Jos Verstappen fears continued power struggle at Red Bull

Jos Verstappen has confirmed there is an internal power struggle going on inside Red Bull he fears may “continue for a while”.

As F1 heads to Australia for this weekend’s third grand prix of the season, Red Bull’s dominant one-two performances of the first two races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia spearheaded by three-time champion Max Verstappen, have been overshadowed by the off-track scandal surrounding team principal Christian Horner that has engulfed the team.

Although Horner was initially cleared of improper behaviour towards a female employee following an internal investigation, it is understood an appeal has, or is at least due, to be launched.

In the background, it has also become apparent that Horner is facing a battle against the Verstappens and advisor Helmut Marko, despite claiming there is team harmony and unity.

Following a victory in the Ardennes Rally over the weekend, Jos Verstappen was again asked about the ongoing saga inside the team.

“It’s certainly hard for the outside world to follow,” said Verstappen. “I think it’s necessary to get peace within the team, but given the circumstances, I think it will continue for a while. I’m curious, but it doesn’t help the whole process.”

Asked if there was a power struggle, Verstappen replied: “There is definitely a certain power struggle going on. We’re going to see, I can’t say too much about it. I hope peace returns soon and they start concentrating on racing because that’s what it’s all about. But this is not good.”

As to how quickly it can be resolved is another matter, particularly with Horner remaining at the helm, and seemingly facing a second legal fight via any appeal to remain in office, which Jos feels will only add to his son’s growing annoyance as he knows he will continue to face questions on the topic.

“I don’t know what should happen,” said Verstappen. “The most important thing for us is that Max keeps winning, and he does.

“The car is very good, and between the engineers and Max, there is nothing going on, so that is also good. Max knows how to get that part out, too, but he gets a lot of questions about what’s going on and he doesn’t like that.

“But that’s also part of it, the other side of Formula 1.”