Christian Horner takes surprise new job after Red Bull F1 exit

Christian Horner

Christian Horner takes surprise new job after Red Bull F1 exit

The former Red Bull chief has a new job

Graham Shaw Consultant Editor

Digital sports specialist running global brands for 30 years

Wednesday 3 June 2026 20:57 Updated: 21:21

Christian Horner has a new job as the former Red Bull team principal takes on his first major role since his shocking F1 exit in the summer of 2025.

The 52-year-old Englishman was sacked by his all-conquering team after two decades of glorious success for the Milton Keynes operation.

Since then there has been much speculation about a potential return to the sport - with Alpine, Aston Martin and potential Chinese newcomer BYD all mooted as possible landing spots.

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Horner joins private equity house Oakley Capital

For now though Horner is resurfacing in a wider sporting role as he joins London-based private equity house Oakley Capital as an advisor. He is expected to help in identifying and unlocking new opportunities with the hunt for sports assets a highly competitive space.

Peter Dubens, Founder and Managing Partner, said: “Christian Horner is widely recognised as a highly successful leader in global sport. His track record, expertise and commercial instinct will be invaluable as we continue to scale our sports portfolio.

"We are increasingly drawn to businesses in this space that share the hallmarks of a typical Oakley investment: founder-led, high-growth and supported by resilient revenues, or under-commercialised ‘scarce’ assets with significant untapped potential. We look forward to working with Christian in order to unlock these opportunities.”

Horner will help dealmakers to unlock sporting opportunities.

Horner excited by new job

Horner says he is excited by his new role, explaining: “Sports businesses are benefitting from growing global audiences and participation rates as more people embrace healthier, active lifestyles. I have known and respected Peter and the Oakley team for many years and have always admired their approach to building ambitious, founder-led businesses.

"Oakley Capital has established a strong reputation across the sports and consumer landscape and I look forward to working together in the future and sharing my experience to help support the next generation of standout sports businesses.”

Oakley’s existing sports investments include Athena Racing (now GB1, the ‘Challenger of Record’ for the 38th America’s Cup), High-performance padel rackets producer NOX, Vice Golf and marine action sports brand North Sails.

F1 Red Bull Christian Horner