Red Bull team principal Christian Horner was subjected to loud boos when he took to the stage at the F1 75 event on Tuesday. Horner addressed the crowd at the O2 Arena, but his two drivers didn’t.
Max Verstappen wasn’t keen on attending the ceremony. He’d joked last season that he hoped he was sick, giving him a reason to skip it.
Verstappen did come, along with the other 19 drivers. He was joined on stage by his new teammate Liam Lawson after four seasons alongside Sergio Perez.
David Croft says Verstappen was hardly ‘full of joy’ during his press conference earlier in the day. And one journalist said his positive verdict on the event was ‘laced with sarcasm’.
Verstappen loves racing, which is why he competes virtually – and tests cars from different disciplines – in his spare time. But he doesn’t like the entertainment-driven appearances that come with being an F1 driver.
It’s unclear whether F1 will hold a similar event next year. They might wish to wait until 2030, when the sport celebrates its 80th anniversary.
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Every team was allotted seven minutes on stage, and they could use it however they liked. Red Bull were third-to-last, with the competitors appearing in reverse constructors’ championship order.
After Horner’s speech, Verstappen and Lawson walked out in front of a group of dancers. They presented the RB21 livery, which was very similar to its predecessor.
According to ESPN, Red Bull spent a whopping £800,000 on the production. Horner looked ‘surprised’ by the reaction he received, but pressed on despite his discomfort.
There were also jeers when Verstappen’s name was mentioned at the start of the night. The music that accompanied the unveiling of the RB21 made it difficult to gauge the reception during Red Bull’s segment.
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This was, inevitably, a partisan crowd. Verstappen has previously said he has the ‘wrong passport’ for the F1 paddock, and there are some British fans who hold grudges against him.
This is partly a legacy of the 2021 season, when he defeated national hero Lewis Hamilton in one of the most controversial conclusions ever. There may also be some who were unhappy with his wheel-to-wheel conduct against Lando Norris in 2024.
Red Bull have become the pantomime villain of F1, so perhaps the plan to isolate Horner on stage was naive. If they had another chance, they would possibly take a different approach.
The FIA are unhappy with Red Bull being booed, viewing it as a sign of toxicity. It remains to be seen whether there’s similar hostility at the British Grand Prix this summer.
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