Horner explains he would be rather a terrier than a wolf as he reacts to Wolff's accusations
Having been confronted with Toto Wolff's description as a “yapping little terrier," Red Bull team boss Christian Horner cheekily avoided any direct answers, claiming than a wolf.
Following a low-key showing in Qatar F1 Sprint, Max Verstappen bounced back with an eye-catching performance in the main qualifying for Sunday's Qatar Grand Prix. The newly-crowned four-time world champion looked strong from the get-go in the standard qualifying, with Red Bull having made several tweaks to his RB20 following the sprint race.
The Dutchman needed a quick lap in the dying seconds of Q3 to beat George Russell, which he was able to deliver to secure his first pole position since the Austrian Grand Prix.
However, he was stripped of his pole position for a yellow flag incident. The Dutchman was upset by the decision, but he regained the lead at the start of the race, and did not let the victory slip through his fingers despite three safety car interventions.
Pushed on to reflect on the conversation in the stewards' meeting room, Verstappen was upset by Russell's behaviour, explaining that he has never seen someone trying to "screw someone over that hard".
Russell's behaviour promoted Red Bull team boss Christian Horner to describe the Mercedes driver's actions as "hysterical". His Mercedes counterpart then felt the need to react to Horner's word, labelling the Briton as a "yapping little terrier".
Pushed on to reveal what he meant when he described Russell as hysterical, Horner was quick to clear up his words.
"I mean, Toto's quite dramatic, as we all know. I wasn't talking about the psychology of his driver. And when I was referring to hysterics, I was more referring to the roasting that he gave his team when they fitted a set of Hards onto the car when he'd asked for a set of Mediums and expressed his displeasure for the tyre choice that they'd put on the car.
"I'd get fined if I were to repeat the language that was used [then] in this press conference. So look. Obviously, a lot has been said. We know Toto likes to talk a lot, but that's the way it is. I think for us, we just want to finish the season on a high, have a great race, see these guys battle it out, and hopefully everybody then can have a well-earned rest after this race."
Having been confronted with Toto Wolff's description as a “yapping little terrier," Horner cheekily avoided any direct answers, claiming than a wolf.
"Well, look, I love terriers. I think they're great dogs. And I've had four of them. I had a couple of Airedales, which are the king of the terriers. I had a couple of West Highland terriers, called Bernie and Flavio.
"And the good thing about a terrier is they're tremendously loyal. I mean, Bernie, he was an aggressive little dog. He'd go for anybody. And Flavio, he was a bit more chilled out.
"He probably ate a bit too much as well. But look, I think to be called a terrier, is that such a bad thing? They're not afraid of having to go at the bigger dogs? I'd rather be a terrier than a wolf, maybe."
Since the controversial battle betweeen Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton and Red Bull racer Max Verstappen, Wolff and Horner appear to have a relationship with ups and downs despite several photos of the pair smiling with each other. Asked whether the needle is always going to be there between them, Horner simply answered that Wolff appears to love to hate him.
"I really don't know. I mean, it needs to be about what you do on the track. I mean, there's a sort of a love-hate relationship, where I think Toto loves to hate me.
"It's one of those things. I would have assumed he sort of got a bit more on his plate with, you know, obviously it's Lewis's last race for that team. And, yeah, I think they should be celebrating that rather than focusing on other aspects."
