Red Bull's 2025 seat could have gone to Fernando Alonso or Charles Leclerc, and, according to Christian Horner, he wanted both equally.
Horner's upcoming book Drive discusses how the former team chief found himself up against a wall when he tried to find a new driver to sit alongside Max Verstappen. Horner, who ran Red Bull for two decades before his exit in July 2025, says that wall was Helmut Marko, and that he doesn't believe Verstappen was anything to do with how hard he found it.
Sergio Perez struggled towards the end of his tenure at the Milton Keynes outfit. Despite Perez assisting the team in getting its first 1-2 in the drivers' championship, his performance quickly fell off in 2024.
"Sergio Perez's form was unrecognisable compared to the driver he had been in previous seasons," Horner wrote. "I decided to look for a possible replacement."
Alonso asked, and the Verstappen camp apparently said no
The first name on the list was delivered to his desk. Alonso, who was driving for Aston Martin at the time and still is, confirmed his interest to Horner during the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix, according to Horner's memoir.
"During the Japanese Grand Prix, Fernando even told me that he really wanted to drive alongside Max the following season. Subsequently, Helmut (Marko), apparently on behalf of Verstappen's management team, made it clear that they were not happy with that idea."
That's a remarkable way for a team principal to lose a signing.
Leclerc, Lawson and Sainz
Horner then turned to Leclerc: "I thought he could be the perfect driver for us."
"He was fast, strong over one lap, and had a determined character. Sure, he made a mistake now and then, which Red Bull had capitalised on, but whatever the situation, he never criticised Ferrari. Charles was a team player, and I felt he could fill the gap if Sergio dropped further back. Moreover, he seemed frustrated at Ferrari."
The response was the same as before. Horner writes: "Shortly afterwards, Helmut told me that I should just forget about Charles as well. Just like with Fernando, it wasn't going to happen."
What he says next is a real standout part of the book, because it clears Verstappen from this mess.
"I knew immediately that that order did not come from Max," Horner adds. "But someone had decided somewhere that it wasn't the right move for Red Bull. I was disappointed." He never names that someone.
With both big names off the table, the seat went in-house to Liam Lawson. "But I didn't feel comfortable with it. He was young and inexperienced, with only eleven Formula 1 races under his belt, and we were asking an enormous amount of him." Lawson lasted only a couple of races before Red Bull sent him back down to its sister team, and Horner didn't regret a thing: "But actually, he should never have been promoted in the first place."
There is one more name in the book, and that's Carlos Sainz. He visited Horner's home shortly before his dismissal. "He came to discuss a possible move to Red Bull in 2026.
"He was an experienced Grand Prix driver, a team player, and I knew he would work his socks off for the team."
Keep in mind this is one man's account. But by his own telling, the man officially in charge of the team wasn't the one deciding who drove its cars. There will be more to come, we're sure.