Max Verstappen skillfully navigated tensions between Christian Horner and his father, prioritizing relationships and focusing on his racing performance.
Max Verstappen has always been clear: he’s tired of the off-track drama, the politics that are an integral part of the F1 world. What interests him is driving, the sport—nothing more.
Yet this season hasn’t been short on off-track controversies for Red Bull, starting with the Horner affair early in the year.
Off the track, Verstappen had to navigate a heated conflict between his team principal and his own father, Jos, who openly challenged Christian Horner’s authority. Jos even went as far as to say the team would collapse if Horner remained in his role.
But the Red Bull driver skillfully managed to steer through this dangerous terrain, alienating neither his father nor Christian Horner.
His explanation? He focused on his car’s performance, not the events unfolding off the track.
“Yes, I mean, the start was quite, let’s say, a bit chaotic, but I think I’m quite calm in these situations. I think it’s very hard to unsettle me with anything. I’m very focused on the racing side of things. And I know that when I’m sitting in the car, I forget everything, even the positives and negatives. I just focus on what’s ahead of me, which is performance, and driving the car as fast as I can.”
“What has always been very important is that I have a good relationship with both Christian and my father,” Verstappen adds.
“My father, of course, thinks about me and has my best interests at heart—what I want to do and how I fit within the team.”
“He obviously asked his questions, but at the same time, I was very busy focusing on the car’s performance and trying to improve it. In the end, he could see that now everything is normal, everyone is managing it and focusing on performance.”
“People don’t need to be best friends, they don’t need to go on vacation together. But I think you can have a normal working relationship, which is absolutely the case, and especially lately, things are much better.”
“But I’ve always said as well, when you have issues with someone, when you’re unhappy about something, you talk about it, you communicate, right? You discuss, and that’s always much better than throwing something into the media.”
“And I told both of them that, and that’s why it wasn’t about me picking a side. It was just about bringing a bit of common sense, I think, to both of them.”
Has Newey’s departure unsettled Red Bull?
The Horner controversy also contributed to worsening the atmosphere at Red Bull, accelerating Newey’s departure.
Is that a concern for Max Verstappen? Without Newey, Red Bull seemed lost in the second half of the season… coincidence or not?
“Naturally, I would have preferred for those people to stay.”
“At one point in the season, we realized that what we had added to the car, while it could make it faster, made it very difficult to drive.”
“We started off really dominant, but I also feel that some teams didn’t start as well as they should have compared to last year, so we were a bit surprised by that.”
“We felt it was a bit strange to see others not really making the step forward. So, I guess they got their things sorted.”
“I already said at the start of the year that I wasn’t completely satisfied with how the car was behaving.”
“With my experience since 2021,” Verstappen states, “you simply cannot afford poor results or missed big opportunities because, in the end, they really catch up with you in the championship.”
Max Verstappen won’t stay in F1 just to stay in F1
Max Verstappen has also made it clear: he’s had enough of F1’s calendar expansion. He wants 24 Grands Prix, not 18. And he won’t stay in F1 just to break records, including championship titles.
“It’s not something I dream about. It’s not my desire. I just want to have a good time. I know that when I get in the car, I’ll always do my best.”
“It’s not like when I started in F1… I had that goal: seven titles, over 100 wins. Back then, of course, Michael (Schumacher) held the record. That’s not how I see life anymore.”
“Maybe when I was younger, yes, I wanted to race in F1 for as long as possible. But now, when you’ve already achieved so much, it’s no longer about wanting to drive forever. I also want to enjoy life.”
“I definitely don’t want to race in F1 into my 40s. You only live once, and I don’t want to spend half my life driving cars.”
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Verstappen Steers Clear of Horner-Jos Dispute Verstappen Steers Clear of Horner-Jos Dispute Verstappen Steers Clear of Horner-Jos Dispute
