The waters are far from remaining still in Red Bullafter a few months of severe turbulence following the complaint of a team employee who accused Christian Horner, the team leader in Milton Keynes. After an internal investigation, the lawsuit was dismissed, but the blows of the nuisance still resonate. Now, The English media report that the complainant – who, they point out, was relieved of her job – will insist with her claim and that she filed an appeal for not having been satisfied with the results of the investigation.
“Their decision not to allow the matter to be closed will once again put Red Bull and Horner in the spotlight. Horner has always strongly denied any wrongdoing, but the appeal against the investigation’s conclusions will reignite the controversy that has dominated Formula One for more than six weeks. It is believed that the woman in question has already been suspended from her duties at Red Bull Racing due to the evidence she provided to the investigation,” the newspaper published this Saturday. The Guardian.
Following the commotion generated by the complaint, Jos Verstappen, father of the main driver, gave his point of view without mincing words, in statements to the Daily Mail, a few weeks ago. Max’s father claimed that the Red Bull team is going to “explode” if team boss Christian Horner, recently acquitted of accusations of “inappropriate behavior” towards an employee, keeps his job. “There is tension (in the team) as long as I remain in the position,” he declared hours after his son’s victory in the Bahrain Grand Prix, the first test of the season.
Then the rumor spread that Max Verstappen would have decided to leave the team – with the possibility of signing for Mercedes next year – due to this situation.
On March 7, it was learned that the employee had been suspended with full pay. The cause? Sources suggest that the reason given was that she had been dishonest and that there were inconsistencies in the evidence she had provided. Red Bull declined to comment on the internal matter.
“It is understood that the employee now has new legal representation, but it was always expected that he would appeal the investigation decision and he has done so. A Red Bull GmbH spokesman insisted the investigation had been ‘fair, rigorous and impartial’ in exonerating Horner ahead of the season-opening race in Bahrain. Horner has acted normally, although in the paddock there continues to be frustration due to the lack of transparency and the absence of intervention from the governing body of Formula 1, the FIA, and from Formula 1 itself, owned by Liberty Media Group,” he publishes today. in an article in the British newspaper The Times.
The F1 season will continue next week in Melbourne, with the Australian GP. The off-track turmoil has barely affected the dominance of world champion Max Verstappen, who comfortably won the first two races.
Speculation about a possible suspension of Helmut Marko, the team’s main advisor, had cast a shadow over the future of Mad Max, but after a meeting with Oliver Mintzlaff, general director of Red Bull Austria, before the Grand Prix of Saudi Arabia, everything became clear. “We agreed on all points. Ill stand here. “I still have three years left on my contract,” Verstappen said.