Max Verstappen 'not a politician' as ace wary of 'creating massive s*** storm' at Red Bull
Max Verstappen has offered his thoughts on the ongoing behind-the-scenes drama within the Red Bull camp.
Max Verstappen has insisted that he is ‘not a politician’, making clear his desire not to be dragged into the behind-the-scenes chaos at Red Bull and create a ‘massive s*** storm’ with his input.
Red Bull have continued their challenge for race wins and World Championships in 2024 following a record-breaking 2023 campaign, but their on-track triumphs have been overshadowed by the drama within the team.
The tensions were first heightened after team principal Christian Horner was placed under investigation - and later cleared - for alleged inappropriate behaviour towards an unnamed female employee. While no wrongdoing was uncovered, the saga destabilised the internal relations within the team.
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Central to this was Verstappen’s father, Jos, who went public in calling for Horner to step aside. Meanwhile, a power struggle between the team principal and advisor Helmut Marko continues to place the squad’s star driver’s future into question.
Discussing the ongoing chaos at Red Bull, Verstappen told The Guardian: “The more I talk about it, the more people have to write. You write it down, you make a story out of it and people will pick up little things and it becomes a massive s*** storm. You know what I mean?
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“I tell you a story that might get translated to Spanish, Dutch, whatever. The more I say about it is not going to help the situation. I would rather not have these stories, these things going on within the team.
“We just have to deal with it and move on from it. I am contracted to the team to do my job, that’s performance, that’s what I am focused on. I am not a politician, I am not someone who likes to be political. I just focus on the performance with the people around me, try to distract myself from, let’s say, the negative.”
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Verstappen has stuck true to his word too. Despite the chaos playing out in the background, the Dutchman has remained consistent on the track, winning five of the opening eight races. A return of 169 points means that he travels to the Canadian Grand Prix with a 31-point lead over second-placed Charles Leclerc.
However, Verstappen will need to remain laser-focused if he is to continue his current form. Ferrari and McLaren have both closed in on Red Bull in terms of performance with the top three teams splitting the last three Grands Prix equally among them.
