Jos Verstappen ‘cut the stupid crap’ response in latest Christian Horner Red Bull flashpoint

Jos Verstappen was unimpressed with the comments from Red Bull boss Christian Horner after he praised sim driver Sebastien Buemi following Max Verstappen’s Singapore GP result.

As Formula 1 headed for the Marina Bay Circuit, host of the Singapore Grand Prix and round 18 of the F1 2024 campaign, Red Bull returned to the scene of their only defeat in a record-breaking F1 2023 season of dominance.

Jos Verstappen unimpressed with Christian Horner comments

The race weekend got off to a shaky start for Red Bull, Sergio Perez ending Friday practice in P8 and Max Verstappen P15, but the reigning champions pushed on from there as Verstappen put his Red Bull RB20 on the front row, racing on to a P2 finish behind comfortable race winner Lando Norris, who trimmed Verstappen’s lead in the Drivers’ Championship to 52 points.

But it was a story of improvement through the race weekend for Red Bull, with team boss Horner crediting Buemi, the former Toro Rosso driver, for playing an “important” part.

Asked by the media in Singapore how crucial Buemi’s session on Friday night was for the team, Horner joked: “He was consuming plenty of Red Bulls to keep him going!

“He played an important part, as the whole team, in working hard and long days and long nights.

“And with the benefit of there being no factory shutdown over the next three-week period, it’s going to be a busy period of activity.”

Verstappen’s father Jos saw these comments online and made his displeasure clear, commenting: “Cut out the stupid crap.”

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Tensions between Mr Verstappen and Horner stem all the way back to early 2024 when Red Bull conducted an internal investigation into Horner following allegations about his behaviour made by a fellow employee.

Horner denied all accusations, with the case duly dismissed, while an appeal was not upheld.

Mr Verstappen called for Horner’s exit during that saga,and has continued to criticise the team’s performances as his son’s early F1 2024 dominance faded.

After Verstappen finished runner-up to Norris at his home race, the Dutch Grand Prix, his father told Bild : “You can’t sugarcoat it anymore, the situation is serious.

“Max won’t be happy with having a car like this. Now it’s up to Horner to get the team back on track.”

Red Bull senior advisor Helmut Marko also made reference to the strained relationship between Verstappen Sr and Horner when addressing Mercedes boss Toto Wolff’s interest in signing the Red Bull driver, Wolff having claimed to have held meetings with the Verstappens and their manager Raymond Vermeulen.

“He wouldn’t be a good team principal if he didn’t try to get Max,” said Marko on the Inside Line F1 podcast . “I think every top team would like to have Max.

“The other story is all the people live in Monte Carlo. Monte Carlo when there is not a grand prix is a quiet place and there are not so many coffee shops, so it’s natural you run into each other. And of course, Toto makes stories out of it.

“On the other hand, Jos Verstappen I think is a bigger fan of Toto’s than he is of Christian.”

Despite Max Verstappen’s 52-point buffer at the top of the Drivers’ Championship as he chases a fourth consecutive title, he has not tasted victory since the Spanish Grand Prix in June.

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