MY DAD'S BIGGER THAN YOUR DAD!
Christian Horner has defended Max Verstappen in the world champion’s ill-tempered feud with George Russell before the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
www.theguardian.com
The Red Bull team principal, Christian Horner, has defended his driver Max Verstappen in the world champion’s increasingly ill-tempered feud with Mercedes’ George Russell and dismissed their
very public falling out as part of an end of year “pantomime season” before this weekend’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Verstappen has already been
crowned drivers’ champion, a success overshadowed at this finale by the spat he is now embroiled in with Russell. Their altercation ramped up in Abu Dhabi when the British driver accused Verstappen of threatening to put him “on your fucking head in the wall” and that it was time someone stood up to the Dutchman’s bullying. Verstappen has denied making the threat.
heir falling out
began at the Qatar GP where Verstappen said the British driver had tried to
“screw him over” in a stewards’ meeting to decide an on track infringement between the pair and from which Verstappen was
punished with a grid penalty.
The pair’s relationship has endured a series of flashpoints in the past but may have now irrevocably broken down. At the annual end of season driver’s dinner on Thursday, Russell, apparently offered a seat next to him by Verstappen, chose instead to pointedly move the chair to sit next to his teammate Lewis Hamilton.
Horner defended Verstappen’s assessment of the steward’s meeting in Qatar and his driver’s behaviour although he did not address Russell’s claim Verstappen had threatened him.
“Max is a very straight-shooter. He tells the truth, exactly what he feels,” Horner said. “I believe 100% what he said to be accurate.
“A lot has been made of it yesterday, it is pantomime season, we are getting ready for Christmas so maybe there is an element of end-of-term blues there.”
The FIA has been asked whether Russell’s claims will be investigated and whether if found to be true, Verstappen will be considered to have brought the sport into disrepute.
On Thursday the Mercedes team principal, Toto Wolff, took the largely unprecedented step of joining Russell at his media call, where he described Horner – who had called Russell hysterical – as a “yapping little terrier, always something to say”.
Horner has a similarly fractious relationship with Wolff and chose to deliver his own put-down in reply. “Toto is quite dramatic as we all know. Toto likes to talk a lot but that is the way it is,” he said. “There is sort of a love-hate relationship where Toto loves to hate me.
“The great thing about terriers is that they are tremendously loyal. To be called a terrier, is that such a bad thing? They are not afraid of having a go at the bigger dogs. I’d rather be a terrier than a wolf maybe.”
Lewis
