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Max Verstappen reportedly asked FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem to launch an inquiry from his perspective about the Christian Horner row.
After the allegations of "inappropriate and controlling behavior" against Red Bull team principal Christian Horner were cleared, FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem allegedly asked Max Verstappen to support Horner publicly, according to The Daily Mail.
This reportedly happened during the season-opening Bahrain GP weekend, where Max Verstappen won the race from pole position. According to BBC Sport, Verstappen responded to Mohammed Ben Sulayem by asking him to have his own inquiry into the matter.
Despite the claims, Ben Sulayem told the Financial Times that the entire Christian Horner saga was damaging the sport on a "human level."
“It’s damaging the sport. This is damaging on a human level. It is vital to protect our sport from all of this. It is the beginning of the season. F1 is becoming so popular. We just need to enjoy the beginning of the season. Look at the competition. Why do we overshadow it with negativity?”
After the allegations against Horner were cleared, screenshots of chats were leaked through mail which were allegedly between an employee and Horner, and were reportedly sexual in nature.
Max Verstappen reported to replace Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes
Amidst the row with Christian Horner and Red Bull, Max Verstappen's father, Jos Verstappen, had earlier mentioned that the issue could rip the team apart.
He reportedly also met Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff after the Bahrain Grand Prix earlier last week. In the meeting, he criticized Horner for the issues that are being caused within the team.
Post this, it was reported by some media outlets, including the likes of AMuS, that Max Verstappen could be the one to replace Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes.
The latter will leave the team in the 2025 F1 season to race for Ferrari. Until now, there has been no confirmation from Mercedes regarding his replacement, but now with the turmoil at Red Bull, Verstappen has reportedly emerged as a very strong candidate.
There have also been reports that issues within the team could make Adrian Newey leave. He has been responsible for designing the extremely competent RB19 and their current challenger RB20.
While Verstappen has a contract with the team till the 2028 season, reports suggest that he might be looking to move away from the team because of the turbulence caused within.
