McLaren chief Zak Brown has opened up on his “vicious” rivalry with Christian Horner ahead of this weekend’s Chinese Grand Prix. The British team drew first blood in the 2025 F1 season on Sunday, as Lando Norris took the chequered flag from reigning world champion Max Verstappen.

Norris is perceived as the biggest threat to the recent dominance of the Red Bull driver this season. Verstappen has won four consecutive title crowns following his inaugural success in 2021, but it was McLaren who last season won the Constructors’ battle through Norris and Oscar Piastri. The rivalry has only served to exacerbate tensions between Brown and Horner, with the pair having previously conducted a war of words over the controversial budget cap regulations.

Red Bull were found to have breached the budget limit in that 2021 campaign, and McLaren CEO Brown was vociferously critical of the lapse. He duly wrote to the FIA stating that the overspending constituted “cheating” and argued that the team deserved more severe punishment than just a financial penalty.

The FIA ultimately implemented one of his suggestions, to impose a reduction in Red Bull’s allowed wind tunnel time, which the FIA ultimately implemented. Horner was incensed by Brown’s actions, saying he was “appalled” by the content of the letter.

The pair have since taken numerous verbal digs at each other, with their mutual dislike emphasised in the latest edition of Netflix’s Drive to Survive series. Brown has now insisted his feud with the Team Principal is genuine but also implied it was good for the sport.

After arriving in China, Brown said of their relationship: “There’s no love lost there, I don’t like how he rolls and I have no doubt he feels the same about me.

“But I think it’s good for the sport. You need different characters. You need these rivalries. Some are friendly, sporting rivalries. Some are a bit more vicious. It’s always been like that.”

Horner has also struck up a notorious rivalry with Mercedes boss Toto Wolff. That escalated during the controversial 2021 season, with the debate over Verstappen’s title-winning race in Abu Dhabi still dividing opinion within the sport.