Wolff denies booing incident: 'Wasn't directed to Max'
F1 News
The booing incidents towards Max Verstappen and Christian Horner during the 2025 season launch event F1 75 have been widely discussed in recent weeks. According to Toto Wolff however, the reality was different to reports as he is convinced that Verstappen was not in fact booed.
"First of all, we either didn't know what to expect from the event and it was very good," Wolff spoke to GPblog and other media at the Bahrain testing. The Mercedes team boss complimented the smaller teams in particular for their efforts. "The job that some of the smaller teams did in terms of marketing in the launch was exceptional. Everything was immaculate. The organization was really good. It was a top event for our sponsors that really enjoyed it. That's the feedback we got."
"And we need to applaud Formula One for what they did." Wolff is convinced that the event was so successful that it will expand in the coming years, and not just in Britain. "I'm sure this format is going to expand in the next few years, maybe to different places and that's exceptional."
Was Verstappen really booed?
"We were all surprised of the amount of booing that happened, particularly to one individual," Wolff stated, referring to Horner. "There wasn't any booing really on Max. That was then coming in was a consequence of what happened before. But that was big and bad and came as a surprise to everyone." The crowd's behaviour surprised Wolff especially as the event was held in the Red Bull team boss's home country. "It's his home turf and still Christian got this boos, so boos shouldn't be in the spot. But in my opinion, that wasn't directed to Max," concludes Wolff.
This article has been created in collaboration with Kim Hoefnagel.
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