Red Bull’s superstar driver Max Verstappen stopped short of providing his full support for embattled team principal Christian Horner.
Verstappen temporarily took the spotlight off Horner – whose Formula One future is again in the spotlight after hundreds of WhatsApp messages appearing to be written by him to a female colleague were leaked – when the Dutchman secured pole position for Saturday’s season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix.
But moments after capturing top spot, Verstappen was quizzed on how the latest allegations surrounding Red Bull had affected his preparations, and if Horner remains the right person to lead the crisis-hit team.
“From my side, and, from the mechanics and engineers, we’re fully focused on the car, and fully focused on the weekend which is how it should be and that is what we continue to do,” said Verstappen.
Appearing to swerve the question about Horner, he added: “It’s not our business to get involved in that. We are paid to do our job, that is what we are out there doing, and that is what we love doing and that is what I focus on.”
Verstappen was asked again if he still had faith in Horner.
“When I look at how Christian operates within the team he has been an incredible boss so from the performance kind of things you can’t question that,” he added.
“I speak to Christian a lot and he is fully committed to the team.
“He is here for the performance, and of course he is a little bit distracted, but we just focus on performance and that is how we all work together.”
On Wednesday, Horner was cleared to continue as Red Bull team principal following an internal probe into “inappropriate behaviour” by the F1 team’s parent company, Red Bull GmbH. He has always denied the claims.
But just 24 hours later, a number of messages and images apparently exchanged between Horner and the complainant were sent from an anonymous email account to 149 members of the F1 paddock – including FIA president Mohammed ben Sulayem, F1 chief executive Stefano Domenicali and the grid’s nine other team principals, as well as members of the media.
Domenicali and Ben Sulayem spoke on Friday to discuss the next steps.
Horner’s wife, Geri Halliwell, flew to Bahrain and could be with her husband at Saturday’s race. Chalerm Yoovidhya, who owns 51 per cent of the Red Bull group, might also be in attendance.
Neither F1’s American owners, Liberty Media, nor its regulator, the FIA, have seen Red Bull GmbH’s report into Horner, which is thought to stretch to 150 pages and was said to be “confidential”.
The FIA considered the legalities of asking Red Bull to hand over its report, and examining if Horner might have breached two clauses of its International Sporting Code.
Article 12.2.1.c of the code states that a competitor will have committed an offence if there was “any fraudulent conduct or any act prejudicial to the interests of any Competition or to the interests of motor sport generally”.
Article 12.2.1.f highlights “any words, deeds or writings that have caused moral injury or loss to the FIA, its bodies, its members or its executive officers, and more generally on the interest of motor sport and on the values defended by the FIA”.
Meanwhile, article 12.2.1.g states that “any failure to cooperate in an investigation” would breach the code.
However, the likelihood of any action receded as another extraordinary day – which included speculation that another damning email leak would arrive but never did – wore on.
Horner spoke only once about the latest allegations as he made his way from Red Bull’s hospitality suite to the team’s garage earlier on Friday.
“I am not going to comment on anonymous speculation from unknown sources,” he said. When asked what comes next, Horner replied: “We go racing.
Mercedes' luck turns in Las Vegas one-two
George Russell was relieved to see Mercedes' luck turn as the Silver Arrows clinched a stunning one-two at the Las Vegas Grand Prix on Saturday.
Russell held off challenges from Ferrari drivers Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc, as well as team-mate Lewis Hamilton, to triumph from pole in Sin City.
He led for 49 of the 50 laps as he sealed his third victory in F1. Only at Sao Paulo in 2022 (66) and Sakhir in 2020 (59) has he led for more laps at a single grand prix.
Russell started at the front of the grid for the third time in 2024, having previously failed to convert poles in Canada and at Silverstone into victories.
Mercedes endured a difficult outing at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix last time out as Russell finished fourth and Hamilton 10th, and they were delighted to rediscover their consistency in Nevada.
"It's going to be a good party, I was planning on flying in a couple of hours but I'm definitely not getting on that flight. I’m going to enjoy this evening with all my team," Russell said.
"It's been a dream of a weekend. I don’t know how we've been so quick but I'm just riding this wave right now.
"To get the victory here, pole position and a dominant weekend, one-two with Lewis as well, we couldn't have chosen a better place to make this happen.
"I was just waiting for something to happen. The two races I've been on pole before it’s always been chaos, rain, dry, always something happening, last race in Brazil with the red flag... there is always something happening. Luck has turned and I'm so happy right now."
Hamilton, meanwhile, took the opportunity to congratulate his great rival Max Verstappen after the Red Bull driver sealed his fourth world championship by finishing ahead of Lando Norris.
"Firstly, congrats to Max winning the championship, still with several races to go," the seven-time world champion, who will join Ferrari for 2025, said.
"If I'd done my job yesterday it would have been a breeze today. But it's okay, I had fun coming from 10th and the team did a fantastic job.
"We don't know why we were quick this weekend but that's the best the car has ever felt. So I'm grateful to be a part of getting to that point.
"If the car drives like that in the next couple of races, then I think we'll be in a good spot to challenge the guys up front. The championship's done, so now it’s just all out, fight for the best positions possible."
Verstappen 'hungry' for more success after securing fourth world championship
Max Verstappen has said that he is hungry for more success after claiming his fourth consecutive Formula One world title at the Las Vegas Grand Prix.
The Red Bull driver claimed the title by finishing fifth, ahead of championship rival Lando Norris, in the race which was won by George Russell of Mercedes.
Verstappen is now behind only Lewis Hamilton (seven), Michael Schumacher (seven) and Juan Manuel Fangio (five) in terms of world titles won, and the Dutchman has said he will aim for a fifth title in 2025.
"If you look to next year right now, I think it's going to be a proper battle between a lot of cars, but I'm hungry," said Verstappen, who secured the title with two races to spare.
Verstappen seals fourth straight Formula One world title
Max Verstappen secured his fourth straight Formula One world title with a fifth-place finish at the Las Vegas Grand Prix, which was won by George Russell.
Verstappen merely needed to finish ahead of his sole title rival Lando Norris in order to get over the line in the Driver's Championship on Saturday.
And as Russell won from pole after fending off a challenge from the Ferraris and his Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton, Verstappen ensured the crown as he finished fifth, one place ahead of McLaren's Norris, who is now 63 points behind the Dutchman with only 60 points left to race for.
The Red Bull star is now behind only Hamilton (seven), Michael Schumacher (seven) and Juan Manuel Fangio (five) when it comes to world titles.
Mercedes will celebrate an unexpected one-two, and Russell was largely in control throughout the race as he scooped a third win of his career.
He shrugged off an early effort from Charles Leclerc, who darted beyond Pierre Gasly and Carlos Sainz around the first two corners.
But as the Ferraris of Leclerc and Sainz battled between themselves, and with Verstappen unwilling to take too many risks, Hamilton charged up through the grid, utilising a well-timed second pit stop to get ahead.
After pitting, Sainz and Leclerc got themselves back ahead of Verstappen in the final 10 laps, ensuring Ferrari closed the gap on McLaren in the Constructors' Championship to just 24 points.
There was some late joy for McLaren as Norris stopped for fresh tyres in order to set the fastest lap, and an extra point in a constructors' title race that is firmly in the balance with two races to go.
Data Debrief: Four in a row
Verstappen is just the fifth driver in F1 history to win four consecutive world titles.
The last to do so was Hamilton between 2017 and 2020, a run that was ultimately ended by Verstappen in 2021.
Sebastian Vettel (2010-13) and Fangio (1954-57) are the other drivers to have reeled off four straight championship wins, while Schumacher won five on the spin between 2000 and 2004.
Verstappen has now moved onto 2,989.5 points over the course of his career, meaning his next target is to break the 3,000-point barrier, something only Hamilton and Vettel have previously achieved.
Red Bull's chances in the Constructors' Championship seem slim, but if they can set a fastest lap in the final two races of the season, they will become the fifth team to hit the 100 mark, after Ferrari (263), McLaren (171), Williams (133) and Mercedes (109).
Top 10
1. George Russell (Mercedes)
2. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
3. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari)
4. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
5. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
6. Lando Norris (McLaren)
7. Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
8. Nico Hulkenberg (Haas)
9. Yuki Tsunoda (RB)
10. Sergio Perez (Red Bull)
CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS
Drivers'
1. Max Verstappen - 403
2. Lando Norris - 340
3. Charles Leclerc - 319
Constructors'
1. McLaren - 608
2. Ferrari - 584
3. Red Bull - 555
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