Red Bull axe management team

Red Bull Racing’s preparations for their debut Formula One season have been thrown into disarray by the sudden sacking of their management team.

The soft drink giant bought out Jaguar last month and inherited the staff and facilities of the Milton Keynes-based squad.

Tony Purnell and David Pitchforth were kept on in their respective roles as managing director and team boss but they were dramatically axed by Red Bull yesterday.

The pair had worked tirelessly to ensure Jaguar had a future and were held in high esteem by many within Formula One for their running of the team on a tight budget in 2004.

But when they arrived at the Milton Keynes factory yesterday they were told by the new owners their services were no longer required and left immediately.

The managerial void was swiftly filled by ex-Formula 3000 team owner Christian Horner, who has been named sporting director.

Horner has long been interested in running a Formula One team and was even linked to a buy-out of Jaguar before Red Bull stepped in.

A decision on driver line-up is not expected much before Red Bull’s official launch in early February.