Horner unfazed by Red Bull Mexico welcome after Marko slur

Red Bull Team Principal Christian Horner has shrugged off concerns of a hostile reception at the Mexican Grand Prix following Motorsport Advisor Helmut Marko's recent slur against Sergio Perez. Marko was forced to apologise over comments made with regards to Perez's struggles in F1 this term, where he suggested his heritage was to blame for not being as 'focused' as triple World Champion teammate Max Verstappen. Perez's relationship with Verstappen fractured following a team order fiasco at last season's São Paulo Grand Prix, which allegedly stemmed from the Mexican's crash in Monaco Grand Prix earlier that term. Animosity from a partisan crowd at the United States Grand Prix in Austin saw a chorus of boos ring out as Verstappen collected his winner's trophy. "I don't think Max is going to get the warmest reception in Mexico," Horner joked when speaking to media including RacingNews365.com . "That's water off a duck's back. One year you are the villain and the next you are the hero." On whether Red Bull could expect a confrontational atmosphere in Mexico City given Marko's comments about the country and attitude towards Perez, Horner insisted: "I am not worried about that. "The team is fully behind Checo and both of our drivers. We love racing in Mexico, we love the Mexican fans, the passion - that stadium is unique. "So we are really looking forward to it."

Confidence building performance

Having struggled for consistency in Singapore, Japan and Qatar, Perez put in a solid performance to finish fifth on-track at the Circuit of the Americas. But following a disqualification for Lewis Hamilton post-race, he was moved up to fourth and extended his lead over the Briton in the race for second in the Drivers' standings. Addressing Perez's performance, Horner insisted: "He should take a lot of confidence out of that. "His race pace was strong, we know he always races well and hard and hopefully, it is just the injection of confidence he needs going into his home race which I am sure is going to be nuts for him."