Christian Horner's leadership has been questioned again after Max Verstappen's father, Jos, claimed that Red Bull "risks being torn apart" if the under-fire team principal remains in his role. Horner has stated he is "absolutely confident" he will remain as Red Bull's head for the rest of the Formula 1 season after overseeing Verstappen lead a one-two finish over teammate Sergio Perez in the Bahrain opening GP. Horner's job has been under careful scrutiny in recent weeks following allegations against him by a colleague. Horner has always denied the claims. But speaking to the Daily Mail, Verstappen Sr. added fuel to the fire when he said: "There's tension here as he (Horner) remains in his position. The team risks falling apart. It can't go on like this. It will explode. He plays the victim when he is the one causing the problems".
During an extraordinary week in Bahrain, Horner was cleared of charges by Red Bull Racing's parent company, Red Bull GmbH, following an internal investigation into allegations of "inappropriate behavior". But hundreds of WhatsApp messages, which appeared to be exchanged between Horner and the complainant, were then leaked in the F1 world. Jos Verstappen has been accused in some quarters of trying to oust Horner from his job. But the 51-year-old father of the three-time Red Bull world champion continued: "It wouldn't make sense. Why would I do it when Max is doing so well here?". The Press Association reached out to Red Bull Racing for a comment. Horner walked hand in hand with his wife Geri in the paddock an hour and 45 minutes before Saturday's race. Also, Red Bull's majority shareholder, Thai billionaire Chalerm Yoovidhya, joined the duo on the team's terrace in a public show of support for Horner. Speaking after the checkered flag fell, Horner was asked if he is sure he will remain as Red Bull team principal for the rest of the season.
He replied: "Absolutely. Absolutely". And he continued: "I have the support of an incredible family, an incredible wife, an incredible team, and everyone who is part of that team. And my focus is racing, winning races, and doing my best. It was a day to start the season in the best possible way. My focus is on this team, my family, my wife, and racing". Horner was also questioned about the leaked file that was sent from an anonymous email account to 149 members of the F1 paddock, including Fia president Mohammed ben Sulayem, F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali, and the other nine main teams of the grid, as well as members of the media. Horner said: "I will not comment on speculative anonymous messages coming from an unknown source. I will not comment on whatever motivations anyone might have for doing this. Obviously, it was not pleasant with some unwanted attention, but the focus is mostly on the cars and my attention has been on what is happening on track and today's result shows where the focus is and we move forward. There has been a long and thorough internal process that was completed by an independent team and the complaint raised has been rejected. End. We move on".
Horner will be back in the spotlight in just four days, when the cars hit the track for free practice for the next GP in Saudi Arabia. The Red Bull Formula 1 team, hit by the Horner case, claims to be "united" after Max Verstappen's father, Jos, claimed they are "in danger of being torn apart" if Christian Horner remains in his role as Team principal. A spokesperson for Red Bull Racing told the Press Association: "There are no issues here. The team is united and we are focused on racing". Speaking to the Daily Mail after Saturday's Bahrain Grand Prix, Verstappen Snr declared: "There's tension here as he (Horner) remains in his position. The team risks falling apart. It can't go on like this. It will explode. He plays the victim when he is the one causing the problems".
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