Horner says 'it's a shame' how Mercedes reacted to Verstappen's win
Red Bull chief Christian Horner says Mercedes’ reaction to Max Verstappen’s win over Lewis Hamilton in Abu Dhabi is ‘a shame’, saying rivals ‘made an error’ with pit stop call and calling Michael Masi criticism ‘excessive’
- Christian Horner criticised Mercedes for their reaction to the title decider
- Max Verstappen overtook Lewis Hamilton in controversial circumstances
- Horner says Mercedes made an error in not choosing for Hamilton to pit
- In addition Horner jumped to the defence of race director Michael Masi
Red Bull chief Christian Horner has expressed his disappointment with Mercedes’ reaction to Max Verstappen’s controversial title success at last weekend’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Lewis Hamilton had appeared set for glory in Abu Dhabi, but, following the deployment of a safety car after Nicholas Latifi had crashed, Verstappen was allowed to pit for fresh tyres.
Following that, race director Michael Masi allowed only some of the lapped cars between Hamilton and Verstappen to overtake the safety car.
Christian Horner has criticised Mercedes for their reaction to Max Verstappen’s title win
Red Bull’s Verstappen was crowned champion after controversially overtaking Lewis Hamilton
Verstappen (R) managed to overtake Hamilton (L) on the final lap to the anger of Mercedes
Verstappen managed to overtake Hamilton on the final lap, with the Red Bull driver securing glory, much to the anger of Mercedes.
Horner was frustrated that no members of the Mercedes team were below the podium after the race, and stressed his belief that Mercedes made an error in terms of not choosing for Hamilton to pit.
Horner told The Telegraph: ‘I did find it disappointing that there wasn’t a single member of the Mercedes team below the podium. And it’s a shame that they’ve taken it in the manner they have. Emotions run high. They have been a winning machine for eight years now, and at some point that has to come to an end.
‘So many decisions had gone against us. Even at the beginning of the race in Abu Dhabi, no penalty was given to Hamilton for cutting the chicane.
‘Lots of people have said that Lewis was a sitting duck in Abu Dhabi. But tactically, Mercedes made an error. They had the choice to pit, they chose not to, and they left him in that situation.’
Horner was frustrated that no members of the Mercedes team were below the podium
Horner felt that Mercedes made a mistake in terms of not choosing for Hamilton to pit
Toto Wolff and Mercedes appealed against the decision but ended up withdrawing protest
Mercedes appealed against the decision, but ended up withdrawing their protest.
Horner was full of praise for Verstappen’s attitude, with the 24-year-old refusing to give up as he was involved in an engaging battle with Hamilton.
Horner said: ‘Max just refused to give up. You didn’t hear him moaning on the radio. Every lap, he drove his heart out, then suddenly a chance presented itself. When you look at his pass at Turn Five,
‘I don’t think Lewis was expecting him to go through there. He didn’t even defend. He was waiting for him more into Turn Six, but Max took him by surprise. Classic Verstappen.’
There has been considerable criticism of Masi, but Horner felt that he wasn’t to blame, describing the abuse he has received as ‘unfair’
Horner said: ‘It’s an exaggeration. Latifi, I’m sure, didn’t intend to crash. It was just an accident. The marshals did a great job of recovering the car in time, and Michael opted to get the race going again. It’s unfair, the abuse he has received. One side is always going to be unhappy.’
Horner jumped to the defence of race director Michael Masi, saying criticism of him is ‘unfair’
Reflecting on Verstappen’s achievement, Horner declared that he felt the Dutchman fully merited his victory.
He said: ‘Even entering that weekend, I felt Max deserved it for how he had driven, how he had applied himself, how he had kept fighting under the most intense pressure and scrutiny – even when he didn’t have, in the second half of the year, the best car.’
Mercedes chief Toto Wolff stated that he and Hamilton have been left ‘disillusioned’ and claimed that the the British driver could walk away from F1.
This week Mercedes snubbed the FIA gala in Paris, where Verstappen received his trophy.
Wolff said: ‘Lewis and I are disillusioned at the moment. We’re not disillusioned with the sport. We love the sport with every bone in our body. And we love it because the stopwatch never lies.
‘I would very much hope that Lewis continues racing because he’s the greatest driver of all time. When you look at it from the point of view of the last four races, he dominated on Sunday. There was not even a doubt who won the race. And that was worthy of winning the world championship.
Wolff stated that he and Hamilton had been left ‘disillusioned’ following the race in Abu Dhabi
‘But if we break that fundamental principle of sporting fairness and the authenticity of the sport, then suddenly the stopwatch doesn’t become relevant anymore. Because we are exposed to random decision making. And it is clear that you may fall out of love with a sport if you start to question, despite all the work you have been doing, all the sweat and tears and blood.
‘So it’s going to take a long time to digest what has happened on Sunday. I don’t think we will ever get over it. It’s not possible. Certainly not as a driver.
‘I would very much hope that the two of us and the rest of the team can work through the events, and with the FIA and F1 we can utilise the situation to improve the sport going forward.’
Horner revealed this week that Wolff texted him to congratulate him on Verstappen’s world championship success.
The reply from Horner included him telling Wolff that the constructors’ title, which Mercedes managed to retain, ‘is where the money is’.
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