21/11/2021
NEWS STORY
Red Bull team boss, Christian Horner has been given an official warning after accusing the flag marshal who waved the double yellow flag in Q3 as being a "Rogue Marshal".
With the stewards announcing their decision, which saw Max Verstappen handed a 5-place grid penalty, just 90 minutes before the start of the race, talking to Sky Sports, Horner expressed his frustration.
"I think it's just a rogue marshal that's stuck a flag out and he's not been instructed to by the FIA," he said. "They've got to have control of their marshals. It's as simple as that because that's a crucial blow in this world championship for us. We're starting P7 at a track you can't overtake at, that is massive.
"I think there needs to be some grown-ups making grown-up decisions," he added. "Just having binary, somebody sticks a yellow flag out, it's just frustrating.
"I think the race director should have control of the circuit. He's the referee at the end of the day and otherwise anybody, you get a marshal that decides to stick a yellow flag out. How does that work?"
Horner explained to the stewards that the comments were made under the pressure of competition following the penalty imposed on Verstappen.
However, the stewards explained that the marshal concerned was doing his job in precisely the manner prescribed in the International Sporting Code.
Horner offered to apologise to the marshal concerned and to explain to the media that he meant no offense, he also offered to participate in the 2022 FIA International Stewards Programme in early February.
Speaking to Sky after the hearing, Horner explained: "Some comments were made, I think, in our interview earlier where you asked me about the marshalling and I'd like to make it clear that marshals do a wonderful, wonderful job.
"They are volunteers, and they do a great job. And my frustration in what I voiced earlier wasn't at marshals, it was at a circumstance.
"So if any offence was taken by any individual, then obviously I apologise for that. But it's still frustrating to end up with the situation that we had.
"I apologised if any offence in any way was created, because it wasn't the intention," he continued. "My frustration wasn't with an individual marshal. It was with a situation where one car had driven through, there was no yellow. One car gets a single yellow, one car gets a double yellow. So it's the inconsistency across that.
"We can learn from that. As a sport we can learn from that, but all the marshals out there: we need you, we think you do a wonderful job. And apologies if any offence was interpreted."
Asked if his comments were a result of the pressure of the championship getting to him, he said: "I think we've actually been fairly pretty good without our emotions. I haven't been pointing and swearing at cameras or that kind of thing.
"I'm straight. I tell you what I think. If I think you are being an arse, I will tell you you are being an arse."
Check out our Sunday gallery from Qatar, here.