Horner: “Let’s stop ruining our lives”

When Dietrich Mateschitz, big boss of Red Bull, where Helmut Marko, his gray eminence, launches repeated attacks against Renault, is it out of pure frustration? Or by provocation in order to generate a response, or even a rupture?

What they feel is enormous frustration. We must also understand that many promises were made and never kept. Red Bull reached the top with Renault and shares all its successes with Renault. In Milton Keynes, we all know the extreme quality of the people at Renault and to turn a blind eye, to say nothing, would have been like a lack of respect towards them. Some issues have been there for a long time and have not been addressed despite our warnings. Nothing was done.

Fuel and tire management, engine tokens, penalties beyond belief... Fans no longer recognize the F1. What is your solution?

Keep it simple. What is the basis of F1? What do we ask him? To feature the fastest cars in the world, that they have an aggressive look and that they are very difficult to tame. The races must be close but fair, and the drivers fearless and blameless heroes. Let's stop making our lives worse with increasingly complicated rules and penalties that turn ridiculous. Let's make it spectacular and stop making this sport more complicated than cricket.

Dominatrix, the team Mercedes must she, for her part, accept some sacrifices?

I don't want my words to be misinterpreted. Often, I'm portrayed as someone who won't stop complaining, but that's not the point. Mercedes, and I am the first to applaud, has done a remarkable job and deserves its triumph. However, we must have an opposition worthy of them. F1 cannot afford the luxury of having Renault and Honda in the embarrassing situation they are currently in.

Discover the interview with Christian Horner in full in the 2020 issue of AUTOhebdo, available now digitally available on all platforms, and on newsstands.