Toto Wolff misses ‘asshole’ Christian Horner: ‘Who should I hate now?’

Toto Wolff and Christian Horner had a wild relationship, one the Austrian has reflected on following the latter’s exit from Red Bull.

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has opened up on the recent departure of Christian Horner, someone he jokingly describes as an “asshole” but also a “real personality” who has left F1.

Horner had led Red Bull as its team principal and CEO from when the Austrian outfit entered the pinnacle of motorsport in 2005, before being axed three days after the British GP.

The announcement shocked the paddock, and represented the end of a huge era in the history of the Milton Keynes-based outfit.

During his stint with Red Bull which lasted just over 20 years, Horner led the squad to eight drivers’ and six constructors’ championships.

Wolff and Horner clearly had huge differences on how to run an F1 team; however, even the Mercedes boss recognised the significance of the Briton’s exit from Red Bull.

“What do I think? Well, that he has behaved like an asshole quite often over the last 12-15 years,” Wolff told Formula.hu on Horner’s exit. “He operates according to completely different values, but even the greatest enemy has a best friend.

“On the other hand, he was extremely successful in what he did. Now that he’s gone, at least for a while, a real personality has left the sport.

“He was controversial and divisive, but he was one of the main characters here. We can safely say that he was as significant as one of a driver.

“Looking at it purely from an F1 perspective, I don’t think there are many old-style team boss dinosaurs left here. Maybe just me. Maybe Fred (Vasseur) is a bit of a dinosaur too,” Wolff replied with a big smile.”

2021 Wolff-Horner drama

The rivalry between Wolff and Horner truly intensified during the famous 2021 season, where Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen jostled for the title down to the controversial final lap in Abu Dhabi.

It was a year which saw the two team bosses firing outbursts at each other, both to the media and over the radio when speaking to former race director Michael Masi.

Despite the outcome of the season, the feud between Wolff and Horner has gone down as one of the greatest between two team bosses.

When asked if fans recognising his feud with Horner as one the all-time great moments brings him motivation, Wolff answered: “Yes. If you look at it, it really has always been an interesting story.

“Those years, but especially 2021, weren’t just about Max and Lewis, but also about Christian and me.

“What’s more, it was really difficult at times, and that’s in all the history books and will remain there. You know, he always said that I loved to hate him. So who should I hate now? It looks like I’ll have to find someone else…”