekies inherits a team with a race-winning car and arguably the sport’s top driver in Max Verstappen, his first major challenge will be holding it all together.
Despite a contract running until the end of 2028, Verstappen has been heavily linked with a possible move to Mercedes amid the team’s internal shake-ups.
©RedBull
With George Russell and rising star Kimi Antonelli both out of contract at the end of 2025, the driver market could shift quickly – and Mekies will be expected to play a critical role in ensuring Verstappen stays in Red Bull colors.
For Schumacher, however, Red Bull’s decision to back Mekies is already a smart one – with long-term rewards likely to follow.
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