by He came in on all sides, Netflix cameras hovering just outside the media scrum, pictures booming above him, the questions raining down on Max Verstappen: “Did he agree with his father’s view that Christian Horner should retire before Red Bull ‘exploded’?” “If push came to shove, would he follow his father out of the team?” and “could he ever imagine at Mercedes?” And so on, and so on.
This is where we have reached the unifying saga; sitting in a paddock in Saudi Arabia, a country not known for its liberal attitudes towards women, the three-time world champion was grilling, not about cars or his hopes for this weekend’s race, but about comments made father, man to man. reported a colorful history of his involvement with the women in his own life, under his head of staff, a man who was acquitted of allegations of controlling behavior towards a female colleague but whose private life is now the subject of gossip tittle-tattle the world over.
Verstappen did not ask for this. The two most important people in his professional life put him in this position. But he answered the rapid-fire questions as well as could be expected. In fact, he gave a champion performance.
Verstappen walked a very fine line between supporting his father – refusing to betray the love and trust that is so clear between them – and at the same time not hanging up on his boss, dismissing (though not completely) the links with Mercedes, and making it clear to him. really hoping we’d all be talking about racing again. If this whole Formula One thing doesn’t work out, maybe Verstappen could try diplomacy. Not a word that is easily associated with the past.
The session, which lasted just nine minutes on the veranda just outside Red Bull’s home paddock but felt much longer, was really as interesting as what Verstappen didn’t say.
The main point he was trying to get across was clearly that blood is thicker than water. Verstappen defended his father, insisting he was “not a liar” although it was not clear what exactly he meant by that. He was probably defending his father’s right to speak his mind, speak his truth, and not be accused of sedition.
He said they were “always” a team – himself, his father and manager Raymond Vermeulen. The implication is that if push came to shove, he would always be by his family’s side. But at the same time, he refused to criticize Horner. Sources insist that their relationship is not over, and it very much felt that way from this interview.
Asked if he and Horner could be in the same team, given the situation, Verstappen shot back: “Well we are at the moment. I saw a lot of stories about that, which was a bit strange to read. But from my point of view, what I want, and it doesn’t matter who is part of the team or not, is to have a quiet environment where everyone is happy to work.”
‘And it doesn’t matter who is part of the team or not’. Is this a sign that he was indifferent to whether Horner lived or not? Probably not. But what he was saying was that his overriding priority was to get back to racing, whether Horner stays or not, whether the Red Bull team principal and his father bury the hatchet or not.
Verstappen, according to those who know him best, is uncomplicated. He doesn’t like politics. He just wants to race and win. He knows his best chance of doing that, at the moment, is with Red Bull, who look like they have a machine to dominate this year, and probably next year too.
That is why reports linking it to Mercedes for 2025 are probably still far off. “Obviously the intention is to stay with this team because I really enjoy it, and I’m also very happy within the team. And yes, as long as we’re operating there’s no reason to leave either.”
But he also admitted that stranger things have happened, pointing out that nobody expected Lewis Hamilton to move to Ferrari until it happened.
It was the latest in a series of crunch moments for Horner, who arrived in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday but remained in his hotel.
The next one comes on Thursday when Horner will face the music again. He can expect similar questions to be asked about Jos’s views and position and whether the two can be in the same team.
At what point does the inquest stop? It’s a question being asked up and down the pitlane in Saudi Arabia. It seems no one is sure. We do not yet know if Horner’s accuser is appealing the verdict. Wednesday was billed in some quarters as D-day for that appeal, as it was five days after the verdict, which is the prescribed window in employment law. But apparently, it is five days from the time you receive the letter in writing, which could be in the last few days. The strong suspicion is that she will appeal.
There are still rumors that more leaks may be coming. Bad blood between the Austrian faction and the Thai majority shareholder at Red Bull: Chalerm Yoodivhya. Perhaps Oliver Mintzlaff, chief executive of corporate projects at Red Bull GmbH, which oversees F1, can shed some light on that this week. Mintzlaff is expected at the race.
Maybe, in the end, they can all get around the table and call a truce. Verstappen, who was caught between his father and his team principal, his sponsors and his fans, seems to have hope.
“Everybody in general, even if you have arguments or not, there are things that can be worked out,” he said of the chances of peace ending. “Everybody is quite a man and quite respectable anyway. I didn’t always agree with everything that happened – and I’m not talking about it recently – but generally in F1. And that is where it is sometimes good to discuss. You may agree to disagree. That’s what happens in a relationship.”
