Despite Winning 8 Titles, Toto Wolff Lacks ‘Understanding’ of Running an F1 Team; Claims Christian Horner

Sabyasachi Biswas | 02/09/2023
Despite Pressure to Become More Like Christian Horner, Toto Wolff Has Hired His Replacement

Toto Wolff’s recent comments on Max Verstappen and Red Bull didn’t go down well with Christian Horner. Reacting to that, the Red Bull team principal said that his rival lacks the understanding of running a team. The comment, as per Car and Driver has come even though Toto Wolff has had a more than successful career with eight titles to his name.

Wolff, in his recent comments, said that Red Bull has been developing their car around Verstappen, which has given the Dutchman a significant cushion over his teammate Sergio Perez. The comment arrived after the two-time world champion claimed his nine straight wins at Zandvoort, whereas Mercedes suffered.

As Toto Wolff tried to demean the Milton-Keynes-based team and their star driver, it was natural that it would not sit well with Horner. Therefore, the British boss arrived with his statements and took a dig at the Silver Arrows boss.

Christian Horner defends Max Verstappen and Red Bull against Wolff’s statement

Horner did not seem to like his rival Wolff’s comment on how he alleged Red Bull built their car around one driver. After the comments gained traction, it was Verstappen himself who denied the allegations saying it was the other way around.

Agreeing with the two-time world champion, the 49-year-old boss said, “[Toto Wolff] Shows a total lack of understanding of how a racing car and a team develop if he thinks we’re developing a car around a single driver.”

Following this, he added, “You develop a car to be as fast as possible, and sometimes fast cars are difficult. That is what has historically been the case.” However, Wolff and Horner are always known to go at each other. Though after the 2021 F1 season, it reduced, the fierce rivalry never extinguished.

Horner and Toto Wolff, rivals for ages

The 2021 F1 season saw the epitome of rivalry in F1. On one side it was Lewis Hamilton versus Max Verstappen, and on another side, it was Mercedes versus Red Bull. However, Christian Horner and Toto Wolff also snatched quite a bit of the limelight with their constant digs at one another.

So much so, even Drive to Survive had long moments of the duo fighting with each other, verbally. However, after Mercedes lost their spark and Red Bull found it in the new regulations in 2022, things have never been the same for the duo.

Notably, the rivalry can once again get fuelled after the Silver Arrows come on level terms with the Bulls. Until then, both Horner and Wolff’s fight with each other is enough to keep the whole F1 paddock, experts, and fans entertained throughout the season.

Post Edited By: Somin Bhattacharjee
Christian Horner Max Verstappen Toto Wolff

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Sabyasachi Biswas

Sabyasachi Biswas is an F1 journalist at The SportsRush. With over one and a half decades of love for the sport and five years of experience in the field, he dreams to be a regular at the paddock when the lights go out. A Red Bull fan and F1 fan in general over the years, he enjoyed watching Felipe Massa, Sebastian Vettel, and Max Verstappen dominate the track. Apart from F1, he's also a big-time Madridista and Federer fanatic. He was a sub-junior level footballer, won inter-district quizzes and debate competitions back in school. A travel freak throughout, he tries different cuisines and learns new cultures whenever he's away from the keyboard.

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