Red Bull team principal Christian Horner called on Formula One to “move onward” and “look forward” on Thursday after his company reportedly suspended a female employee who brought a complaint against him.
An independent investigation was launched last month into Horner, who is also CEO of Oracle Red Bull Racing. Red Bull’s parent company has declined to elaborate and has not disclosed the reason behind the investigation. The Associated Press reported that it involved alleged misconduct toward a team employee.
Horner, 50, has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing and appeared at the team’s car launch, preseason testing and early races, aiming to show that it is business as usual.
Horner declined to confirm or deny reports about the employee’s suspension at a regular news conference of team bosses Thursday, ahead of this weekend’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
“Look, I’m afraid that I can’t comment on anything that’s confidential between an employee in the company, so I can’t offer you anything on that, I’m afraid,” Horner said.
Sky News, the BBC, The Athletic and ESPN confirmed the suspension.
“Obviously, there’s been an awful lot of coverage surrounding this, but one has to go back to the basis of this. A grievance was raised, it was fully investigated, and it was dismissed. And from there, we move onwards,” Horner said when discussing the matter broadly. “And I think an awful lot has been made out of this. Obviously, it has been of great interest in different elements of the media for different reasons. And I think the time now is to look forward and to draw a line under it. We’re here to go racing.”
On Feb. 28, Red Bull announced that the complaint had been dismissed and the investigation was complete. The company said the complainant, who was not identified, could appeal the decision.
“Red Bull is confident that the investigation has been fair, rigorous and impartial,” a company spokesperson said at the time. “The investigation report is confidential and contains the private information of the parties and third parties who assisted in the investigation, and therefore we will not be commenting further out of respect for all concerned. Red Bull will continue striving to meet the highest workplace standards.”
Horner and Red Bull have had a perfect start to the season, with drivers Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez finishing first and second, respectively, at the opening race of the season last weekend in Bahrain. They hope to replicate that feat this weekend in Saudi Arabia as they defend their reigning driver’s and constructors’ championships.
Horner has led the Red Bull F1 team since 2005 and has had tremendous success, including 113 race wins. Red Bull has won seven drivers’ championships, including four with Sebastian Vettel, from 2010 to 2013, and three in a row with reigning champion Verstappen from 2021 to 2023.
Verstappen praised Horner’s track record last weekend when asked if he has full faith in him to continue leading the team.
“Listen, when I look at how Christian operates within the team, he has been an incredible team boss. So absolutely, from the performance side of things, you can’t even question that,” Verstappen told reporters. “He’s fully committed to the team. He’s also here for the performance, of course. Probably a little bit distracted. But like I said before, we just focus on the performance side of things. And that’s how we all work together.”
Horner is married to former pop star Geri Halliwell, known as Ginger Spice of Spice Girls. The two were spotted and photographed in the paddock together at last weekend’s Bahrain Grand Prix. Last year, he was bestowed the honor of Commander of the Order of the British Empire.
Source: | This article originally belongs to Nbcnews.com
