We must avoid negative fallout at Red Bull

Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel have been informed by Red Bull management that they should disregard the bad feelings following their clash at the Turkish Grand Prix, and that applies to the upcoming races of the season. For the team’s decision-makers, it is crucial to move forward quickly to prevent the situation from escalating.

With drivers not taking responsibility for the accident, and officials disagreeing on who is to blame for this crash that cost the final victory, there is a real risk of seeing this team demobilize as the season is in full swing.

The fallout from the accident, highlighted by fans and the media, suggests that the Turkish events fall under Webber’s responsibility, while Vettel is exonerated. For the whole team, it won’t be easy to put all this behind them.

However, Red Bull’s director, Christian Horner, has promised to act quickly to try to restore order as soon as possible. He said he would do everything he can to ensure the tensions don’t persist and interfere with the team’s daily life:

The most important thing, and I’ve already experienced this situation with other drivers in other championships, is to face the questions, to stand firm, and that’s exactly what we’re going to do in this case… There is no animosity between the drivers. They are competitive, they are both hungry animals, and it’s up to us to ensure that they learn so it doesn’t happen again.

Horner believes that Webber and Vettel will have understood that not only are they responsible for this disaster in Turkey, but that they are above all the representatives of an entire team that is completely devoted to them.

I think both drivers are going to see all this, they will think about it, it is important that they learn… They represent the Red Bull team even when they are not in the cars, they know that this incident cost them each a large number of points, but not only because the Red Bull team also lost many points.

On his side, Helmut Marko, the advisor of the RBR team, blamed Webber for this incident, while Horner adopted a more balanced view, claiming that both drivers must share this blame.

They should never have been where they were on the track. Both need to realize that. You need a bit of cooperation from both parties involved, and they both played tough and we saw the result immediately.

This collision is at the center of discussions in the F1 microcosm. While Vettel and Webber seemed to be perfect teammates, working in concert, competition has taken over. These drivers are all born competitors; to manage such egos, a team needs to be experienced and structured thanks to long-standing expertise.

It is possible that this race reflects the youth of Red Bull. In contrast, a team like McLaren, which has already managed legendary drivers (Senna, Prost…..), serves as a benchmark.

You always have to learn from your mistakes and move forward. What is certain is that the RBR structure does not lack the talent to meet this challenge.