Red Bull recently announced that their sporting director, Jonathan Wheatley, will leave the team at the end of the 2024 F1 season. This is another major departure from the defending world champions, following on the heels of their chief technical officer, Adrian Newey announcing his departure.
Wheatley has been with the Austrian giants since 2006 when the team was relatively new to F1. He moved through the ranks and eventually became the sporting director at Red Bull. He has a major role to play in managing communications, supervising the team’s pit crew, and ensuring that the team operates under FIA regulations, among others.
Today, on August 1, 2024, the defending world champions officially announced that the 57-year-old would leave their side after the 2024 season. The official statement further revealed that he will take up the role of team principal at Audi (currently Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber) after serving a period of gardening leave in 2025. The length of the gardening leave was not mentioned in the official statement.
Today, we announce the departure of Sporting Director Jonathan Wheatley, as he heads to a new challenge in the role of Team Principal with the Audi F1 Project.
Everyone at the Team wishes Jonathan all the best. We will announce a new Team structure in the coming weeks.
— Oracle Red Bull Racing (@redbullracing) August 1, 2024
Red Bull also added that they will soon announce a new management structure with Wheatley leaving the team. This structure could be announced in the coming weeks.
After the team announced Newey’s departure in announce in May, Wheatley is the next big name in Red Bull’s senior management to leave them. Before these two, the Austrian team also lost their chief designer, Rob Marshall, to McLaren before the 2024 F1 season.
Red Bull team boss praises and bids goodbye to Jonathan Wheatley
Red Bull team principal Christian Horner gave an official statement bidding farewell to Jonathan Wheatley.
In the statement, Horner talked about Wheatley’s long and successful career in F1 and with Red Bull, where he helped the team win six constructors’ and seven drivers’ championships.
Horner’s statement then explained how the British engineer would serve the team as a sporting director till 2024, before taking a gardening leave in 2025. Horner, on behalf of the entire team, wished Wheatley all the best for his new adventure in F1.
“It has been a long and successful relationship with Jonathan, over 18 years. His contribution to six World Constructors’ Titles and seven World Drivers’ Championship, first as Team Manager and latterly Sporting Director will forever be a marker in our Team history,” Horner said.”Jonathan will remain in his position until the end of the 2024 season, as the Team seek to defend both our World Drivers’ and World Constructors’ Titles successfully. A period of gardening leave will follow in 2025.””Everyone at Oracle Red Bull Racing and Red Bull Technology wish him all the best in his new role and would like to place our thanks to Jonathan. Red Bull Racing have tremendous strength and depth and this provides opportunity to elevate others within the Team. We will announce a new Team structure in the coming weeks,” he concluded.
Wheatley has been in F1 since the 1990s when he worked as a junior mechanic in Benetton. He was with the team as it transformed into Renault, and was promoted to Race Team Chief Mechanic in 2001. While the Enstone-based team was at its height of success, he chose to take a bold step to leave the team and join Red Bull in 2006.