Max Verstappen has spoken out about his father Jos Verstappen's recent comments concerning Christian Horner, as well as a possible move to Mercedes.
"I don't know (if the team will explode). I hope not!" Max Verstappen said. "It shouldn't be. It's a strong company, it's a strong team, a lot of strong team members, so normally not."
Max's comments come after his father criticized Red Bull's decision to keep team principal Christian Horner after he was cleared of any wrongdoing.
"The team is in danger of being torn apart," Jos Verstappen said. "It can't go on the way it is. It will explode. He is playing the victim when he is the one causing the problems."
Max Verstappen, while not outright agreeing with his father, came to his defense after Red Bull responded to Jos Verstappen's comments calling it "untrue" and saying that the team is united.
"My dad...is very outspoken and he is not a liar, that is for sure," Max Verstappen said when asked if his father regretted the comments he made.
Max Verstappen will be racing this weekend in the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix after he claimed victory in the season opener at the Bahrain Grand Prix, though his father will not be attending. Max Verstappen said he believes the situation between his father and Horner can be resolved.
"Anyone in general, even if you have arguments or not, there's always things that can be worked out," Max Verstappen continued. "Everyone is man enough and respectful enough to each other anyway in that sense."
Max Verstappen is under contract with Red Bull until 2028 but there have been rumors that the current situation with Red Bull is leading him to fill the upcoming vacancy at Mercedes after Lewis Hamilton's departure for Ferrari at the end of the season.
"Well, the thing is, no one would ever have realized or seen that Lewis [Hamilton] would move to Ferrari," Max Verstappen said when asked about a possible move. "In my life, that's not related to F1 or whatever, it's just general life, you never know what happens or what comes to you or whatever happens around you, or what might influence you. So, you can never say 100% that's how it's going to be. I approach my life like that, but I also don't think about it that much. I'm very relaxed, I'm very happy at the team. The performance is there, there is no reason to leave."
The Christian Horner saga has dominated the F1 news cycle for the season's opening week and shows no signs of slowing down as F1 heads into week two.
