Horner pleased with Verstappen and dominance: 'May it last'

F1 News

christian horner reaction abu dhabi red bull verstappen
26 November 2023 at 15:44
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  • Kada Sarkozi
  • Editor

Christian Horner was a proud man. The Red Bull Racing team principal had just seen his driver Max Verstappen take the 19th win of the season, an unprecedented number in a fantastic season for the Austrians, while Sergio Perez also earned two victories as well, making it 21 wins out of 22 for Red Bull this year.

"Amazing," Horner told Viaplay about his team's season. "And all credit to every man and woman in the team that has worked so hard. Not just in the design and production of this car but the operation of it. All the people behind the scenes. The strategy, the race team, all the marketers, the chefs, the cooks, everybody has worked so brilliantly this year."

Verstappen even better?

Yet most of the praise goes to Max Verstappen, who outclassed everyone this season. Could he be even better? "Look, he's just pushing himself, and I just think he's operating in a different league at the moment. And it's great to witness. It's very special to see. And long may it continue."

With Franz Tost's departure from AlphaTauri, Horner will be the longest-serving team principal in Formula 1 next season. He remains motivated to continue. "You're always learning. We can always do better. Max is pushing us. We're pushing him. Checo was so unlucky today. I thought that was a very harsh decision [ed. the five-second penalty he received]. But what a year. Across so many different conditions, different circuits, different tests. To miss out on only one race. That's incredible."