The drama surrounding Red Bull team principal Christian Horner is not yet over, despite claims of wrongdoing being dismissed by the team, thanks to superstar driver Max Verstappen’s dad.
After Verstappen led a dominant Red Bull 1-2 at the season opening Bahrain Grand Prix, his father Jos declared Horner must leave the team with the situation not yet cleared up, in his mind.
Horner was surprisingly kept on after allegations were made against him by a female employee. The team’s investigation saw the grievance dismissed but less than 24 hours later an anonymous email was sent to the F1 paddock, containing a Google Drive folder link with alleged images of messages sent between Horner and the employee.
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“I won’t comment on anonymous speculation,” Horner said in response. “But to reiterate I have always denied the allegations, I respected the integrity of the independent investigation and fully co-operated with it every step of the way.
“It was a thorough and fair investigation, conducted by an independent specialist barrister, and it has concluded dismissing the complaint made. I remain fully focused on the start of the season.”
Verstappen storms to victory in Bahrain | 02:36
Other team principals including Mercedes’ Toto Wolff have been keen to see more transparency and Verstappen’s comments will spark a renewed crisis inside Red Bull given the power his son holds.
“There is tension here while he remains in position,” Verstappen told The Daily Mail.
“The team is in danger of being torn apart. It can’t go on the way it is. It will explode. He is playing the victim, when he is the one causing the problems.”
Max Verstappen has been extremely careful not to comment directly on the allegations.
“Listen, when I look at how Christian operates within the team, he has been an incredible team boss,” he said after qualifying.
“So absolutely, from the performance side of things, you can’t even question that. So that’s what I’m also dealing with.
“I speak to Christian a lot. And also, of course, throughout the weekend here, he’s fully committed to the team.
“He’s also here for the performance, of course. Probably a little bit distracted.
“But like I said before, we just focus on the performance side of things. And that’s how we all work together.”
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