The Saudi Arabian Grand Prix ended amid controversy after several extreme maneuvers involving title contenders Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen, indicating an escalation in the intensity of the battle.
Verstappen has shown that he is not afraid to take things to the limit in his duel with Hamilton, but the two teams also always try to push the rules to the maximum, so this could generate problems for the Abu Dhabi grand final.
Even though the tension between the two teams seems to have reached a dangerous enough threshold, Horner is adamant that Red Bull wants to win the title the right way.
When asked if he cares how a possible victory is going to come, Horne said: “Yes, of course we do. You always want to win on the track, not in the stewards’ room or on an escape route. You really want to win. “
“It has been a tough fight all year. There have been some fantastic battles between these two drivers, and I hope Abu Dhabi is a clean race.”
Verstappen and Hamilton will arrive at the decisive appointment of the season with equal points, so the Abu Dhabi race will be a real shootout, in which the winner will win. However, Verstappen has one more win to his credit, so he would be champion should both of them retire.
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB16B, Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes W12
Photo by: Simon Galloway / Motorsport Images
Though Red Bull have seen their lead nullified by Hamilton’s three-game winning streak, Horner insists the team hasn’t gotten down on the momentum its rival has taken.
“There is absolutely no problem, we are a team that looks beyond,” he explained. “We are going to Abu Dhabi on equal points, but in the lead by virtue of the number of victories”.
“Who would have thought at the beginning of the year that we could have made it to the last race with a chance after 21 races of intense battle with Mercedes? All of us would have absolutely kissed our elbows at the thought, given the dominance they have had in recent times. seven years “.
For Red Bull this will not be the first time they have to play a World Cup in the last race: they did it with Sebastian Vettel in Abu Dhabi in 2010 and in Brazil in 2012, winning on both occasions.
“It is the first time since we were there with Sebastian in 2012 that two different teams come to compete for the World Cup in the last race”.
“So there will be no problem raising the morale of the team this weekend. There was a crazy race here, which we finished in second place after being in the lead for a good part.”
“But luck is kissing Lewis right now. Ocon passed on his front wing on the second restart and then he touched Max, but he was able to carry on.”
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