Red Bull driver reacts after Horner ‘important part’ praise

Sebastien Buemi has reacted to recent comments from Red Bull team principal Christian Horner, who described him as having played an "important part".

Horner praised Buemi during the Singapore Grand Prix, following a long shift in the simulator at Milton Keynes. 

The work done by Red Bull's simulator driver on the opening day of the Singapore GP transformed the team's weekend, as Max Verstappen went onto qualify on the front row and finish second in the race. 

Red Bull had looked nowhere on the opening day, with Verstappen having been towards the bottom of the timesheets. 

“He [Buemi] was consuming plenty of Red Bull to keep him going," Horner told select media including RacingNews365. 

"He played an important part, as does the whole team, in working hard with long days and long nights.”

Buemi, currently racing for Envision in Formula E and Toyota in the World Endurance Championship, last raced in F1 back in 2011, in what was his third campaign for Red Bull's sister team.

Buemi a 'small part' of big team

The Swiss driver has been part of the Red Bull family for almost two decades and continues to enjoy being involved, with him feeling incredibly grateful to be publicly praised by Horner.

"I basically feel very thankful to Christian [Horner] for saying that," Buemi told RacingNews365 during a recent interview.

"He doesn't need to say that, it's my job, and I try to do it the best I can. But I think he's a great team leader, and he obviously energises everyone in the team to try to bounce back and do a better job. 

"So I think on that side, obviously, it's always nice to see that people praise your work. It means you've done a good job."

Whilst the 35-year-old is grateful to have been praised by Horner, Buemi is quick to recognise he is a "small part" of Red Bull's operations. 

Buemi is pleased to see his work in the simulator having a positive impact on the performance of the RB20.

"But at the end of the day, I'm happy," added the former Formula E champion. "I'm part of the team, part of the family for a long time, and I want to do well. 

"So I'm always happy to see that [my work], even if it helps just a tiny bit, I'm just happy for that.

"But then, obviously, I'm just a small part of the of the work being done there. And, obviously, I just try to do a good job everywhere I race."