08/02/2022
NEWS STORY
Red Bull boss, Christian Horner has served his punishment for comments he made about a "rogue" marshal following qualifying for the Qatar Grand Prix.
At the end of a controversial session, which saw Max Verstappen handed a 5-place grid penalty for ignoring double-waved yellows at the end of Q3, Horner hit out at the marshals.
"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 told Sky Sports in the moments after the session.
"They've got to have control of their marshals," he added. "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. There needs to be some grown-ups making grown-up decisions, just having binary, somebody sticks a yellow flag out, it's just frustrating."
Following official warning, Horner said he would be willing to attend the FIA’s International Stewards Programme, echoing Max Verstappen's punishment in early 2019 when he had to attend the Marrakesh E-Prix as an observer for the contretemps he was involved in at Interlagos months earlier.
Over the weekend, Horner served his punishment as he joined stewards from around the world in the two-day programme.
With speakers including Gary Connelly, the course was aimed at improving the standards of marshalling across the various motor sport disciplines.
The Red Bull boss subsequently took part in an online discussion with Charles Leclerc, Formula E champion Antonio Felix da Costa, Toyota WRC boss Jari-Matti Latvala, WRC driver Adrien Fourmaux and Michael Masi, Horner discussing his role as a team principal and the importance of his team's relationship with the FIA.