Verstappen stuck between his father and his boss – and shows where his loyalties lie

In front of a sea of cameras, the world champion acquitted himself admirably as the saga between his father and his team principal rolls on

Hemmed in on all sides, Netflix cameras hovering just outside a media scrum, boom mics overhead, the questions rained in on Max Verstappen: “Did he agree with his father’s view that Christian Horner should resign before Red Bull ‘exploded’?” “If push came to shove, would he follow his dad away from the team?” and “could he ever envisage himself at Mercedes?” And so on, and so on.
This is where we have got to with this unedifying saga; sitting in a paddock in Saudi Arabia, not a country known for its liberal attitude to women, grilling a three-time world champion, not about cars or his hopes for this weekend’s race, but about comments made by his father, a man with a reported colourful past as far as the women in his own life are concerned, about his team principal, a man who has been cleared of allegations of controlling behaviour towards a female colleague but whose private life is now the subject of tittle-tattle gossip 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’s performance.
Verstappen trod an extraordinarily fine line between supporting his father – refusing to betray the love and trust that clearly exists between them – while at the same time not hanging his boss, dismissing (although not completely) the links to Mercedes, and making clear he very much hoped we might all talk about racing again. If this whole Formula One thing does not work out, Verstappen could maybe try his hand at diplomacy. Not a word readily associated with him in the past.
The session, which lasted only nine minutes on the veranda just outside the Red Bull paddock home but felt far longer, was actually as interesting for what Verstappen did not say.
The main point he wanted to get across was clearly that blood is thicker than water. Verstappen defended his father, insisting he was “not a liar” although it was unclear exactly what he meant by that. Presumably, he was defending his father’s right to say what he thinks, to speak his truth, and not be accused of stirring.
He said they would “always be a team” – he, his father and his manager Raymond Vermeulen. The implication being, if push came to shove, he would always side with his family. But at the same time, he refused to criticise Horner. Sources insist their relationship is not over, and it very much felt that way from this interview.
Asked whether he and Horner could co-exist at 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 weird to read. But from my side, what I want, and it doesn’t matter who is involved in the team or not, it’s to have a quiet environment where everyone is happy to work.”
‘And it doesn’t matter who is involved in the team or not’. Was this a sign that he was indifferent as to whether Horner survived or not? Probably not. But what he was saying was, his overriding priority was to get back to racing, whether Horner stays or goes, whether the Red Bull team principal and his father bury the hatchet or not.
Verstappen is, according to those who know him best, uncomplicated. He does not enjoy the politics. He just wants to race and win. He knows his best chance of doing that, for now, is with Red Bull, who look as if they have a machine to dominate this year, and probably next year as well.
That is why reports linking him to Mercedes for 2025 are probably still far-fetched. “The intention is of course absolutely to stay with this team because I really enjoy it, and I’m also really happy within the team. And yeah, as long as we perform there is no reason also to leave.”
But he also admitted that stranger things have happened, pointing out that nobody expected Lewis Hamilton to move to Ferrari until it happened.
This was billed as the latest in a series of crunch moments for Horner, who arrived in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday but stayed at his hotel.
The next comes on Thursday when Horner faces the music again. He can expect to field similar questions about Jos’s comments and his position and whether the pair can co-exist in the same team.
At what point does the inquest stop? It is a question being asked up and down the pitlane in Saudi Arabia. No one seems sure. We still do not know whether Horner’s accuser is lodging an appeal against the verdict. Wednesday was billed in some quarters as D-day for that appeal, as it was five days after the verdict fell, which is the prescribed window in employment law. But apparently, it is five days from when you actually receive the letter in writing, which may only have happened in the last couple of days. The strong suspicion is she will appeal.
There are still rumblings that further leaks might be coming. Of bad blood between the Austrian faction and the Thai majority shareholder at Red Bull: Chalerm Yoodivhya. Perhaps Oliver Mintzlaff, the chief executive of corporate projects at Red Bull GmbH, who has oversight of F1, can shed some light on that this week. Mintzlaff is expected at the race.
Perhaps, in the end, they can all get around a table and call a truce. Verstappen, caught between his father and his team principal, his sponsors and his fans, certainly seems to hope so.
“Everyone in general, even if you have arguments or not, there are things that can be worked out,” he reflected of the chances of peace breaking out. “Everyone is man enough and respectful enough anyway. I have not always agreed with everything that has happened – and I am not talking about lately – just in general in F1. And that is where sometimes it is good to have discussions. You might agree to disagree. That is what happens in a relationship.”