“It's a pretty toxic environment,” these are the words used by Zak Brown, CEO of McLaren, to describe the current situation of Red Bull on the Hot Pursuit podcast by Bloomberg. A decisive attack, which highlights the internal problems but also the uncertainties regarding Max Verstappen's future after Adrian Newey's departure.
Red Bull a toxic environment according to Zak Brown
Red Bull, despite its dominance in the constructors' championship, is going through a difficult period both on and off the track, with McLaren and Ferrari coming dangerously close in recent rounds. In a recent interview, Zak Brown, the direct opponent of the Austrian team, perhaps to put more pressure on him, underlined how the atmosphere within Red Bull has become increasingly problematic, aggravated by the turbulence surrounding the figure of the team principal, Christian Horner, and the announced departure of the very prestigious engineer Adrian Newey. There is a lot of talk about this departure, considering that the empire began to fall after the emergence of the scandal involving Horner, which however was archived by the Thais. The power play then started to come out, making the situation more complicated for Newey but not only.
“Red Bull is a pretty toxic environment. The things that are happening there are a bit destabilizing." said Zak Brown who also expressed concerns about the transparency of the team, referring to the investigation into Horner which however left shadows on the internal management of the team.
Newey's departure is not surprising, as well as others that may be coming
Regarding Adrian Newey's departure, Brown said he wasn't surprised, considering the unstable environment at Red Bull. “Newey's departure is important, because many people at Red Bull have started working with him. I already said that CVs were circulating". According to Brown, the team could in fact lose other key personnel and find it difficult to maintain sponsors.
Finally, Brown spoke about Max Verstappen's future, claiming that the Dutch driver's contract, which ties him to Red Bull until 2028, may not be as solid as it seems. “There's all the Verstappen drama. Does he stay or go? Max has a contract, except that his father is quite explicit,” added Brown, referring to the friction between Jos Verstappen and Christian Horner.
While Brown recognizes Red Bull's greatness as a team, he believes Ferrari and McLaren are experiencing a period of greater visibility and momentum. Also due to the reputation of the Austrian team, threatened by continuous scandals regarding internal management.
Source statements: RacingNews365
