Ralf Schumacher is ‘pretty sure’ that one front-running Formula 1 team will ‘sink into mediocrity’ when F1 changes its regulations in 2026 if they keep their team principal.
A new dawn awaits the pinnacle of motorsport as Formula 1 will make its biggest shakeup in a decade. F1 will embrace engine and technical regulations in 2026 that might transform the field. Not since F1 adopted turbo-hybrid engines in 2014 has there been such a vast change.
Existing power unit providers Mercedes, Honda, Ferrari and Renault will have to adapt their V6 turbo-hybrid engines to remove the MGU-H. While new constructures Red Bull and Audi will try to hit the ground running with engines with 50/50 combustion and electrical power.
Ralf Schumacher expects Red Bull to crumble if Christian Horner stays
F1’s chassis regulations will also change in 2026 with plans to reduce the size and the weight of the cars. But Schumacher fears how Red Bull will adapt to F1’s regulation changes in 2026 if Christian Horner stays in charge. The 50-year-old has been the team principal since 2005.
The Red Bull parent company sought Horner out to lead the Formula 1 team after it bought Jaguar from Ford. Horner had shown his potential as a team principal after founding Arden with his dad, Garry Horner, in 1997. He also led the racing team until Horner joined Red Bull.
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Jaguar were never a competitive Formula 1 team with a best finish of third place in the 2001 Monaco GP and the 2002 Italian GP. Yet Horner has twice turned Red Bull into the dominant force with six constructors’ championships, seven drivers’ titles and 117 Grand Prix victories.
Yet Horner is now mired in a power struggle at Red Bull with the full backing of Thai majority owner, Chalerm Yoovidhya. But ex-Jordan, Williams and Toyota driver Schumacher fears the writing will be on the walls in Milton Keynes by 2026 if Horner remains in charge of Red Bull.
“I give Red Bull two more years and if they continue to hold on to Horner, then the team will sink into mediocrity,” Schumacher told Sky Germany. “I’m pretty sure of that.”
Red Bull’s power struggle has now convinced Adrian Newey to leave
According to BBC Sport, the fight for power in Milton Keynes has convinced Adrian Newey to ask to leave Red Bull. Their chief technical officer, who has a contract through 2025, walking out will be devasting before a major regulation change, and may realise Schumacher’s fears.
Newey has been at Red Bull since 2005 like Horner and has been just as instrumental for the team’s dominant spells. He designed the cars in which Sebastian Vettel won his four drivers’ titles in from 2010 to 2013 and Max Verstappen has won three titles in a row in since 2021.
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Losing Newey would certainly spark question marks about Horner’s ability to maintain Red Bull’s dominance when they become engine manufacturers as well as constructors in 2026. But Horner knows what it takes to thrive and did so without Newey before joining Red Bull.
Arden became a dominant International Formula 3000 Series team under Horner’s watch in the early 2000s. They won the team’s title in 2002, 2003 and 2004. Arden further took Bjorn Wirdheim in 2003 and also Vitantonio Liuzzi in 2004 to the International F3000 driver’s title.
The post ‘I’m pretty sure’: Ralf Schumacher tips F1 team to ‘sink into mediocrity’ if 50-y/o stays appeared first on F1 Oversteer.
