Verstappen and Perez respond to Horner investigation

Red Bull drivers Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez have responded to the ongoing investigation concerning Team Principal Christian Horner's alleged 'inappropriate behaviour'.

The Briton was present at the Milton Keynes-based outfit's season launch on Thursday [February 15] to take the covers off the RB20, a car the team hope will secure a third consecutive championship double.

This is despite the investigation which has led to speculation over Horner's future with Red Bull.

Speaking to media including RacingNews365, Verstappen responded to claims of rifts between members of the team and explained: "It’s the same as always, I can tell you that.

"I don’t know who likes to write these things but to me, Christian is like always."

Asked by RacingNews365 if Horner's investigation was proving to be a distraction, the three-time champion replied: "From my side I am very focused on my own performance to get ready, to be fit, to be ready to drive the car, to be discussing things with the engineers, what you want to do.

"Plus, my life is not only Formula 1. When I’m at home I prefer not to think about F1 too much outside of my scheduled training. There are a lot of things going on in the background for me also, what I want to do in the future from the virtual side of things that I’m working on.

"So I’m busy enough at home."

'We are a race team'

Asked the same question, Perez said: "I think we just want to go racing.

"We are a race team and we want the whole team to stay together because we've been successful.

"It will be ideal to just keep the whole team together and just focus on racing. Obviously, there are some things out there but the most important is that we stay together as a team.

"The main goal... remembering we are here for racing, we love it and we go racing together.

"We know that Christian is a key player in our organisation."