Christian Horner Accuser Has Filed Formal Complaints To FIA

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Christian Horner’s issues aren’t over it seems. According to a report from the BBC, the accuser of the Red Bull F1 team principal has filed a formal complaint to F1’s governing body the FIA to the FIA’s ethics committee.

Horner was first accused of inappropriate behavior by a female employee, who was dismissed by the team last week, early last month. The team’s ownership group Red Bull GmbH appointed an independent lawyer to oversee an investigation and cleared the team’s longest serving team principal on February 28.

Red Bull announced their findings via a statement on that day:

“The independent investigation into the allegations made against Mr. Horner is complete, and Red Bull can confirm that the grievance has been dismissed,” read the statement.

“The complainant has a right of appeal. Red Bull is confident that the investigation has been fair, rigorous and impartial.

“The investigation report is confidential and contains the private information of the parties and third parties who assisted in the investigation, and therefore we will not be commenting further out of respect for all concerned. Red Bull will continue striving to meet the highest workplace standards.”

As was expected the complainant filed an appeal after the Red Bull decision.

According to the BBC, the first formal complaint by the accuser was made to the FIA ethics and compliance hotline on February 2 and a second complaint on March 6 which referenced the first and warned that the whistleblower would next inform the media.

A day after Horner was cleared by the team a trove of messages allegedly sent by Horner to his accuser were sent to the media along with FIA president Mohamed ben Sulayem, F1 chief executive Stefano Domenicali and the grid’s nine other team principals.

In a statement released Saturday, the FIA said: "Enquiries and complaints are received and managed by the compliance officer, and the ethics committee where appropriate.

"Both bodies operate autonomously, guaranteeing strict confidentiality throughout the process.

"As a consequence, and in general, we are unable to confirm the receipt of any specific complaint and it is unlikely that we will be able to provide further comment on the complaints that we may receive from any parties."

The accusations, and the aftermath seem to have ignited a larger power struggle within the team that pits Horner, team adviser Helmut Marko the team’s start driver Max Verstappen and his father Jos among others. According to the BBC, Chalerm Yoovidhya, a 51% shareholder, has backed Horner and forced 49% shareholders Red Bull GmbH in Austria to back down in trying to force Horner to leave.

Under Horner’s direction Verstappen has won three world titles, and the team won a record 21 races on the 22-race schedule last season. So far this season Verstappen has won the first two races of the season.