F1’s season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix weekend was overshadowed by the situation involving Horner, who was investigated by Red Bull’s energy drinks company in the wake of allegations made against him by a female employee.
Following an eight-week investigation by an independent lawyer, the complaints were dismissed and Horner was cleared of wrongdoing.
But that has not proved to be the end of the matter. On Thursday in Bahrain, an anonymous source sent a dossier of alleged evidence to senior FIA and F1 personnel, including team principals and the media.
Then, just hours after Red Bull delivered a 1-2 in the race, Jos Verstappen launched a broadside against Horner stating that the world champion squad risks “being torn apart” if Horner stays.
The way that the Horner controversy has taken the focus away from the start of the new season has alarmed senior figures, and FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has publicly admitted that it is “damaging” for F1.
However, despite suggestions that the Horner situation was something that the FIA needed to investigate to ensure transparency and integrity, Ben Sulayem suggested the governing body could not do anything unless there was a formal complaint.
But this is a stance that Wolff feels is not necessarily correct, as he believes that the issues at stake here are so important that it would be wrong for Red Bull’s competitors to be forced to make a stand – because that would devalue the importance of what is at play.
Speaking in Bahrain, Wolff said: “I think the moment I start to continue to question how this has been handled, I'm probably not doing any good to the whole issue.
Source: Autosport