Key Red Bull issue claimed by Max Verstappen ally: 'It bothered some people'

Former F1 driver Nelson Piquet Jr has claimed Red Bull struggled to hire new staff due to their concerns about the team environment.

Red Bull confirmed a major managerial change last week as it severed ties with long-time team principal Christian Horner.

The change has come amid a difficult period for Red Bull, whose on-track struggles are coming at the same time as Max Verstappen being linked with a move away from the team.

Piquet Jr, who is the brother of Verstappen's partner Kelly, stated Verstappen's interest in finding a new seat elsewhere stems from the team struggling to attract new engineers.

“What’s the reason they are struggling to keep Max? I heard it’s they have difficulty bringing some key people back or hiring,” he told the Pelas Pistas podcast.

“Because some didn’t like the team environment. Those little problems came up between him and Max’s father. 

“In a way, it bothered some people, and for them to bring the people they want back, some felt that, with Christian there, it would be more difficult.”

Horner's dismissal came suddenly, with the Briton informed of the change the evening before it was made public.

Piquet Jr suggested Horner wanted more control over decisions within the company before being shown the exit door.

“That’s what people have been saying - it was about sharing tasks a little bit more and Horner didn’t want to do that,” he said.

“He wanted to maintain control over everything, both teams, over the engines; he wanted to be in control of everything. But for him it was a win-win situation.

“If he gets all the power, for him, it’s a huge moral issue. And if he doesn’t, he gets a huge amount of money, almost 100 million dollars.

“Maybe part of that is psychological, so they can get rid of him and hire this list of people back. It’s not just because of Max.”