Christian Horner – latest: Red Bull boss reacts after WhatsApp texts allegedly sent to female colleague leaked

Christian Horner has responded after WhatsApp messages and photos allegedly from the Red Bull F1 boss to the female colleague were leaked to the press on Thursday.

The team principal was cleared of “inappropriate behaviour” on Wednesday after a three-week internal investigation conducted by an external lawyer, following allegations from a female colleague.

However, WhatsApp texts and pictures have been leaked from an anonymous source on Thursday, allegedly showing conversations between Horner and the complainant.

Horner, who arrived in Bahrain on Wednesday night, has responded to the latest development with a short statement: “I won’t comment on anonymous speculation, but to reiterate, I have always denied the allegations.

“I respected the integrity of the independent investigation and fully cooperated with it every step of the way.

Twenty-three days after allegations of “inappropriate behaviour” first emerged through whispers in the Dutch press, and following countless denials on the eve of the new Formula One season, Red Bull boss Christian Horner has finally won the battle of his life.

Touching down in the Middle East on Wednesday night, Horner will be one relieved man stepping off his private jet. A team principal and chief executive who has barely missed a race since taking the reins at the inception of his Red Bull team in 2005, the 50-year-old will take his usual place on the pit wall at the Bahrain Grand Prix this weekend as a man exonerated.

Full story, by Kieran Jackson:

Addressing the controversy on Thursday, Williams team principal James Vowles said he has to believe Red Bull’s process has been thorough.

Vowles said: “I have a responsibility for Williams, and if anything like that happens here, I would want to make sure we properly investigate it and do a robust process that is clear to the outside world what has happened and what we can do to rectify that.

“I trust that Red Bull have done a strong process and we have to in that circumstance.

“But what I want is us as a sport to be proud that we are sitting on a set of foundations that is one of inclusivity, one of openness and transparency and all I ask in that matter is that we make sure we have faith and trust that all of the organisations are working for the same standards.”

Sky Sports F1 pundit Naomi Schiff also responded to the news that Christian Horner has been cleared.

She said: “Red Bull is a huge company, it’s a corporate matter, an investigation, and handled independently or not, you’d assume they took this with the utmost seriousness, and they handled it fairly.

“Because it comes at the risk of this going completely wrong, if it’s found out that that is not the case. I believe they’ve done everything they can.

“What they say, there’s a level of discretion because it involves the private lives of people and that doesn’t need to be exposed to the world. We hope that’s clear now and it will not go further unless it has to. You don’t want this looming over the sport.”

Red Bull GmbH said it was confident the investigation had been “fair, rigorous and impartial”, but added that the report – understood to stretch to 150 pages – is “confidential”. Horner emphatically denied the claim throughout the probe.

Christian Horner admits he is “pleased” the investigation into alleged “inappropriate behaviour” is over as the Red Bull F1 boss returned to the paddock in Bahrain on Thursday.

The complaint from a female colleague, first publicised on February 5, alleged “inappropriate, controlling behaviour” against the Red Bull team principal. Horner strongly denied the allegations, both initially and in public at Red Bull’s 2024 F1 car launch in Milton Keynes as well as last week at pre-season testing.

But after an investigation was conducted and completed by an external lawyer, the world champions’ parent company Red Bull GmbH confirmed on Wednesday afternoon that the “grievance” against Horner has been dismissed. The female colleague does, however, have the right to an appeal.

Twenty-three days after allegations of “inappropriate behaviour” first emerged through whispers in the Dutch press, and following countless denials on the eve of the new Formula One season, Red Bull boss Christian Horner has finally won the battle of his life.

Touching down in the Middle East on Wednesday night, Horner will be one relieved man stepping off his private jet. A team principal and chief executive who has barely missed a race since taking the reins at the inception of his Red Bull team in 2005, the 50-year-old will take his usual place on the pit wall at the Bahrain Grand Prix this weekend as a man exonerated.

Red Bull’s Max Verstappen has hit out over the length of the season.

“I feel already that we are way over the limit of races,” said Verstappen, who questioned if some drivers might “start shortening their careers” over the workload. Since Liberty Media took over F1 ahead of the 2017 season, the number of races has risen from 20 to 24.

The growth is driven by Liberty’s strategy of staging races in destination cities like Las Vegas, Miami, the Saudi Arabian city of Jeddah and from 2026, the Spanish capital Madrid.

Verstappen’s Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez voiced concern for staff on F1 teams who, he said, seemed exhausted at the final races of last year.

“I remember seeing a lot of zombies in Abu Dhabi, after Vegas,” he said Wednesday. “We are trying to basically put some points across that it’s not only for the drivers, to be honest. There’s a lot of mechanics, engineers and basically they travel the world weekend after weekend, a lot of hours on the planes.”

Toto Wolff has reiterated that the investigation into rival Christian Horner should have opened up with more details into the allegations and Red Bull’s process.

“The sport has received a message that it’s all fine … it needs more transparency,” Wolff said.

In an intriguing opening day’s racing, it was Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton who topped the evening’s timesheets under the lights in Bahrain, just ahead of his teammate George Russell.

Surprisingly, Max Verstappen was down in sixth, below Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin), Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) and Oscar Piastri (McLaren).

1. Lewis Hamilton – 1:30:374

2. George Russell – +0.206

3. Fernando Alonso – +0.286

5. Oscar Piastri – +0.410

6. Max Verstappen – +0.477

7. Nico Hulkenberg – +0.510

9. Charles Leclerc – +0.739

10. Sergio Perez – +0.741