Christian Horner was asked about the legitimacy of the leaked messages and photos that he allegedly sent to the employee at the centre of the misconduct allegations ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix on Saturday.
The Red Bull team principal was talking to Rosanna Tennant on the grid when she asked about the legitimacy of the alleged photos and messages that have dominated the headlines for the past few days.
Horner gave little away with his response, replying: “I can’t comment on messages from an anonymous sender. I am not at liberty to comment on the hearing.”
This was the second time that Horner addressed the matter this weekend. After Thursday’s bombshell email, the 50-year-old insisted that he wouldn’t comment on “anonymous speculation”.
He then added: “But to reiterate I have always denied the allegations. I respected the integrity of the independent investigation and fully cooperated with it every step of the way.
“It was a thorough and fair investigation conducted by an independent specialist barrister and it has concluded dismissing the complaint made. I remain fully focused on the start of the season.”
On Wednesday, the saga looked to have been brought to a conclusion after the investigation into inappropriate behaviour ended and Horner was cleared of any wrongdoing, leaving him free to return to his normal team principal duties.
However, in the aftermath of this news, a Google Drive folder containing alleged leaked messages from the Red Bull boss was sent to a number of paddock journalists, team principals and other key F1 figures.
The FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem made his feelings clear on Friday, telling the Financial Times that the saga was “damaging the sport” and “damaging on a human level”.
He later added: “It is the beginning of the season. F1 is becoming so popular. We just need to enjoy the beginning of the season. Look at the competition. Why do we overshadow it with negativity?”
