Red Bull’s officials are leaving the team faster than you can think. First, Adrian Newey had announced his exit earlier this year. So, starting in January 2025, the aero-wizard will need to find another squad to work for. On the other hand, the RBR Sporting Director Jonathan Wheatley has decided to follow Newey out of Christian Horner’s army. The longtime Red Bull engineer has found a new role at Audi where he will replace Andreas Seidl.

In January 2023, Andreas Seidl submitted his resignation from McLaren as he left for Audi. The German manufacturers are currently working on a Formula 1 debut in 2026 through 100% ownership of the existing Sauber team. Seidl had headed the Audi project for a year until the team announced his abrupt dismissal in July. And along with the ex-papaya army chief, Audi executive Oliver Hoffmann left as well. This gave rise to questions about the progress that Audi has made since the team lost two of its highest-ranking officials within a matter of days.

However, Audi has clammed the mouths of its critics shut by adding some of the biggest names in F1 to its roster. The team roped in ex-Ferrari Team Principal Mattia Binotto to restructure the Audi leadership. Binotto, in turn, recommended Jonathan Wheatley as the new leader of the team. Seeing this role as an “exciting opportunity“, Wheatley readily decided to switch from Red Bull to the 2026 debutant team.

Wheatley has mostly worked at the Red Bull garage, away from the media’s eyes till now. As his name is now all over F1 town, you might be wondering who is Jonathan Wheatley and where he comes from.

Who is Red Bull Racing’s Jonathan Wheatley?

A look at Jonathan Wheatley’s LinkedIn would tell you that the 57-year-old is an engineer by profession. The Briton got his big break in the motorsports world when he landed a job as a junior mechanic at Benetton (the team that gave F1 legend Michael Schumacher his first two World Championships). Wheatley stayed loyal to Benetton for more than a decade as he worked his way up to become the chief mechanic at Benetton in 2001. In 2006, he left the Enstone outfit to join Red Bull Racing.

Wheatley’s role at Red Bull included ensuring the team’s cars followed the FIA rules while also overseeing the pit crew among other things. He was wildly successful in this role as the RBR pit crew set a world record for the fastest F1 pit stop at the Brazilian GP 2019 (1.82s). Naturally, he became the Sporting Director in no time and enjoyed a superior position at the Milton-Keynes outfit. And the only time he actually came into public purview is when he communicated with the FIA Race Director Michael Masi at the 2021 Abu Dhabi GP–but what had happened then?

What was the 2021 Abu Dhabi controversy involving Jonathan Wheatley?

The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix was the ultimate World Championship decider when Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen locked horns in 2021. However, the race had all but ended without a shred of controversy. While Red Bull’s Verstappen had reigned over Lewis in the end, the decisions of the FIA Race Director during the Grand Prix had raised some eyebrows. And Jonathan Wheatley had a major role to play in that.

While Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton were in a neck-and-neck competition, Nicholas Latifi had a crash at a crucial juncture during the race. Determining that this was his time to intervene, Wheatley used his knowledge of the FIA regulations to talk Michael Masi into letting the lapped cars unlap themselves under a safety car. Meanwhile, Max Verstappen pitted for fresh tires and when the race resumed, he had the advantage over Lewis Hamilton who had old tires. As just one lap was left to decide the World Champion, Max overtook Lewis and the rest is history.

Thus, some might say, Jonathan Wheatley allegedly brainwashed Masi into giving Max Verstappen an advantage for the Dutchman’s first F1 title win. But Red Bull will lose this British mastermind soon.

Jonathan Wheatley leaves Red Bull Racing to join Audi

Wheatley comes with an extensive knowledge of automobile engineering as well as the FIA rules and regulations. Favoring this combination, Audi has decided he is the perfect man to replace Andreas Seidl. So, they have recruited him to form a “dual management” structure with Mattia Binotto. As per a statement by the German outfit, Jonathan Wheatley will debut for them in July 2025.

Audi has also stated how they intend to keep a “clear division of duties, and responsibilities” between Mattia Binotto and Jonathan Wheatley. This might be because they allegedly dismissed the previous two leaders, Andreas Seidl and Oliver Hoffmann due to internal conflicts between them. So, as the new Audi COO and CTO, Binotto will manage the team’s Hinwil factory and oversee the technical side of things. On the other hand, Team Principal Wheatley will run the Audi F1 Team from the front, speaking to the media and arranging all the events.

What is in store for Red Bull after Jonathan Wheatley’s departure?

Jonathan Wheatley will leave his spot at Red Bull after a long association of 18 years. But the Milton-Keynes team is ready to restructure following the exit of Wheatley and  Adrian Newey. As per Sports Illustrated, RBR will promote people from within the team rather than taking up new recruits. So, the current Technical Director Pierre Wache can expect a promotion soon. And for Wheatley’s role, Gianpiero Lambiase, Max Verstappen’s race engineer, is a potential candidate.

However, Christian Horner has claimed Wheatley is “an expensive man” because he draws a giant salary from Red Bull. So, the Briton plans to hire multiple engineers with the same budget that the team had for Jonathan Wheatley’s paycheck. Thus, it remains to be seen how Red Bull Racing restructured to stand back up after losing two of its leaders.

So, Jonathan Wheatley is a decorated Red Bull officer who will take up a new role at a new F1 team. But will he find the same success at Audi as he did working under Christian Horner? What’s your take? Share in the comments below.