Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has called for the investigation into alleged inappropriate behaviour by Red Bull boss Christian Horner to be carried out with “rigour” and “transparency”.
Just one week out from the start of the new F1 season, Horner remains the subject of an investigation commissioned by his team in relation to claims made by a female employee. The Englishman denies all accusations and has previously described the saga as a distraction.
Wolff: Standards
“It is clear,” Wolff said at F1’s Bahrain pre-season testing yesterday. “Formula One and the teams stand for inclusion, equality, fairness and diversity, and that is not only about talking about it, but living it day in, day out. These are just standards we set ourselves.
“We are a global sport and one of the most important sport platforms in the world and role models, too. But having said that, there is a lot of speculation that has been happening over the past weeks, and lots of things that are going on.
“What is important at that stage is for a process with rigour. I think what Red Bull has started as an independent investigation, if this is done in the right way, with transparency, that is something we need to look at.
“What the outcomes are, what it means for Formula One, and how we can learn from that because we want to talk about racing cars, and we want to talk about the sport, rather than these very critical topics that are more than just a team issue. It is a phenomenon and an issue for all of Formula One, and every individual that works out there.”
Success at Red Bull
It is not known when Horner, who has been at Red Bull since 2005, will learn his fate but F1 bosses have previously said that they want the state of play “clarified at the earliest opportunity”.
Horner has been instrumental in Red Bull’s huge success, helping the team win seven drivers’ titles – four with Sebastian Vettel and three with current world champion Max Verstappen –and team championships in 2022 and 2023 for the first time since 2013.
The season begins on 2 March in Bahrain with the usual Sunday race moved forward to a Saturday due to Ramadan. The same will occur a week later in Saudi Arabia.