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Verstappen clarifies: 'Jos and Horner have no conflict'
- Corwin Kunst
The season start for Red Bull Racing has been successful, but you cannot say it was quiet and everything was running smoothly at the Austrian formation. Christian Horner's position at the team was/is under pressure, Helmut Marko' future was/is uncertain and Max Verstappen 100 per cent ruled out/is ruling out a departure. Speaking to The Guardian , Verstappen reiterated that he prefers to serve out his contract at Red Bull and that there is no question of a quarrel between Horner and Jos Verstappen.
"The more I talk about it, the more people have to write," Verstappen interjects in the interview. "You write it down, you make a story out of it and people will pick up little things and it becomes a massive shit storm. You know what I mean? 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."
As the three-time world champion actually always does, he continued by saying that he is under contract to perform. On that performance is his focus. So far this season, he is doing very well with a 48-point lead over Charles Leclerc in the world championship after seven Grands Prix.
Jos vs Horner
Verstappen prefers everything to stay as it was. Supporters should stay and calm should return, is the 26-year-old driver's message. A few weeks ago, it briefly seemed that the Verstappens would be on a collision course with Horner, but Max downplays those stories. It is true, however, that father Jos was not entirely on the same page with Red Bull's team principal.
Jos Verstappen was particularly critical of Horner in the media. The team boss was accused that - due to his steadfast stance on the allegations of transgressive behaviour and his public statements - he could become responsible for the team's break-up. "They are not in conflict," Max clarified. "People can have different opinions, but that's a different story."
Contract until 2028
In March 2022, Verstappen sensibly signed a contract until 2028 with Red Bull Racing. Mercedes are hoping for his services and although Verstappen has always said a switch is out of the question at the moment, he has never completely closed the door.
"I am quite a loyal person and it is something that means a lot to me. That is what I request from the team and so far that has always been great and that is what I want to keep for a long time. It would be amazing to finish my career here at Red Bull. All the years staying basically at one team would be incredible," he concluded his story.
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