Zak Brown from McLaren has made the claim that Red Bull is “scared” of their top driver, Max Verstappen.
This accusation is likely to reignite tensions between the two rival teams ahead of the upcoming F1 Hungarian Grand Prix.
The conflict between them escalated in Austria when Verstappen received a time penalty for his involvement in a collision that ended Lando Norris’ race prematurely.
Andrea Stella, McLaren’s team principal, strongly criticized Verstappen, suggesting that his previous incidents with Lewis Hamilton where he escaped punishment have encouraged him to race more aggressively.
Christian Horner, the team principal of Red Bull, defended Verstappen in response to Stella’s comments.
Brown expressed his thoughts to The Independent, stating, “It appears that Red Bull is afraid of Max.”
He continued, “We are transparent with our drivers. If no one tells him that his actions were against the rules, why would he think otherwise?
“But for Christian to shift the blame to Lando – who does he think he’s fooling?
“Everyone saw it. The rules are clear – you must leave space for another car. He didn’t.
“Why did he need to say anything? It seemed completely inappropriate.”
Verstappen and Norris had to mend their friendship after the incident, which was a significant event in their F1 careers.
Norris initially demanded an apology but later softened his stance at Silverstone.
Despite this, McLaren has emerged as the main challengers to Red Bull this season, with Mercedes winning the last two races (George Russell in Austria and Lewis Hamilton at Silverstone).
McLaren will be aiming for a strong performance in Hungary to reaffirm their presence among the frontrunners.
