Never as in the 2021 championship the duel for the conquest of the world title did not concern only the two drivers involved in the direct challenge – Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton – but it transcended in a no holds barred battle between the two teams that represented them: Red Bull and Mercedes. A battle played on all fields, on and off the circuits, which saw the two ‘heavyweights’ of the Circus compete against each other at a managerial level: Christian Horner And Toto Wolff. The two most successful team principals in current Formula 1 have used all their skills to compete not only on a sporting level but also – and above all – on a political level.
Lobbying, strategies, gray areas e behavior at the limit of the regulation they have always been part of the history of this sport, but never as in the last season have they been the subject of discussion. Performed weekend after weekend in front of the cameras, sometimes even diverting attention from the two protagonists who on circuits all over the world were giving sight to one of the most spectacular and balanced duels ever. In the course of an interesting interview released Formulas1.nl, Horner himself commented on what it was like to be at the center of such a complicated political battle, facing a particularly difficult opponent like Wolff.
“Do I like the political aspect? No – Horner admitted – but is it part of sport? Yup. I don’t know if I’m good, but I have a great love for this sport. I grew up in this sector and I think what you do on the track is the most important thing “. The one won by Max Verstappen was the fifth drivers’ title that the British manager won as team principal. The first four had arrived between 2010 and 2013, with Sebastian Vettel. In those years, Red Bull’s great opponents were Fernando Alonso and Ferrari, defeated on two of these four occasions only at the last GP of the season.
By drawing a comparison between these two experiences, Horner highlighted the differences in leadership style between the then number one of Ferrari, Stefano Domenicali, and Wolff himself. “When we were fighting with Sebastian Vettel against Fernando Alonso for the world championship, Stefano Domenicali was the boss of Ferrari – explained Horner – at the time the competition was on a different level. We say ‘like gentlemen’. This year, on the other hand, has been intense, both on and off the track. I think Toto plays differently, he’s another kind of animal “he concluded.
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