Verstappen responds for the first time to Horner's departure from Red Bull

It had been coming for a while, but Wednesday morning, it was confirmed to be happening. Christian Horner had to leave Red Bull immediately. Laurent Mekies will take over his duties at the Austrian racing team.

Throughout the afternoon, reactions poured in, but Max Verstappen's was missing until now. The Dutchman has reacted for the first time to the news via Verstappen.com.

“Christian Horner departs Oracle Red Bull Racing. It's been a pretty special journey, having celebrated Max's four championships together. Thank you for everything, Christian,” according to Verstappen.com.

On Wednesday morning, Horner announced the news himself at the factory in Milton Keynes. This turned out to be an emotional story from the team boss. Not much later, the news went worldwide.

But will Verstappen now definitely remain loyal to Red Bull Racing? This cannot be said with certainty yet. The departure of Horner was one of the demands of the Verstappen camp to stay, but the sporting performances will also need to be improved. It remains to be seen if Laurent Mekies can manage this.