‘Mercedes would know too well,’ Christian Horner rubbishes George Russell’s ‘sandbagging’ allegations against Red Bull
Christian Horner has rejected George Russell's claims that Red Bull are 'holding back', adding that it's 'very generous of him' to say that.
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Christian Horner (L) | George Russell (R)
Red Bull won their third race in a row in Australia, though it was not exactly comfortable. At the start, Max Verstappen was overtaken by both Mercedes cars; first George Russell, and then Lewis Hamilton; in rapid fashion. Then after two safety car periods, he regained the lead, which he kept until the end of the race. However, there was one restart, after Kevin Magnussen’s crash, that the Dutchman would have been worried about. But it all worked out in the end for Christian Horner’s team.
Once again, at least after the ‘order’ settled in during the race, Verstappen was the dominant force. His teammate, Sergio Perez, also salvaged a good result with a P5, considering he had started from the pitlane. Russell, who had retired from the race on lap 18, felt that Red Bull have been ‘holding back’. He said: “For sure they’re holding back. I think they are almost embarrassed to show their full potential because the faster they seem, the more that the sport is going to try and hold them back somehow.”
He thought Red Bull “realistically” have a ‘seven-tenths’ advantage on the rest of the field. Verstappen didn’t agree, and neither did Horner. Referencing Mercedes’ dominant period between 2014 and 2021, the Red Bull team principal said of Russell’s comments: “That’s very generous of him! His team would know too well about those kinds of advantages.” as per RacingNews365.com.
Christian Horner: ‘The grid was closer in Australia’
While Max Verstappen was allowed to manage his pace because he was in a comfortable position in the front, the same wasn’t the case for Sergio Perez. The Mexican driver started from the pit lane, and despite the perceived dominance of the RB-19, it wasn’t easy to make his way through. Even with the help of numerous red flags and safety cars, he could ‘only’ manage a P5.
Referencing this, Christian Horner said: “There’s always an element of managing that goes on in any race. Because it was a one-stop race, and a very early one-stop race, of course there was an element of tire management going on, and you could see how Checo [Perez] wasn’t hanging about. He wasn’t cruising around, or holding back seven-tenths a lap because he didn’t want to show it. The grid was certainly a little bit closer here.”
It’ll be interesting to see how this advantage Red Bull currently have evolves as the season progresses. No team will sit idly by – Red Bull neither, so it could even increase. It’s more likely to decrease, however, as the cost cap penalty’s effects are expected to hit them later on in the season. Two of their primary rivals, Mercedes and Ferrari are planning upgrades around Imola (21 May). There, we might see closer competition.
In case you missed it:
- F1 Australian GP: ‘Red flag was totally unnecessary,’ George Russell fumes at the FIA’s decision-making in Melbourne
- Red Bull’s system of favoring Max Verstappen is ‘failing’ due to Sergio Perez’s championship ambitions: Alain Prost
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Aniket Tripathi
(1002 Articles Published)