Christian Horner stepped out with his wife, Geri, to catch the Championship match between Watford and Coventry on Saturday. Meanwhile, his former F1 team, Red Bull, was in Mexico gearing up for a significant Grand Prix event in the championship race.
Horner, 51, received a considerable £80 million severance package from Red Bull after being unexpectedly dismissed from his longstanding position as team principal in July.
Freed from his previous Grand Prix commitments, the ex-F1 executive had the opportunity to accompany Geri, a former Spice Girls member and avid Watford supporter, to the football match.
While Horner is keen to return to the Formula 1 scene, he has relished his time off the circuit in recent months. He’s been seen enjoying an Oasis concert at Wembley and embarking on a scenic road trip through the Scottish Highlands with Geri.
His visit to Coventry, a team leading the Championship under the management of Frank Lampard, didn’t bring much fortune to Geri’s Watford. They quickly found themselves two goals down within the first seven minutes.
The Sky Blues dominated the first half, securing a 3-0 advantage with goals from Brandon Thomas-Asante, Jamie Allen, and Tatsuhiro Sakamoto. Watford’s James Abankwah also received a red card before halftime, adding to their woes.
Christian Horner joined his wife Geri at Watford’s Championship clash at Coventry on Saturday
Horner, 51, was given a huge £80million payoff by Red Bull after being brutally sacked in July
Spice Girls icon Geri is a huge Watford fan and watched her team concede three in the first half
The celebrity couple appeared in high spirits before kick-off however, smiling together and waving to members of the crowd who recognised them.
While Watford and Coventry were going head-to-head, Horner’s former F1 team Red Bull were preparing for a key race weekend in Max Verstappen’s title race against McLaren duo Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris.
Verstappen, who has masterfully closed the gap on Piastri and Norris since Horner’s exit, triumphed at the United States Grand Prix in Austin last weekend to blow the Drivers’ Championship table wide open.
With Piastri on 346 points, Norris on 332 and now Verstappen on 306, the Mexican Grand Prix marks a pivotal moment in the season where there is very little room for error.
Verstappen, 28, won four consecutive world titles under Horner’s stewardship at Red Bull between 2021 and 2024, establishing himself as one of the sport’s greatest talents.
The Horners also went to watch Watford play the west Midlands club at the Coventry Building Society Arena in January, six months before Christian’s Red Bull dismissal.
The former Red Bull chief is keenly pursuing a route back to the paddock, having chosen to take less than the £110m that could have been available to him as a payout.
The £110m would have prevented Horner from taking another job in the sport for years – as revealed by Daily Mail Sport’s Jonathan McEvoy – and thus he chose to take a smaller, yet still lucrative, £80m sum.
Red Bull and Max Verstappen are gearing up for a huge weekend at the Mexican Grand Prix
Verstappen has closed the gap to Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, blowing the F1 title race open
Frank Lampard’s Coventry sit top of the Championship table, while Watford are in 12th place
Haas, Alpine, Ferrari and Aston Martin have all been linked with Horner, with Aston Martin having recruited his former Red Bull ally Adrian Newey after 19 years working together.
Haas’ Ayao Komatsu has revealed that Horner apparently sounded out the American side over a role just months after his Red Bull exit.
‘Yeah, it is true that he approached us,’ Komatsu said ahead of the Singapore Grand Prix earlier this month. ‘And then one of our guys had an exploratory talk.
‘And that’s it. Nothing has gone any further. It is finished.’
He continued: ‘I’ve got nothing more to say. Like I said, you write whatever you want. I’m not fuelling that story.’
