Sharp reaction after the booing: If there is another F1 launch in England in the future, Max Verstappen will not take part, says his father Jos
The F1 launch in London has caused Red Bull to suffer after-pains. Firstly, because the boos against team principal Christian Horner have raised the question internally as to whether the Horner affair could have caused lasting damage to the brand after all. And secondly, because Max Verstappen was also booed in the home of his arch-rival Lewis Hamilton – and the four-time world champion obviously found this more offensive than could be seen on stage on Tuesday evening.
The reaction of the London audience to his son was “shameful”. “You are there to promote the sport, and then you are booed by the audience. I find that unacceptable. I understand it, because Max is the only one who puts pressure on the English and says exactly how it is. But I find it really disappointing what happened there.”
It is not out of the question that Verstappen Jr. will draw his own conclusions from the incident. At least his father announces them: “Max doesn’t want to be booed in front of 25,000 people. He also says, ‘If it’s in England again next year, you won’t see me there for sure.’”
“I completely agree with him. You are there to promote the sport, to present the new cars and colors. And if they react like that, what are you supposed to do there? He has to prepare to go there and then be booed like that. I think they need to rethink this thoroughly. It’s not part of the sport.”
The devil is in the details. While Horner was presumably booed because parts of the audience did not forgive him for his behavior in the Horner affair, when he was accused of sexual harassment about a year ago (and later exonerated in an internal Red Bull investigation), it is likely that it was rather Hamilton fans who booed Verstappen.
How the boos were discussed internally is not known outside the team. Red Bull CEO Oliver Mintzlaff, who was present at the F1 launch, flew on immediately after the event and took Red Bull motorsport consultant Helmut Marko with him. It is possible that the two were also irritated by the hostile reaction of the audience.
FIA responds to booing with statement
Meanwhile, the FIA is admonishing Formula 1 fans to treat all competitors with respect, regardless of their origin, because: “Great rivalries in the history of motorsport have helped make it such an exciting experience for fans,” the federation said in a statement, which will discuss the booing in London at the next meeting of its Motorsport World Council on Wednesday.
“But what underpins the sport at every level is a culture of respect. It was therefore disappointing to hear the tribalist reaction of the audience to Formula 1 world champion Max Verstappen and his Red Bull team boss Christian Horner at the F1 launch in London. Max and Christian have both contributed significantly to the sport we love. In the coming season, we should not lose sight of that.”
“As part of the FIA’s commitment to protecting the integrity of the sport, we are leading a coalition to fight online abuse in sport under the banner of our ‘United Against Online Abuse’ campaign. We stand united with all our competitors, officials, volunteers and fans against this growing threat. We urge the sports community to consider the impact of their actions both online and offline.”
An interesting side note: In addition to Horner and Verstappen, the FIA and its president Mohammed bin Sulayem were booed that evening when they were only mentioned by Laura Winter, one of the evening’s moderators. Which, at a Liberty event of all places, is unlikely to help improve relations between rights holder Liberty Media and the FIA.
Marko: F1 launch could be an annual event in the future
Nevertheless, Helmut Marko, who is known to be personally not a fan of glitter and glamour, thinks that the event as such was a success: “The fact that you fill an arena like that with 15,000 people is a sign that it is a success in England. It is an example of new marketing channels that Formula 1 is taking. And with so many people in the audience, all you can say is that it was a success.”
He himself liked the show ‘differently’, but: ‘The most fascinating thing was the enthusiasm of the audience. You have to take note when 15,000 people react so euphorically to a performance by Lewis Hamilton or Lando Norris.’
Marko sees the F1 launch as a further “step in the right direction that Liberty has started with Netflix and social media. I can imagine that in the future this will be marketed as a stand-alone event. But if you continue to do this, then I think you have to change a few things and, for example, really show the new cars.”
At the premiere last Tuesday, Liberty Media made advance payments. However, industry experts believe it is conceivable that the F1 launch, held in 2025 to mark the 75th anniversary of the Formula One World Championship, will take place every year in the future – and be sold to the highest-bidding venue.
It is conceivable that countries such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar or Bahrain in the Middle East would be willing to pay to host an F1 launch, similar to how they do for their Grands Prix. And Liberty Media could tap into an additional source of income. Especially as an F1 launch with new cars would also make logistical sense if winter tests were to take place nearby a few days later.
But that is currently a long way off. At the moment, Liberty Media has no official plans to hold such an event annually. But one thing seems clear: if the next F1 launch takes place in England again, it would probably take a lot of persuasion to persuade Max Verstappen to come…
