Christian Horner’s Red Bull fate hangs in the balance as an outcome is yet to be reached out of the investigation he is under. It was reported last week that the Red Bull boss was under investigation by the company after a complaint was lodged by a female employee. After an initial hearing on Friday, the investigation is still underway. Now, Horner’s ex-driver, David Coulthard, has come out in support of the 50-year-old owing to the accusations yet to be proven.
On the Formula for Success podcast, Coulthard said (as quoted on X), “As always, everybody deserves their moment to be able to explain their position. I believe that will be happening on Friday in Christian’s case. I don’t know about the other party involved. So, maybe by next week, we’ll have some clarity on that particular situation.”
As Coulthard alluded to, a lot of speculation was going on in the media with respect to the allegations leveled against Horner. As it turns out, the accusations are pertaining to “controlling behavior” that the Briton has allegedly shown towards a female employee of the team, per The Independent. Nonetheless, an initial meeting was conducted in London, where Horner was questioned by an independent lawyer on these claims.
That being said, only four days remain before the team unveisl their 2024 challenger – the RB20. Naturally, with the investigation yet to be concluded, Christian Horner will still be present at the launch event, albeit in a very awkward and uncomfortable environment.
Will Christian Horner attend the RB20 launch?
The results of the investigation will not be out by the time Red Bull reveals the RB20. Hence, it is theorized that Horner will actually be present at the launch event and will conduct his usual duties as the head of the race team.
This is because Horner will assume the role of team principal until a decision has been made about his future after the investigation results are out. The presumption of innocence is on Horner’s side until the outcome of the allegations is clarified.
The Briton has himself vehemently denied the claims. The Guardian, amongst other media outlets, has quoted him as saying, “I completely deny these claims.” Many are even speculating this investigation to be the result of an internal power struggle reportedly started by Horner himself when he wanted to push Helmut Marko out of the organization.
