Max Verstappen has insisted that the late Red Bull founder Dietrich Mateschitz would have sorted the Christian Horner investigation "very quickly." Horner was investigated by Red Bull Racing's parent company Red Bull GmbH in early 2024 after allegations of improper behaviour were made against him by a female employee. The Red Bull boss denied all the allegations against him as Red Bull GmbH ultimately decided no further action would be taken, but tensions rose within Red Bull, especially from Jos Verstappen who wanted Horner removed. The situation cooled over the season, but now four-time world champion Verstappen feels Mateschitz, who died in 2022, would have been swift in dealing with the situation. "Of course, it was not pretty," Verstappen told Blick . "But I maintain that this matter would have been resolved very quickly with Dietrich Mateschitz." Verstappen's ongoing future with Red Bull remains uncertain, but again reiterated that his future with the team remains linked to that of Helmut Marko. "I am happy with where I am, and one of my conditions is always the same: Helmut Marko has to stay." Article continues below.
Verstappen on 2025
Although Red Bull enters the season with the reigning world drivers' champion, there are questions over its ability to fight once again following a mixed 2024 season. The RB20 suffered from extreme performance swings, with Verstappen hoping weaknesses can be fixed. "I don't have a crystal ball, but if we can correct certain weaknesses in the winter, we will be at the front again," he added. "But I'm certainly not making any predictions. Five teams should compete at the front, but we often missed the necessary balance [in 2024] because we just couldn't get into the small working window in terms of temperature."
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