Toto Wolff criticizes Red Bull’s opaque investigation into Horner, demanding more clarity and accountability in the process.
Toto Wolff criticized the lack of transparency regarding Red Bull’s investigation into Christian Horner.
He stated that Red Bull’s “basic” statement about Christian Horner, which cleared their team director following an investigation into alleged inappropriate behavior, was insufficient.
Wolff spoke at the FIA press conference today, less than 24 hours after the decision was announced.
“I read the statement which was basic, and my personal view is that we can’t really see behind the curtain. Ultimately, there’s a woman in an organization who spoke to HR and said there was an issue and it was investigated, and yesterday, the sport got a message back saying ‘all is well, we’ve looked into it.'”
“I believe that in a global sport, on such critical issues, there needs to be more transparency, and I wonder what the stance of F1 is. We are competitors, we are a team, and we may or may not have our own personal opinions.”
“But it’s more about a general reaction or action we need as a sport. We need to assess what’s right and what’s wrong in this situation.”
“We are being asked questions here as competitors, and are we speaking as competitors? Are we speaking with the right moral approach, with values based on the speculations that exist?”
“But I just think as a sport, we can’t afford to leave things in the dark on critical issues like this, because it will ultimately catch up with us.”
“We are ultimately in a super transparent world, things happen or are going to happen and I think we need to be transparent. Our sport, our organization has a duty to say: ‘we’ve also looked into the issue and all is well,’ and then we can move on.”
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“But I am short-sighted, I’m not saying it happened or didn’t happen. We are on the outside and we are just looking at statements, press releases, or schedules. It just seems like this basic statement isn’t as modern as it now is in the real world.”
“But maybe in Formula 1, we think we just have a little problem and we think it’s not a big deal…”
Wolff is not the only Formula 1 team director expressing ambiguity about the investigation. Alongside him, McLaren’s boss Zak Brown states: “I think the FIA and FOM have a responsibility and authority towards our sport, towards our fans.”
“I think all of us in Formula 1 are ambassadors of the sport on and off the track, as seen in other sports. So, I think they need to ensure things have been totally transparent with them. I don’t know what the conversations have been.”
“It needs to be thorough, totally transparent, and if they come to the same conclusion that Red Bull did, and they agree with the outcome.”
“But there are a lot of unanswered questions about the whole process.”
“I think that’s what those who run the sport need to really be able to draw a line under this topic. But until then, I think there will always be a certain level of speculation from people, and I don’t think that’s healthy for the sport.”
Wolff Calls for Transparency in Horner Probe. Wolff Calls for Transparency in Horner Probe
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