Max Verstappen will not leave Red Bull, according to the crisis-hit Formula One team’s group CEO Oliver Mintzlaff.
Verstappen cast doubt over his future when he claimed he will quit the world champions if motorsport adviser Helmut Marko is forced out.
The PA news agency understands 80-year-old Austrian Marko, an instrumental figure in Verstappen’s career, faces a Red Bull investigation following the probe into claims of “inappropriate behaviour” against Christian Horner.
Verstappen’s deal with Red Bull runs until 2028 and, when asked by the PA news agency ahead of Saturday’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix if the Dutch driver will remain with the team, Mintzlaff replied: “Of course. He has a contract.
“Max is a great driver and hopefully we will win tonight. I am here just for racing. That’s it.”
Horner’s female accuser was suspended earlier this week as a direct result of Red Bull’s inquiry which exonerated the 50-year-old team principal.
Marko is employed by the F1 team’s parent company, Red Bull GmbH.
Asked if he could be suspended following the race in Jeddah, he told Austrian broadcaster ORF: “Ultimately, I’ll decide for myself what I do. The theoretical possibility always exists.”
PA has approached Red Bull Racing for comment.
“I have a lot of respect for Helmut, and what we have achieved together,” said Verstappen after putting his Red Bull on pole position for Saturday’s race.
“It goes very far. My loyalty to him is very big, and I have always expressed this to everyone within the team, everyone high up, that he is an important part in my decision-making for the future.
“It is very important that he stays. I feel like if such an important pillar falls away, and I have told the team this, that it is not good for my situation as well.
“Helmut built this team together with (Red Bull’s late owner and founder) Dietrich (Mateschitz) from day one, and he’s always been very loyal to the team.
“It is very important that you give the man a lot of respect for what he has done, and that comes back to loyalty and integrity, so it is important that he stays.”
Perez and Magnussen play blame game after huge Monaco Grand Prix crash
Sergio Perez and Kevin Magnussen both blame each other for the huge crash that forced a restart in the Monaco Grand Prix.
The pair came together during the opening lap of the race as Magnussen attempted to squeeze through a tight gap on the inside of Perez on the exit of Turn One.
The Red Bull was destroyed during the incident, while the Dane’s Haas team-mate Nico Hulkenberg also got caught in the chaos.
All three drivers were unharmed, though were ultimately forced out of the race when it restarted.
Perez was adamant following the race that the blame should be placed firmly on Magnussen’s shoulders.
He said: "It was an immense crash, one I'm disappointed about. I think it was totally unnecessary at that point of the race and there was no need for that.
"At some point, you have two options: Lift or have a contact, and I think it was too unnecessary with the speeds we were doing, and it was a massive contact.
"It was important to take things a little bit calmer."
The incident compounded a disappointing weekend for both teams, in particularly Haas after both drivers were disqualified from qualifying and sent to the back of the grid due to a technical infringement.
However, Magnussen stood by his belief he had every right to go for the gap and was forced into the barrier by the Mexican.
"From my point of view, I had a good part of my front on Perez's rear and when he went to the wall I got pushed to the wall and made contact with him," Magnussen said.
"I trusted he was going to leave space for me since I was there. It's not a corner where you're braking into it, it's a bend on the straight, so you have to have a car otherwise you leave the other guy no option.
"From my point of view, I was there, and I got squeezed to the wall."
Ultimately, neither driver was punished for the incident as the stewards deemed it a racing incident which needed no further investigation.
Verstappen underwhelmed by 'boring' Monaco Grand Prix
Max Verstappen reflected on a "really boring" Monaco Grand Prix during a "weekend to forget" for Red Bull.
The world number one failed to improve on his sixth-place start, after struggling to catch George Russell as he failed to finish on the podium for just the second time this season.
Verstappen fared better than team-mate Sergio Perez though, as the Mexican was involved in a huge crash just seconds into the race, forcing him out of it after an already poor qualifying.
Despite being underwhelmed by their performance in Monaco, Verstappen said there were still positives to take from it.
After the race, he said: "This has been a really tricky challenging weekend with a lot of damage [to Perez's car]. Probably a weekend to forget, but also one to learn a lot from.
"The only positive to come out of this weekend is that we understand what our big weakness is and that's what we really have to work on. I think if we can solve that and make it decent, we can gain a lot of lap time and we need to do that.
"We finished where we started. The strategy got ruined with the red flag, so we had to back it up on the medium [tyre]. From lap one on the restart, it was driving four seconds off the pace. Just really, really boring.
"Naturally we will [see more excitement in Canada]. It still won't be the easiest weekend because of the curbing - our cars aren't very good at that. They've resurfaced the track though, so that might bring something unexpected.
Monaco Grand Prix win a 'dream', says Leclerc
Charles Leclerc says he has fulfilled his dreams after winning the Monaco Grand Prix for the first time.
After claiming pole for the third time on home soil, Leclerc was able to hold onto first and finish on the Monaco podium for the first time.
Despite an early red flag forcing a restart, the Monegasque was in control throughout, finishing seven seconds ahead of second-place Oscar Piastri.
It is Leclerc's first win of 2024, and Ferrari's second of the season after Carlos Sainz’s victory at the Australian Grand Prix in March.
Speaking after Sunday's victory, he said: "No words can explain that. It's such a difficult race. I think the fact twice I've been starting on pole position, and we couldn't quite make it makes it even better in a way.
"It means a lot, obviously. It's the race which made me dream of becoming a Formula 1 driver one day.
"Fifteen laps to the end you're hoping nothing happens, and the emotions are coming.
"My dad has given everything for me to be here, and it was a dream of ours for me to race here and win here, so it's unbelievable.
"A huge thank you, the parade laps were special and seeing so many of my friends and people I know in the balcony, it was just very special. This one means a lot."
Piastri put in an assured drive to finish second, holding off Sainz to prevent a Ferrari one-two and was pleased with the way the race turned out.
"Thanks to the team. It's been a great weekend all-round. Nice to put a result on the board. I've been strong the last few weekends but didn't have the result to show for it. Nice to have a podium," he said.
"Charles has been mega all weekend. They have been quick from the very first lap.
"I'm happy with P2. A good result for the team. Very, very happy."
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