As silence continues over the progress of Red Bull's week-long investigation into allegations made against Horner by an employee, Ford has upped the ante and called on the energy drink maker to move forward with the matter.
According to an Associated Press report, Ford CEO Jim Farley made it clear in a letter to Red Bull that the brand is unhappy with the lack of progress on a matter that it believes needs to be taken very seriously.
In the letter, obtained by AP, Farley writes that Ford “has become increasingly frustrated by the lack of resolution or clear indication from you as to when you expect a fair and equitable resolution to this matter.”
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“We are also frustrated by the lack of full transparency on this matter from us, your corporate partners, and look forward to a full disclosure of all findings.”
Farley called on Red Bull to give the matter “immediate and serious attention.”
Red Bull Racing team boss Christian Horner speaks with Jim Farley, CEO of Ford
Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool
Ford will be working with Red Bull's new powertrain division from the start of the 2026 season, but has already begun marketing activities.
Farley said that as a family-owned company, Ford was unhappy with how things were progressing and expressed displeasure that previous calls for more transparency on the matter had been ignored.
He added in the letter: “As we have previously suggested, Ford's values are non-negotiable without a satisfactory response.”
“It is essential that our racing partners share the same values and show a real commitment to them. My team and I are available to talk to you at any time. We continue to insist on a solution and hope we can all get behind each other.”
Ford is not alone in calling on Red Bull to add urgency to its resolution on the matter, particularly with the F1 season opener taking place in Bahrain next weekend. There are concerns the controversy could overshadow the first race of the campaign.
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Formula 1 Management (FOM) recently issued a statement making it clear that they also did not want the matter to drag on any longer.
“We have noted that Red Bull has launched an independent investigation into the internal allegations at Red Bull Racing,” F1’s statement said.
“We hope that the matter will be resolved as quickly as possible following a fair and thorough process and will have no further comment at this time.”
While the investigation continued, Horner remained in his role as team principal and attended the new car launch in Milton Keynes recently and the F1 pre-season test in Bahrain last week.
He has strongly denied any wrongdoing in the matter.