While the Formula One broadcasters have for now stopped asking the difficult questions over the goings on at Red Bull Racing, one man who has remained silent since the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in Jeddah now gives his views plainly.
Jos Verstappen had publicly called for Christian Horner to leave his post as the Red Bull boss enters his twentieth season in charge of the world championship team. In a savage attack on Horner, Verstappen Snr explained, “There is tension here while he remains in position. 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.”
Verstappen called for Honer to leave
The rumblings in Red Bull began at the turn of the year when a female employee of the team accused Christian Horner of inappropriate behaviour – something he was exonerated from completely.
Verstappen Snr last spoke on the topic during a rally in which he competed in Belgium, expressing “sympathy” for the female employee. Jos was asked at the time whether it was time for a line to be drawn under the affair to which he replied, “I think it’s a bit too late for that now. If that’s what he [Horner] wants, fine, but I don’t think it will be possible. I don’t want to talk too much more as it will create problems. But the most important thing for me is that Max is happy, that’s what counts for me, I just want him to be happy.”
Max himself appeared to allow himself to be entangled in the issue when he suggested he could leave the team were his mentor Dr. Helmut Marko forced out. The 81 year old Austrian had muddied the waters when he suggested his own suspension from the Red Bull organisation was imminent.
In the end it was something about nothing and Marko has been present with the team at each of the completed five rounds this season. Jos however, has been absent from the Red Bull trackside crew since the Australian Grand Prix and has refrained from commenting further on the matter. Now with the F1 circus heading to Miami, Verstappen Snr has given his latest thoughts on the topic.
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As it stands the female employee has lodged an appeal against the decision to dismiss her complaint, meanwhile Red Bull have suspended her on full pay. The matter could even drag on into next year, given reports suggest the female will go to an employment tribunal should her appeal also be dismissed. Currently in England the waiting time for employment hearings is between 6-12 months.
Further fall out from the saga has seen the German media followed by those in England claiming that Adrian Newey is set to leave the team which he and Christian Horner built from the ruins of the Ford backed Jaguar F1 debacle. Speculation has been rife the past week is to whether it will be Ferrari or Aston Martin where Mr. Newey may next lay his hat.
The reason given for Newey’s alleged decision to go is because he is said to be unhappy at the on going power struggle behind the scenes at Red Bull. Yet at 65 years of age and with a contract running to the end of 2025, its questionable whether Newey wants to start over, building a team of people elsewhere, when he has 20 years of his life’s work in the palm of his hand.
With his head once more above the parapet, Jos Verstappen told Racexpress he had no knowledge of the Newey to leave Red Bull rumours.
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“Normally I won’t say anything about it. What else can I say about it? I don’t know anything else about it. I know that there is basically a deal between him and Red Bull (until 2025). We’ll see about the rest, I can’t say anything about that. We all know what he has achieved and how good he is.”
Amusingly Verstappen Snr claims he won’t say anything, then proceeds to say plenty including the matter of his sons future, which is technically tied in until the end of 2028.
Currently Red Bull are acing the FIA car design regulations with the expectations next year will see more of the same. The team are so far ahead of their rivals they can almost quit developing this year’s RB20 to forge ahead with their next iteration.
Yet there is the unknown coming of 2026, when new engine regulations and car design specifications will come into force. Red Bull are building their own power unit, with some help from Ford, something which is considered risky for a non-car manufacturer.
Max may leave Red Bull in 2026
It could be Red Bull end up with a collective red face as Ferrari and Mercedes – also Honda – will definitely come out of the blocks in a strong fashion.
Jos makes it clear Max management team is looking to 2026 despite his contract in place for three years after then. “I think everyone really wants Max,” Jos added. “I think Max is in a good place at the moment. He has a fast car, but we also have to look further. We are also looking at 2026, so we are letting everything happen to us. We will remain very calm and see what will happen.”
Lewis Hamilton knows all about big engine regulation changes as he jumped ship from McLaren a year before the era of the new V6 turbo hybrids began in 2014. Mercedes stole a march on their rivals building the best power unit by far, proceeding to claim an unprecedented eight consecutive constructor titles up to and including the 2021 season.
Yet this time around the manufacturers have been given strict budgets and restricted bench testing time, so whether Mercedes or anyone could repeat the Brackley team’s uber dominant feats in 2014, is unlikely.
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In football land, one of the greatest managers ever seen at Anfield has just three races remaining before he departs his nine year tenure at the club. Jurgen Klopp is off for pastures new having revived the fortunes of a once superpower of English football. Meanwhile in Formula One land another divorce is underway breaking the 12 year relationship between Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes AMG F1 team.
In Liverpool there is no animosity about their manager deciding its time to go but matters are turning sour in Brackley as Hamilton continues his global farewell tour. Lewis has developed a narrative this season which portrays him having to make wild setup changes to try and find the troublesome W15’s sweet spot…. READ MORE
If Verstappen senior really would like Verstappen junior to be happy he would shut his big mouth!
Correct Jos has always been a bully. A second rate performer himself who has been living off his son’s achievements. Jos is a nobody with a big mouth who has always been a thug. He’s hardly qualified to be passing judgment on others and will probably pull Max down to his level.
Pretty tendentious to write that Horner was completely exonerated when all we know is that the team dismissed the allegations following an internal investigation, no details of which have been made public, including what it or did not find. The team chose to dismiss the allegations on entirely secret grounds. That is not the same as saying they weren’t true.