Christian Horner slams British F1 fans for Max Verstappen boos as FIA theory denied

Red Bull Racing driver Max Verstappen and his boss Christian Horner were both subjected to booing by some fans at the O2 Arena at the Formula 1 season launch event

Christian Horner compared Red Bull launching their car in London to visiting a rival football team’s stadium as he blasted British fans for booing Max Verstappen.

Both team boss Horner and his star driver were targeted by some of the 15,000 spectators packed into the O2 Arena last week for F1’s glitzy season launch event. None of the other drivers or team bosses received any notable booing.

Horner smiled through the boos as he spoke on stage that night and again brushed off the personal criticism of him as he reflected on his reception yesterday. But he drew the line at Verstappen being targeted and said: “Of course launching your car is a bit like launching your away strip in a home fans’ stadium.

“Fans will always back the teams and drivers that they want to. Of course, we’ve been the protagonists over the years. The only disappointment I had with it was the reception to Max as a four-time world champion. That was disappointing. But passion in sport is always going to be there. If the launch had been in Holland, no doubt the reception would have been somewhat different.”

The only other boos that night came when the FIA logo was shown on the big screen, sparking widespread jeering. A few days later, the governing body issued a statement slamming the boos directed at Horner and Verstappen during the F1 launch event.

By issuing its condemnation of that “tribalist” behaviour, the FIA sparked further criticism from some who suggested they had leapt to the defence of Red Bull. But Horner insists the FIA statement did not come at his team’s request.

He said: “They made their own comments on it. It was nothing that we, certainly, asked for. I didn’t have any conversation with the FIA following the event. It was part of their campaign to stamp out online abuse.”

In contrast, reigning constructors’ champions McLaren received some of the biggest cheers of the night, and especially their star driver Lando Norris. The Woking-based squad’s chief executive Zak Brown, who criticised Red Bull on several occasions last year, unsurprisingly had little sympathy for Horner or Verstappen.

He said: “I’ve never been to a sporting event that has been quiet. Sport brings out passion in fans, they cheer and they boo. I didn’t hear anything other than cheering and booing. I have seen a lot worse on social media.

“Cheering and booing has been part of sport for ever, that’s what fans do, they yell at their TV. I didn’t think there was anything visceral or violent. You see other sports that have had riots break out and it was far from that. It was sport and fans doing what fans do when they voice their opinion.”